
10. To disengage the mini-latch from the mini-buckle forstorage, insert the regular latch plate into the black
button on the top of the mini-buckle. The belt will
automatically retract to its stowed position. If neces-
sary, slide the latch plate down the webbing to allow
the belt to retract fully. Insert the mini-latch plate into
the slot provided in the trim panel.
Lap/Shoulder Belt Untwisting Procedure
Use the following procedure to untwist a twisted lap/
shoulder belt.
1. Position the latch plate as close as possible to theanchor point.
2. At about 6 to 12 in (15 to 30 cm) above the latch plate, grasp and twist the belt webbing 180 degrees to create
a fold that begins immediately above the latch plate. 3. Slide the latch plate upward over the folded webbing.
The folded webbing must enter the slot at the top of
the latch plate.
4. Continue to slide the latch plate up until it clears the folded webbing.
Seat Belts In Passenger Seating Positions
The seat belts in the passenger seating positions are
equipped with Automatic Locking Retractors (ALR)
which are used to secure a child restraint system. For
additional information, refer to “Installing Child Re-
straints Using The Vehicle Seat Belt” under the “Child
Restraints” section. The chart below defines the type of
feature for each seating position.
Driver Center Passenger
First Row N/A N/A ALR
Second Row ALR ALR ALR
52 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

•N/A — Not Applicable
• ALR — Automatic Locking Retractor
If the passenger seating position is equipped with an
ALR and is being used for normal usage:
Only pull the belt webbing out far enough to comfortably
wrap around the occupant’s mid-section so as to not
activate the ALR. If the ALR is activated, you will hear a
ratcheting sound as the belt retracts. Allow the webbing
to retract completely in this case and then carefully pull
out only the amount of webbing necessary to comfort-
ably wrap around the occupant’s mid-section. Slide the
latch plate into the buckle until you hear a click.
Automatic Locking Retractor Mode (ALR) — If
Equipped
In this mode, the shoulder belt is automatically pre-
locked. The belt will still retract to remove any slack in the shoulder belt. The Automatic Locking Mode is avail-
able on all passenger-seating positions with a combina-
tion lap/shoulder belt. Use the Automatic Locking Mode
anytime a child safety seat is installed in a seating
position that has a belt with this feature. Children 12
years old and under should always be properly re-
strained in the rear seat.
How To Engage The Automatic Locking Mode
1. Buckle the combination lap and shoulder belt.
2. Grasp the shoulder portion and pull downward until
the entire belt is extracted.
3. Allow the belt to retract. As the belt retracts, you will hear a clicking sound. This indicates the safety belt is
now in the Automatic Locking Mode.
2
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 53

•Air Bag covers may not be obvious in the interior trim,
but they will open during air bag deployment.
• Being too close to the Supplemental Side Air Bag
Inflatable Curtain and/or Seat-Mounted Side Air Bag
during deployment could cause you to be severely
injured or killed.
The system includes side impact sensors that are cali-
brated to deploy the side air bags during impacts that
require air bag occupant protection.
WARNING!
• Your vehicle is equipped with left and right
SABIC, do not stack luggage or other cargo up high
enough to block the location of the SABIC. The
area where the side curtain air bag is located
should remain free from any obstructions.
(Continued)
WARNING! (Continued)
• Do not use accessory seat covers or place objects
between you and the SAB; the performance could
be adversely affected and/or objects could be
pushed into you, causing serious injury.
• If your vehicle is equipped with SABIC air bags,
do not have any accessory items installed which
will alter the roof, including adding a sunroof to
your vehicle. Do not add roof racks that require
permanent attachments (bolts or screws) for instal-
lation on the vehicle roof. Do not drill into the roof
of the vehicle for any reason.
SAB and SABIC air bags are a supplement to the seat belt
restraint system. Occupants, including children who are
up against or very close to SAB or SABIC air bags can be
seriously injured or killed. Occupants, especially chil-
dren, should not lean on or sleep against the door, side
66 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

inflates. This especially applies to children. The side
curtain air bag is only about 3-1/2 in (9 cm) thick when
it is inflated.
Because air bag sensors estimate deceleration over time,
vehicle speed and damage are not good indicators of
whether or not an air bag should have deployed.
NOTE:In a rollover the pretensioners and/or SAB and
SABIC air bags may deploy on both sides of the vehicle.
Front And Side Impact Sensors
In front and side impacts, impact sensors can aid the
ORC in determining appropriate response to impact
events.
Enhanced Accident Response System
In the event of an impact causing air bag deployment, if
the communication network remains intact, and the
power remains intact, depending on the nature of the event the ORC will determine whether to have the
Enhanced Accident Response System perform the follow-
ing functions:
•
Cut off fuel to the engine.
• Flash hazard lights as long as the battery has power or
until the ignition key is turned off.
• Turn on the interior lights, which remain on as long as
the battery has power or until the ignition key is
removed.
• Unlock the doors automatically.
In order to reset the Enhanced Accident Response System
functions after an event, the ignition switch must be
changed from IGN ON to IGN OFF.If A Deployment Occurs
The Advanced Front Air Bags are designed to deflate
immediately after deployment.
2
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 71

restraints with flexible, webbing mounted lower attach-
ments can be installed in any rear seating position.
WARNING!
Never use the same lower anchorage to attach more
than one child restraint. If you are installing LATCH-
compatible child restraints next to each other, you
must use the seat belt for the center position. You can
then use either the LATCH anchors or the vehicle’s
seat belt for installing child seats in the outboard
positions. Please refer to “Installing The LATCH-
Compatible Child Restraint System” for typical in-
stallation instructions.
Always follow the directions of the child restraint manu-
facturer when installing your child restraint. Not all child
restraint systems will be installed as described here.
To Install A LATCH-compatible Child Restraint
1. If the selected seating position has a Switchable Auto- matic Locking Retractor (ALR) seat belt, stow the seat
belt, following the instructions below. See the section
“Installing Child Restraints Using the Vehicle Seat
Belt” to check what type of seat belt each seating
position has.
2. Loosen the adjusters on the lower straps and on the tether strap of the child seat so that you can more
easily attach the hooks or connectors to the vehicle
anchorages.
3. Place the child seat between the lower anchorages for that seating position. For some second row seats, you
may need to recline the seat and / or raise the head
restraint to get a better fit.
2
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 87

4. Attach the lower hooks or connectors of the childrestraint to the lower anchorages in the selected seat-
ing position.
5. If the child restraint has a tether strap, connect it to the top tether anchorage. See the section “Installing Child
Restraints Using the Top Tether Anchorage” for direc-
tions to attach a tether anchor.
6. Tighten all of the straps as you push the child restraint rearward and downward into the seat. Remove slack
in the straps according to the child restraint manufac-
turer ’s instructions.
7. Test that the child restraint is installed tightly by pulling back and forth on the child seat at the belt
path. It should not move more than 1 inch (25.4 mm)
in any direction.How To Stow An Unused ALR Seatbelt
When using the LATCH attaching system to install a
child restraint, stow all ALR seat belts that are not being
used by other occupants or being used to secure child
restraints. An unused belt could injure a child if they play
with it and accidentally lock the seatbelt retractor. Before
installing a child restraint using the LATCH system,
buckle the seat belt behind the child restraint and out of
the child’s reach. If the buckled seat belt interferes with
the child restraint installation, instead of buckling it
behind the child restraint, route the seat belt through the
child restraint belt path and then buckle it. Do not lock
the seatbelt. Remind all children in the vehicle that the
seat belts are not toys and that they should not play with
them.
88 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE

WARNING!
Improper installation of a child restraint to the
LATCH anchorages can lead to failure of the re-
straint. The child could be badly injured or killed.
Follow the child restraint manufacturer ’s directions
exactly when installing an infant or child restraint.
Installing Child Restraints Using The Vehicle Seat
Belt
The seat belts in the passenger seating positions are
equipped with either a Switchable Automatic Locking
Retractor (ALR) or a cinching latch plate or both. Both
types of seat belts are designed to keep the lap portion ofthe seat belt tight around the child restraint so that it is
not necessary to use a locking clip. The ALR retractor can
be “switched” into a locked mode by pulling all of the
webbing out of the retractor and then letting the webbing
retract back into the retractor. If it is locked, the ALR will
make a clicking noise while the webbing is pulled back
into the retractor. For additional information on ALR,
refer to the “Automatic Locking Mode” description un-
der “Occupant Restraints.” The cinching latch plate is
designed to hold the lap portion of the seatbelt tight
when webbing is pulled tight and straight through a
child restraint’s belt path. Please see the table below and
the following sections for more information about both
types of seat belts.
2
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE 89

Installing A Child Restraint with a Switchable
Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR)
1. Place the child seat in the center of the seatingposition. For some second row seats, you may need to
recline the seat and/or raise the head restraint to get a
better fit.
2. Pull enough of the seat belt webbing from the retractor to pass it through the belt path of the child restraint.
Do not twist the belt webbing in the belt path.
3. Slide the latch plate into the buckle until you hear a “click.”
4. Pull on the webbing to make the lap portion tight against the child seat.
5. To lock the seat belt, pull down on the shoulder part of the belt until you have pulled all the seat belt webbing
out of the retractor. Then, allow the webbing to retract back into the retractor. As the webbing retracts, you
will hear a clicking sound. This means the seat belt is
now in the Automatic Locking mode.
6. Try to pull the webbing out of the retractor. If it is locked, you should not be able to pull out any web-
bing. If the retractor is not locked, repeat step 5.
7. Finally, pull up on any excess webbing to tighten the lap portion around the child restraint while you push
the child restraint rearward and downward into the
vehicle seat.
8. If the child restraint has a top tether strap and the seating position has a top tether anchorage, connect
the tether strap to the anchorage and tighten the tether
strap. Refer to “Lower Anchors and Tethers for Chil-
dren (LATCH) Restraint System” for directions to
attach a tether anchor.
92 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE