166 Child Saf ety
LATCH Lower
anchorages and tether
for children
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a simpler and more practicable way
to attach the ch ild restraint on the vehicle
seat, Federa l regu lations require specia l lower
anchorages in vehicles and dev ices on new
child restraints to attach to the vehicle ancho
rages .
The combination of the tether anchorages and
the lower anchorages is now generally called
the
LAT CH system for " Lower Anchorages and
Tethers for Children ."
F orward-facing child restraints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are required by U.S.
federal regulations to comply with new child head movement performance requirements .
These new performance requirements make a
tether necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a chi ld restraint that requires a top
tether without one can serious ly impair the
performance of the chi ld restraint and its abi l
ity to protect the ch ild in a collision. Installing
a child restraint that requires a top tether
without the top tether may be a v iolation of
state law .
Ch ild restra int manufacturers offer LATCH
lower anchorages on the ir ch ild seats with
hook -on or push-on connectors attached to
adjustable straps .
In addition to the LATCH lower anchorages,
these child restraint systems usually require
the use of tether straps to help keep the child restra int firmly in place .
Tether ancho rage s
Your Audi Cabriolet is not equipped with a
LATCH system. It is no t equ ipped with top
tether anchorages. It is equipped with lower
anchorages only.
Your Cabriolet is equipped with the Active Rollover Protection System, which is integrat- ed into the backrest o
f the rear seat . The Ac
tive Ro llover Protection System dep loys up
wards to he lp provide addit ional protection in
certain co llisions and crash s ituations. For this
reason, your vehicle is
not equipped with top
tether anchorages for use with forward -facing
child restra ints .
In Canada , provinc ial law requ ires that for
ward-fac ing ch ild restra ints use both top teth
er anchorages and lower anchorages; there
fore, it is
not possible to install a forward-fac
ing ch ild restra int in this vehicle.
In the United States , child restraint installa
t ion must conform w ith the child restraint
manufacture r's instructions . Check the in
structions that come w ith the child restra int
o r contact the manufactu rer to determine if
the ch ild restraint may be insta lled fac ing fo r
ward witho ut securing the top tether s trap .
A WARNING
=
Improper installation of child restraints
will increase the r isk of injury and death in
a crash.
- Always follow the instr uctions provided
by the manufacturer of the child re
straint you intend to install in your vehi
cle.
- Improper use of child restraint LATCH
lower anchorage points can lead to injury
in a collision. The LATC H lower anchorage
points are designed to withstand on ly
those loads imposed by correctly fitted
child restraints.
- Never mount two child restra int systems
on one LATC H lower anchorage point .
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other item to the LATCH lower anchorag
es .
(D Tips
In other countries, the term "ISOFIX" is
used to describe the lower anchorages .
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