Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
86 Seats and Restraints
{Warning
Children who are up against,
or very close to, any airbag when
it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. Never put a rear-facing
child restraint in the front
outboard seat. Secure a
rear-facing child restraint in a rear
seat. It is also better to secure a
forward-facing child restraint in a
rear seat. If you must secure a
forward-facing child restraint in
the front outboard seat, always
move the front passenger seat as
far back as it will go.
Child restraints are devices used torestrain, seat, or position children inthe vehicle and are sometimescalled child seats or car seats.
There are three basic types ofchild restraints:
.Forward-facing child restraints
.Rearward-facing child restraints
.Belt-positioning booster seats
The proper child restraint for yourchild depends on their size, weight,and age, and also on whether thechild restraint is compatible with thevehicle in which it will be used.
For each type of child restraint,there are many different modelsavailable. When purchasing a childrestraint, be sure it is designed to beused in a motor vehicle. If it is, therestraint will have a label saying thatit meets federal motor vehicle safetystandards. The restraintmanufacturer's instructions thatcome with the restraint state theweight and height limitations for aparticular child restraint. In addition,there are many kinds of restraintsavailable for children with specialneeds.
{Warning
To r e d u c e t h e r i s k o f n e c k a n d
head injury in a crash, infants and
toddlers should be secured in a
rear-facing child restraint until age
two, or until they reach the
maximum height and weight limits
of their child restraint.
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 87
{Warning
Ayoungchild'shipbonesarestill
so small that the vehicle's regular
safety belt may not remain low on
the hip bones, as it should.
Instead, it may settle up around
the child's abdomen. In a crash,
the belt would apply force on a
body area that is unprotected by
any bony structure. This alone
could cause serious or fatal
injuries. To reduce the risk of
serious or fatal injuries during a
crash, young children should
always be secured in appropriate
child restraints.
Child Restraint Systems
Rear-Facing Infant Seat
Arear-facingchildrestraintprovidesrestraint with the seating surfaceagainst the back of the infant.
The harness system holds the infantin place and, in a crash, acts tokeep the infant positioned in therestraint.
Forward-Facing Child Seat
Aforward-facingchildrestraintprovides restraint for the child'sbody with the harness.
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
88 Seats and Restraints
Booster Seats
Abelt-positioningboosterseatisused for children who haveoutgrown their forward-facing childrestraint. Boosters are designed toimprove the fit of the vehicle's safetybelt system until the child is largeenough for the vehicle safety beltsto fit properly without a booster seat.See the safety belt fit test inOlderChildren083.
Securing an Add-On Child
Restraint in the Vehicle
{Warning
Achildcanbeseriouslyinjuredor
killed in a crash if the child
restraint is not properly secured in
the vehicle. Secure the child
restraint properly in the vehicle
using the vehicle’ssafetybeltor
LATCH system, following the
instructions that came with that
child restraint and the instructions
in this manual.
To h e l p r e d u c e t h e c h a n c e o f i n j u r y,the child restraint must be securedin the vehicle. Child restraintsystems must be secured in vehicleseats by lap belts or the lap beltportion of a lap-shoulder belt, or bythe LATCH system. SeeLowerAnchors and Tethers for Children(LATCH System)090for moreinformation. Children can beendangered in a crash if the childrestraint is not properly secured inthe vehicle.
When securing an add-on childrestraint, refer to the instructionsthat come with the restraint whichmay be on the restraint itself or in abooklet, or both, and to this manual.The child restraint instructions areimportant, so if they are notavailable, obtain a replacementcopy from the manufacturer.
Keep in mind that an unsecuredchild restraint can move around in acollision or sudden stop and injurepeople in the vehicle. Be sure toproperly secure any child restraint inthe vehicle—even when no child isin it.
In some areas of the United Statesand Canada, Certified ChildPassenger Safety Technicians(CPSTs) are available to inspectand demonstrate how to correctlyuse and install child restraints. Inthe U.S., refer to the NationalHighway Traffic SafetyAdministration (NHTSA) website tolocate the nearest child safety seatinspection station. For CPSTavailability in Canada, check withTransport Canada or the ProvincialMinistry of Transportation office.
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 89
Securing the Child Within the
Child Restraint
{Warning
Achildcanbeseriouslyinjuredor
killed in a crash if the child is not
properly secured in the child
restraint. Secure the child
properly following the instructions
that came with that child restraint.
Where to Put the
Restraint
According to accident statistics,children and infants are safer whenproperly restrained in an appropriatechild restraint secured in a rearseating position.
Whenever possible, children aged12 and under should be secured inarearseatingposition.
Never put a rear-facing childrestraint in the front. This is becausethe risk to the rear-facing child is sogreat if the airbag deploys.
{Warning
Achildinarear-facingchild
restraint can be seriously injured
or killed if the front passenger
airbag inflates. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child
restraint would be very close to
the inflating airbag. A child in a
forward-facing child restraint can
be seriously injured or killed if the
front passenger airbag inflates
and the passenger seat is in a
forward position.
Even if the passenger sensing
system has turned off the front
passenger frontal airbag, no
system is fail-safe. No one can
guarantee that an airbag will not
deploy under some unusual
circumstance, even though it is
turned off.
Secure rear-facing child restraints
in a rear seat, even if the airbag
is off. If you secure a
forward-facing child restraint in
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
the front seat, always move the
front passenger seat as far back
as it will go. It is better to secure
the child restraint in a rear seat.
SeePassenger Sensing System
077for additional information.
When securing a child restraint in arear seating position, study theinstructions that came with the childrestraint to make sure it iscompatible with this vehicle.
Child restraints and booster seatsvary considerably in size, and somemay fit in certain seating positionsbetter than others.
Depending on where you place thechild restraint and the size of thechild restraint, you may not be ableto access adjacent safety belts orLATCH anchors for additionalpassengers or child restraints.Adjacent seating positions shouldnot be used if the child restraintprevents access to or interferes withthe routing of the safety belt.
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 93
Securing a Child Restraint
Designed for the LATCH
System
{Warning
If a LATCH-type child restraint is
not attached to anchors, the child
restraint will not be able to protect
the child correctly. In a crash, the
child could be seriously injured or
killed. Install a LATCH-type child
restraint properly using the
anchors, or use the vehicle's
safety belts to secure the
restraint, following the instructions
that came with the child restraint
and the instructions in this
manual.
{Warning
To r e d u c e t h e r i s k o f s e r i o u s o r
fatal injuries during a crash, do
not attach more than one child
restraint to a single anchor.
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
Attaching more than one child
restraint to a single anchor could
cause the anchor or attachment
to come loose or even break
during a crash. A child or others
could be injured.
{Warning
Children can be seriously injured
or strangled if a shoulder belt is
wrapped around their neck. The
shoulder belt can tighten but
cannot be loosened if it is locked.
The shoulder belt locks when it is
pulled all the way out of the
retractor. It unlocks when the
shoulder belt is allowed to go all
the way back into the retractor,
but it cannot do this if it is
wrapped around a child’sneck.
If the shoulder belt is locked and
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
tightened around a child’sneck,
the only way to loosen the belt is
to cut it.
Buckle any unused safety belts
behind the child restraint so
children cannot reach them. Pull
the shoulder belt all the way out
of the retractor to set the lock,
and tighten the belt behind the
child restraint after the child
restraint has been installed.
Caution
Do not let the LATCH
attachments rub against the
vehicle’ssafetybelts.Thismay
damage these parts. If necessary,
move buckled safety belts to
avoid rubbing the LATCH
attachments.
(Continued)
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 95
If the position you areusing does not have aheadrest or head restraintand you are using a dualtether, route the tetherover the seatback.
If the position you areusing has an adjustableheadrest or head restraintand you are using asingle tether, route the
tether under the headrestor head restraint and inbetween the headrest orhead restraint posts.
If the position you areusing has an adjustableheadrest or head restraintand you are using a dualtether route the tetheraround the headrest orhead restraint.
3. Before placing a child in thechild restraint, make sure it issecurely held in place. Tocheck, grasp the child restraintat the LATCH path and attemptto move it side to side andback and forth. There should
be no more than 2.5 cm (1 in)of movement for properinstallation.
Replacing LATCH System
Parts After a Crash
{Warning
AcrashcandamagetheLATCH
system in the vehicle. A damaged
LATCH system may not properly
secure the child restraint,
resulting in serious injury or even
death in a crash. To help make
sure the LATCH system is
working properly after a crash,
see your dealer to have the
system inspected and any
necessary replacements made as
soon as possible.
If the vehicle has the LATCH systemand it was being used during acrash, new LATCH system partsmay be needed.
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
98 Seats and Restraints
Securing Child Restraints
(With the Safety Belt in
the Front Seat)
This vehicle has airbags. A rearseat is a safer place to secure aforward-facing child restraint. SeeWhere to Put the Restraint089.
In addition, the vehicle has apassenger sensing system which isdesigned to turn off the frontoutboard passenger frontal airbagand knee airbag under certainconditions. SeePassenger SensingSystem077andPassenger AirbagStatus Indicator0121for moreinformation, including importantsafety information.
Never put a rear-facing child seat inthe front. This is because the risk tothe rear-facing child is so great if theairbag deploys.
{Warning
Achildinarear-facingchild
restraint can be seriously injured
or killed if the front outboard
passenger frontal airbag inflates.
This is because the back of the
rear-facing child restraint would
be very close to the inflating
airbag. A child in a forward-facing
child restraint can be seriously
injured or killed if the front
outboard passenger frontal airbag
inflates and the passenger seat is
in a forward position.
Even if the passenger sensing
system has turned off the front
outboard passenger airbag(s), no
system is fail-safe. No one can
guarantee that an airbag will not
deploy under some unusual
circumstance, even though the
airbag(s) are off.
Secure rear-facing child restraints
in a rear seat, even if the
airbag(s) are off. If you secure a
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
forward-facing child restraint in
the front outboard passenger
seat, always move the seat as far
back as it will go. It is better to
secure the child restraint in a
rear seat.
SeePassenger Sensing System
077for additional information.
If the child restraint uses a toptether, seeLower Anchors andTe t h e r s f o r C h i l d r e n ( L AT C HSystem)090for top tether anchorlocations.
Do not secure a child seat in aposition without a top tether anchorif a national or local law requiresthat the top tether be anchored, or ifthe instructions that come with thechild restraint say that the top strapmust be anchored.
In Canada, the law requires thatforward-facing child restraints haveatoptether,andthatthetetherbeattached.
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Storage 101
Storage
Storage Compartments
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . 101Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101Cupholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101Center Console Storage . . . . . . 102Umbrella Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Additional Storage Features
Cargo Tie-Downs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102Convenience Net . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Storage
Compartments
{Warning
Do not store heavy or sharp
objects in storage compartments.
In a crash, these objects may
cause the cover to open and
could result in injury.
Glove Box
Pull the handle up to open.
Cupholders
Rear Seat
Lower the armrest to access thecupholders.