2015 FORD EXPEDITION Owners Manual

The LATCH anchors are located at the rear section of the rear seat
between the cushion and seatback, below the locator symbols on the
seatback. Follow the child seat manufacturer’s instructions to properly
install a child seat with LATCH attachments.
The locator symbols are on round plastic buttons for the center seat and
on rectangular tags for the outboard seats.
Follow the instructions on attaching child safety seats with tether straps.
SeeUsing Tether Strapsin this chapter.
Attach LATCH lower attachments of the child seat only to the anchors
shown.
Each time you use the safety seat, check that the seat is properly
attached to the lower anchors and tether anchor, if applicable. Tug the
child seat from side to side and forward and back where it is secured to
the vehicle. The seat should move less than one inch when you do this
for a proper installation.
If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child being
injured in a crash greatly increases.
Combining Safety Belt and LATCH Lower Anchors for Attaching
Child Safety Seats
When used in combination, either the safety belt or the LATCH lower
anchors may be attached first, provided a proper installation is achieved.
Attach the tether strap afterward, if included with the child seat.
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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.
Some of the rear seats of your vehicle are equipped with built-in tether
strap anchors located behind the seats as described below.
In the third row center seating position, the tether anchor is a loop at
the bottom of the seat back.
The tether strap anchors in your vehicle are in the following positions
(shown from top view).
•Second row bench seat
•Second row bucket seats
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 either the safety belt,
the lower anchors of the LATCH system, or both, you can attach the top
tether strap.
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If you install a child seat with rigid LATCH attachments, and have
attached the top tether strap to the proper top tether anchor, do not
tighten the tether strap enough to lift the child seat off the vehicle seat
cushion when the child is seated in it. Keep the tether strap just snug
without lifting the front of the child seat. Keeping the child seat just
touching the vehicle seat gives the best protection in a severe crash.
Perform the following steps to install a child safety seat with tether
anchors:
Second row seating positions
1. For center seating positions, route the child safety seat tether strap
over the back of the seat.
For outboard seating positions, route the tether strap under the head
restraint and between the head restraint posts. If the top of the safety
seat hits the head restraint, recline the seat back slightly to obtain
proper fit.
2. Locate the correct anchor for the selected seating position.
•Second row outboard seating
positions
•Second row center seating
position (if equipped)
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3. Grasp the tether strap and
position it to the seat frame.
4. Rotate the tether strap, and clip
the tether strap to the anchor on
the seat frame.
5. Rotate the tether strap clip.
6. Tighten the child safety seat tether strap according to the
manufacturer’s instructions.
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Third row center seating position
1. Route the child safety seat tether strap over the back of the seat.
2. Locate the anchor webbing loop for the seating position.
•You may need to pull back the top of the hinged panel along the
bottom of the seat back to access the tether anchor.
3. Clip the tether strap through the anchor loop as shown. If the tether
strap is clipped incorrectly, the child safety seat may not be retained
properly in the event of a crash.
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4. Tighten the child safety seat
tether strap according to the
manufacturer’s instructions. If the
safety seat is not anchored properly,
the risk of a child being injured in a
crash 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.
BOOSTER SEATS
WARNING:Never place, or allow a child to place, the shoulder
belt under a child’s arm or behind the back because it reduces
the protection for the upper part of the body and may increase the risk
of injury or death in a crash.
Use a belt-positioning booster seat for children who have outgrown or no
longer properly fit in a child safety seat (generally children who are less
than 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 meters) tall, are greater than age four (4) and
less than age twelve (12), and between 40 pounds (18 kilograms) and
80 pounds (36 kilograms) and upward to 100 pounds (45 kilograms) if
recommended by your child restraint manufacturer). Many state and
provincial laws require that children use approved booster seats until
they reach age eight (8), a height of 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 meters) tall, or
80 pounds (36 kilograms).
Booster seats should be used until you can answer YES to ALL of these
questions when the child is seated without a booster seat.
•Can the child sit all the way
back against their vehicle seat
with knees bent comfortably at
the edge of the seat cushion?
•Can the child sit without
slouching?
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•Does the lap belt rest low across the hips?
•Is the shoulder belt centered on the shoulder and chest?
•Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
Always use booster seats in conjunction with your vehicle lap and
shoulder belt.
Types of Booster Seats
•Backless booster seats
If your backless booster seat has a removable shield, remove the shield.
If a vehicle seating position has a low seatback or no head restraint, a
backless booster seat may place your child’s head (as measured at the
tops of the ears) above the top of the seat. In this case, move the
backless booster to another seating position with a higher seatback or
head restraint and lap and shoulder belts, or consider using a high back
booster seat.
•High back booster seats
If, with a backless booster seat, you cannot find a seating position that
adequately supports your child’s head, a high back booster seat would be
a better choice.
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Children and booster seats vary in size and shape. Choose a booster that
keeps the lap belt low and snug across the hips, never up across the
stomach, and lets you adjust the shoulder belt to cross the chest and
rest snugly near the center of the shoulder. The following drawings
compare the ideal fit (center) to a shoulder belt uncomfortably close to
the neck and a shoulder belt that could slip off the shoulder. The
drawings also show how the lap belt should be low and snug across the
child’s hips.
If the booster seat slides on the vehicle seat upon which it is being used,
placing a rubberized mesh sold as shelf or carpet liner under the booster
seat may improve this condition. Do not introduce any item thicker than
this under the booster seat. Check with the booster seat manufacturer’s
instructions.
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