2012 JEEP WRANGLER Owners Manual

To read data recorded by an EDR, special equipment is
required, and access to the vehicle or the EDR is needed.
In addition to the vehicle manufacturer, other parties,
such as law enforcement, that have the special equip-
ment, can read the information if they have access to the
vehicle or the EDR.
Child Restraints
Everyone in your vehicle needs to be buckled up at all
times, including babies and children. Every state in the
United States and all Canadian provinces require that
small children ride in proper restraint systems. This is the
law, and you can be prosecuted for ignoring it.
Children 12 years or under should ride properly buckled
up in a rear seat, if available. According to crash statistics,
children are safer when properly restrained in the rear
seats, rather than in the front.
There are different sizes and types of restraints for
children from newborn size to the child almost largeenough for an adult safety belt. Always check the child
seat owner’s manual to ensure you have the correct seat
for your child. Use the restraint that is correct for your
child.
WARNING!
In a collision, an unrestrained child, even a tiny baby,
can become a projectile inside the vehicle. The force
required to hold even an infant on your lap could
become so great that you could not hold the child, no
matter how strong you are. The child and others
could be badly injured. Any child riding in your
vehicle should be in a proper restraint for the child’s
size.
Infants And Child Restraints
Safety experts recommend that children ride rearward-
facing in the vehicle until they are two years old or until
they reach either the height or weight limit of their rear
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 71

facing child safety seat. Two types of child restraints can
be used rearward-facing: infant carriers and convertible
child seats.
The infant carrier is only used rearward-facing in the
vehicle. It is recommended for children from birth until
they reach the weight or height limit of the infant carrier.
Convertible child seats can be used either rearward-
facing or forward-facing in the vehicle. Convertible child
seats often have a higher weight limit in the rearward-
facing direction than infant carriers do, so they can be
used rearward-facing by children who have outgrown
their infant carrier but are still less than at least two years
old. Children should remain rearward-facing until they
reach the highest weight or height allowed by their
convertible child seat. Both types of child restraints are
held in the vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt or the
LATCH child restraint anchor system. Refer to “Lower
Anchors and Tether for CHildren (LATCH)”.WARNING!
•Rearward-facing child seats must never be used in
the front seat of a vehicle with the front passenger
air bag. An air bag deployment could cause severe
injury or death to infants in this position.
•Improper installation can lead to failure of an
infant or child restraint. It could come loose in a
collision. The child could be badly injured or
killed. Follow the manufacturer’s directions ex-
actly when installing an infant or child restraint.
Here are some tips for getting the most out of your child
restraint:
•Before buying any restraint system, make sure that it
has a label certifying that it meets all applicable Safety
Standards. The manufacturer also recommends that
you try a child restraint in the vehicle seats where you
will use it before you buy it.
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•The restraint must be appropriate for your child’s
weight and height. Check the label on the restraint for
weight and height limits.
•Carefully follow the instructions that come with the
restraint. If you install the restraint improperly, it may
not work when you need it.
•The seat belts in the passenger seating positions are
equipped with either an Automatic Locking Retractor
(ALR) or a cinching latch plate or both. Both types of
seat belts are designed to keep the lap portion of the
seat belt tight around the child restraint so that it is not
necessary to use a locking clip. The ALR will make a
ratcheting noise if you extract the entire belt from the
retractor and then allow the belt to retract into the
retractor. For additional information on ALR, refer to
“Automatic Locking Mode”.
•In the rear seat, you may have trouble tightening the
lap/shoulder belt on the child restraint because the
buckle or latch plate is too close to the belt path
opening on the restraint. Disconnect the latch plate
from the buckle and twist the short buckle-end belt
several times to shorten it. Insert the latch plate into
the buckle with the release button facing out.
•If the belt still cannot be tightened, or if pulling and
pushing on the restraint loosens the belt, disconnect
the latch plate from the buckle, turn the buckle
around, and insert the latch plate into the buckle
again. If you still cannot make the child restraint
secure, try a different seating position.
•Buckle the child into the restraint exactly as the
manufacturer’s instructions tell you.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 73

WARNING!
When your child restraint is not in use, secure it in
the vehicle with the seat belt or remove it from the
vehicle. Do not leave it loose in the vehicle. In a
sudden stop or accident, it could strike the occupants
or seatbacks and cause serious personal injury.
Older Children And Child Restraints
Children who are two years old or who have outgrown
their rear-facing convertible child seat can ride forward-
facing in the vehicle. Forward-facing child seats and
convertible child seats used in the forward-facing direc-
tion are for children who are over two years old or who
have outgrown the rear-facing weight or height limit of
their rear-facing convertible child seat. Children should
remain in a forward-facing child seat with a harness for
as long as possible, up to the highest weight or height
allowed by the child seat. These child seats are also heldin the vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt or the LATCH
child restraint anchorage system. Refer to “Lower An-
chors and Tether for CHildren (LATCH)”.
All children whose weight or height is above the
forward-facing limit for the child seat should use a
belt-positioning booster seat until the vehicle’s seat belts
fit properly. If the child cannot sit with knees bent over
the vehicle’s seat cushion while the child’s back is against
the seatback, they should use a belt-positioning booster
seat. The child and belt-positioning booster seat are held
in the vehicle by the lap/shoulder belt.
Children Too Large For Booster Seats
Children who are large enough to wear the shoulder belt
comfortably, and whose legs are long enough to bend
over the front of the seat when their back is against the
seatback, should use the lap/shoulder belt in a rear seat.
•Make sure that the child is upright in the seat.
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•The lap portion should be low on the hips and as snug
as possible.
•Check belt fit periodically. A child’s squirming or
slouching can move the belt out of position.
•If the shoulder belt contacts the face or neck, move the
child closer to the center of the vehicle. Never allow a
child to put the shoulder belt under an arm or behind
the back.
NOTE: For additional information, refer to
www.seatcheck.org or call 1–866–SEATCHECK. Cana-
dian residents should refer to Transport Canada’s web-
site for additional information: http://www.tc.gc.ca/
roadsafety/safedrivers/childsafety/index.htm
Installing The Child Restraint System
We urge you to carefully follow the directions of the
manufacturer when installing your child restraint. Many,
but not all, restraint systems will be equipped with separate straps on each side, with each having a hook or
connector for attachment to the lower anchorage, and a
means for adjusting the tension of the strap. Forward-
facing toddler restraints and some rearward-facing infant
restraints will also be equipped with a tether strap having
a hook for attachment to the tether strap anchorage, and
a means for adjusting the tension of the strap.
In general, you will first loosen the adjusters on the lower
and tether straps so that you can more easily attach the
hook or connector to the lower and tether anchorages.
The tether strap should be routed under the center of the
head restraint and attached to the tether anchor on the
rear of the seatback. Then tighten all three straps as you
push the child restraint rearward and downward into the
seat.
Not all child restraint systems will be installed as we
have described here. Again, carefully follow the instruc-
tions that come with the child restraint system.
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 75

NOTE:If your child restraint seat is not LATCH-
compatible, install the restraint using the vehicle seat
belts.
WARNING!
An incorrectly anchored tether strap could lead to
increased head motion and possible injury to the
child. Use only the anchor position directly behind the
child seat to secure a child restraint top tether strap.
Lower Anchors and Tether for CHildren (LATCH)
The rear seating positions have lower anchor-
ages capable of accommodating LATCH-
compatible child seats having flexible,
webbing-mounted lower attachments and child
seats with fixed lower attachments. The rear seat lower
anchors can be readily identified by the symbol located on
the seatback directly above the anchorages and are just
visible when you lean into the rear seat to install the child restraint. You will easily feel them if you run your finger
along the intersection of the seatback and seat cushion
surfaces. Regardless of the specific type of lower attach-
ment, never install LATCH-compatible child seats such
that two seats share a common lower anchorage.
The LATCH system provides for the installation of the
child restraint without using the vehicle’s seat belts,
instead securing the child restraint using lower anchor-
ages and upper tether straps from the child restraint to
the vehicle structure.
LATCH-compatible child restraint systems are now avail-
able. However, because the lower anchorages are to be
introduced over a period of years, child restraint systems
having attachments for those anchorages will continue to
also have features for installation using the vehicle’s seat
belts. Child restraints having tether straps and hooks for
connection to the top tether anchorages have been avail-
able for some time. For some older child restraints, many
76 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

child restraint manufacturers offer add-on tether strap
kits or retro-fit kits. You are urged to take advantage of all
the available attachments provided with your child re-
straint in any vehicle.
NOTE:When using the LATCH attaching system to
install a child restraint, please ensure that all seat belts
not being used for occupant restraints are stowed and out
of reach of children. It is recommended that before
installing the child restraint, buckle the seat belt so the
seat belt is tucked behind the child restraint and out of
reach. If the buckled seat belt interferes with the child
restraint installation, instead of tucking the seat belt
behind the child restraint, route the seat belt through the
child restraint belt path and then buckle it. This should
stow the seat belt out of the reach of an inquisitive child.
Remind all children in the vehicle that the seat belts are
not toys and should not be played with, and never leave
an unattended child in the vehicle. All three rear seating positions of the four-door model
have lower anchorages that are capable of accommodat-
ing LATCH-compatible child seats having flexible,
webbing-mounted lower attachments. The two-door
model can accommodate flexible LATCH-compatible
child seats in the two outboard seating positions only.
The two-door model does not have a center seating
position. Child seats with fixed lower attachments must
be installed in the outboard positions only in both the
two-door and four-door models. Regardless of the spe-
cific type of lower attachment, never install LATCH-
compatible child seats such that two seats share a com-
mon lower anchorage.
If you are installing LATCH-compatible child restraints
in adjacent rear seating positions, you can use the
LATCH anchors or the vehicle’s seat belt for the outboard
position, but you must use the vehicle’s seat belt at the
center position. If your child restraints are not LATCH-
compatible, you can only install the child restraints using
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THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 77

the vehicle’s seat belts. Please refer to “Installing Child
Restraints Using The Vehicle Seat Belt” for typical instal-
lation instructions.
Installing The LATCH-Compatible Child Restraint
System
We urge you to carefully follow the directions of the
manufacturer when installing your child restraint. Not all
child restraint systems will be installed as described here.
Again, carefully follow the installation instructions that
were provided with the child restraint system.The rear seat lower anchorages are round bars,
located at the rear of the seat cushion where it
meets the seatback, and are visible when you
lean into the rear seat to install the child
restraint. You will easily feel them if you run your finger
along the intersection of the seatback and seat cushion
surfaces.
Latch Anchorages (Two-Door Models)
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