Child safety
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The conver tible locking re trac tor for child re
s train ts will be deactivated automatically when
the belt is wound all the way bock into the re
tractor .
.,. Press the red button on the safety belt buckle.
The belt tongue w ill pop out of the buckle .
.,. Gu ide the safety belt all the way back into its
stowed pos ition .
Always let the safety belt retract completely into its stowed position . The safety belt can now be
used as an ordinary safety be lt without the con
ve rt ible locking retractor for child restraints .
If the convert ible lock ing retractor should be ac
tivated inadvertently, the safety belt must be un
fastened and guided completely back into its
stowed position to deact ivate this feature. If the
convertible lock ing re tractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt w ill gradually become tighte r and
uncomfortable to wea r.
A WARNING -
Improperly installed child safety seats in
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deactivate
the convertible locking retractor for child re
straints while the vehicle is moving. You
would not be restrained and could be seri
ously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used ¢
page 159. Special precaut ions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 136, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
172
LATCH system (Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children)
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a s impler and more practicab le way to
attach the ch ild rest raint on the vehicle seat,
Federal regulations require special lower ancho
rages in vehicles and devices on new ch ild re
straints to attach to the vehicle anchorages .
In the United States, the combination of the
tether anchorages and the lower anchorages is
now generally called the LATCH system for
" Lower Anchorages and Tethers for Children". In
Canada, the terms "top tether" with "lower uni
versa l anchorages" (or "lower universal anchor
age bars") are used to describe the system .
In other countries the term "ISOFIX" is used to
describe the lower anchorages.
Forward-facing child restraints manufactured af
te r September 1, 1999, are required by U.S. fed
eral regu lations to comply with new child head
movement performance requirements . These
new performance requ irements make a tether
necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a chi ld rest raint that requires a top
tether without one can seriously impair the per
formance of the child restraint and its ability to
protect the child in a collision. Installing a child
restraint that requires a top tether without the
top tether may be a violation of state law .
Child restraint manufacturers offer LA TCH lower
anchorages on their child seats with hook-on or push-on connectors attached to adjustable
straps .
In addition to the LA TCH lower anchorages, these
child restraint systems usually require the use of
tether straps to help keep the child restraint
firmly in place .
A WARNING
Improper installation of child restra ints w ill
increase the risk of injury and death in a
crash.
