2013 FORD SUPER DUTY child seat

9. Check from time to time to be sure that there is no slack in the lap
and shoulder belt. The shoulder belt must be snug to keep the lap belt
tight during a collision.
Ford recommends checking with a NHTSA Certified Child Passenger
Safety Technician to make certain the child restraint is properly installed.
In Canada, check with your local St. John Ambulance office for referral
to a Child Passenger Safety Technician.
Using Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren (LATCH)
The LATCH system is composed of three vehicle anchor points: two
lower anchors located where the vehicle seat back and seat cushion meet
(called the seat bight) and one top tether anchor located behind that
seating position. Your vehicle is not equipped with the lower anchor
points in the seat bight. For this vehicle, use the vehicle safety belt and
upper tether to secure a child seat. SeeUsing Tether Strapsand
Recommendations for Safety Restraints for Childrenin this chapter
for more information.
Using Tether Straps
Many forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap which
extends from the back of the child safety seat and hooks to an anchoring
point called the top tether anchor. Tether straps are available as an
accessory for many older safety seats. Contact the manufacturer of your
child seat for information about ordering a tether strap, or to obtain a
longer tether strap if the tether strap on your safety seat does not reach
the appropriate top tether anchor in the vehicle.
The passenger seats of your vehicle may be equipped with built-in tether
strap anchors located behind the seats as described below.
The tether anchors in your vehicle may be straps on the seat back or an
anchor bracket mounted to the body shell on the back panel.
The SuperCab rear seat has three straps behind the top of the seat back
that function as both routing loops for the tether straps and anchor
loops.
Child Safety31
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

The tether strap anchors in your vehicle are in the following positions
(shown from top view):
•F-Series Regular Cab
•F-Series SuperCab
•F-Series Crew Cab
Attach the tether strap only to the appropriate tether anchor as shown.
The tether strap may not work properly if attached somewhere other
than the correct tether anchor.
Once the child safety seat has been installed using the safety belt, you
can attach the top tether strap.
32Child Safety
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

Tether Strap Attachment
1. Route the child safety seat tether strap over the back of the seat.
For vehicles with adjustable head restraints, route the tether strap under
the head restraint and between the head restraint posts, otherwise route
the tether strap over the top of the seat back. If the top of the safety
seat hits the head restraint, raise the head restraint to let the child seat
fit further rearward.
2. Locate the correct anchor for the selected seating position.
3. You may need to pull the seatback forward to access the tether
anchors. Make sure the seat is locked in the upright position before
installing the child seat.
4. Remove the tether cover.
5. Clip the tether strap to the anchor as shown.
•Front seats (Regular Cab)/Rear
seats (Crew Cab)
If the tether strap is clipped incorrectly, the child safety seat may not be
retained properly in the event of a collision.
6. Tighten the child safety seat tether strap according to the
manufacturer’s instructions.
Child Safety33
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child being
injured in a collision greatly increases.
If your child restraint system is equipped with a tether strap, and the
child restraint manufacturer recommends its use, Ford also recommends
its use.
Tether Strap Attachment (Rear SuperCab Only)
There are three loops of webbing just above the back of the rear seat
(along the bottom edge of the rear window) in the SuperCab. These
loops are to be used as both routing loops and anchor loops for up to
three child safety seat tether straps.
These straps may be secured below the back of the seat with rubber
bands. To access, reach below the back of the seat and pull tether loop
out of the rubber band securing it.
Many tether straps cannot be tightened if the tether strap is hooked to
the loop directly behind the child seat. To provide a tight tether strap:
1. Route the tether strap through
the loop directly behind the child
seat.
2. Attach the strap hook onto the
loop behind an adjacent seating
position.
34Child Safety
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

3. Install the child safety seat tightly
using the vehicle belts. Follow the
instructions in this chapter.
4. Tighten the tether strap
according to the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions.
A single loop can be used to route and anchor more than one child seat.
For example, the center loop can be used as a routing loop for a child
safety seat in the center rear seat and as an anchoring loop for child
seats installed in the outboard rear seats.
CHILD SAFETY LOCKS (IF EQUIPPED)
When these locks are set, the rear doors cannot be opened from the
inside.
The childproof locks are located on
the rear edge of each rear door and
must be set separately for each
door.
Move the lock control up or down
to engage or disengage the
childproof lock.
Child Safety35
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION
WARNING:Always drive and ride with your seat back upright
and the lap belt snug and low across the hips.
WARNING:To reduce the risk of injury, make sure children sit
where they can be properly restrained.
WARNING:Never let a passenger hold a child on his or her lap
while the vehicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the
child from injury in a crash.
WARNING:All occupants of the vehicle, including the driver,
should always properly wear their safety belts, even when an
airbag supplemental restraint system is provided.
WARNING:It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area,
inside or outside of a vehicle. In a crash, people riding in these
areas are more likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not allow
people to ride in any area of your vehicle that is not equipped with
seats and safety belts. Be sure everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and
using a safety belt properly.
WARNING:In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is
significantly more likely to die than a person wearing a safety
belt.
WARNING:Each seating position in your vehicle has a specific
safety belt assembly which is made up of one buckle and one
tongue that are designed to be used as a pair. 1) Use the shoulder belt
on the outside shoulder only. Never wear the shoulder belt under the
arm. 2) Never swing the safety belt around your neck over the inside
shoulder. 3) Never use a single belt for more than one person.
WARNING:When possible, all children 12 years old and under
should be properly restrained in a rear seating position.
36Safety Belts
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

WARNING:Safety belts and seats can become hot in a vehicle
that has been closed up in sunny weather; they could burn a
small child. Check seat covers and buckles before you place a child
anywhere near them.
WARNING:Front and rear seat occupants, including pregnant
women, should wear safety belts for optimum protection in an
accident.
All seating positions in this vehicle have lap and shoulder safety belts. All
occupants of the vehicle should always properly wear their safety belts,
even when an airbag supplemental restraint system is provided.
The safety belt system consists of:
•lap and shoulder safety belts.
•shoulder safety belt with automatic locking mode, (except driver
safety belt).
•height adjuster at the front outboard seating positions
•safety belt pretensioner at the front outboard seating positions.
•Safety belt warning light and chime. SeeSafety Belt
Warning Light and Indicator Chimelater in this chapter.
•Crash sensors and monitoring system with readiness
indicator. SeeCrash Sensors and Airbag Indicatorin the
Supplemental Restraints Systemchapter.
The safety belt pretensioners are designed to activate in frontal,
near-frontal and side crashes, and in rollovers. The safety belt
pretensioners at the front seating positions are designed to tighten the
safety belts firmly against the occupant’s body when activated. This helps
increase the effectiveness of the safety belts. In frontal crashes, the
safety belt pretensioners can be activated alone or, if the crash is of
sufficient severity, together with the front airbags.
Safety Belts37
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

Restraint of Pregnant Women
WARNING:Always ride and drive with your seat back upright
and the safety belt properly fastened. The lap portion of the
safety belt should fit snug and be positioned low across the hips. The
shoulder portion of the safety belt should be positioned across the
chest. Pregnant women should also follow this practice. See the
following figure.
Pregnant women should always
wear their safety belts. The lap belt
portion of a combination lap and
shoulder belt should be positioned
low across the hips below the belly
and worn as tight as comfort will
allow. The shoulder belt should be
positioned to cross the middle of
the shoulder and the center of the
chest.
Safety Belt Locking Modes
WARNING:After any vehicle crash, the safety belt system at all
passenger seating positions must be checked by an authorized
dealer to verify that the automatic locking retractor feature for child
seats is still functioning properly. In addition, all safety belts should be
checked for proper function.
WARNING:BELT AND RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY MUST BE
REPLACED if the safety belt assembly automatic locking
retractor feature or any other safety belt function is not operating
properly when checked by an authorized dealer. Failure to replace the
belt and retractor assembly could increase the risk of injury in crashes.
40Safety Belts
2013 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide gf, 1st Printing
USA(fus)