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SEATS AND RESTRAINTS 67
Warning (Continued)
serious or fatal injuries. The
shoulder belt should go over the
shoulder and across the chest.
Infants and Young Children
Everyone in a vehicle needs
protection! This includes infants and
all other children. Neither the distance
traveled nor the age and size of the
traveler changes the need, for
everyone, to use safety restraints. In
fact, the law in every state in theUnited States and in every Canadian
province says children up to some age
must be restrained while in a vehicle.
{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’s neck. If the
shoulder belt is locked and
tightened around a child’s neck, the
only way to loosen the belt is to
cut it.
Never leave children unattended in
a vehicle and never allow children
to play with the seat belts.
Every time infants and young children
ride in vehicles, they should have the
protection provided by appropriate child restraints. Neither the vehicle's
seat belt system nor its airbag system
is designed for them.
Children who are not restrained
properly can strike other people,
or can be thrown out of the vehicle.
{Warning
Never hold an infant or a child
while riding in a vehicle. Due to
crash forces, an infant or a child
will become so heavy it is not
possible to hold it during a crash.
For example, in a crash at only
40 km/h (25 mph), a 5.5 kg (12 lb)
infant will suddenly become a
110 kg (240 lb) force on a person's
arms. An infant or child should be
secured in an appropriate child
restraint.
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68 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 to
restrain, seat, or position children in
the vehicle and are sometimes called
child seats or car seats.
There are three basic types of child
restraints:
.Forward-facing child restraints
.Rear-facing child restraints
.Belt-positioning booster seats
The proper child restraint for your
child depends on their size, weight,
and age, and also on whether the
child restraint is compatible with the
vehicle in which it will be used. For each type of child restraint, there
are many different models available.
When purchasing a child restraint, be
sure it is designed to be used in a
motor vehicle. If it is, the child
restraint will have a label saying that
it meets federal motor vehicle safety
standards.
The instruction manual that is
provided with the child restraint
states the weight and height
limitations for that particular child
restraint. In addition, there are many
kinds of child restraints available for
children with special needs.
{Warning
To reduce the risk of neck and 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.
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SEATS AND RESTRAINTS 69
{Warning
A young child's hip bones are still
so small that the vehicle seat 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 an appropriate child
restraint.
Child Restraint Systems
Rear-Facing Infant Restraint
A rear-facing child restraint provides
restraint with the seating surface
against the back of the infant.
The harness system holds the infant
in place and, in a crash, acts to keep
the infant positioned in the restraint.
Forward-Facing Child Restraint
A forward-facing child restraint
provides restraint for the child's body
with the harness.
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Booster Seats
A belt-positioning booster seat is used
for children who have outgrown their
forward-facing child restraint.
Boosters are designed to improve the
fit of the vehicle's seat belt system
until the child is large enough for the
vehicle seat belts to fit properly
without a booster seat. See the seat
belt fit test in Older Children065.
Securing an Add-On Child
Restraint in the Vehicle
{Warning
A child can be seriously injured or
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 seat belt or
LATCH system, following the
instructions that came with that
child restraint and the instructions
in this manual.
To help reduce the chance of injury,
the child restraint must be secured in
the vehicle. Child restraints must be
secured in vehicle seats by lap belts or
the lap belt portion of a lap-shoulder
belt, or by the LATCH system. See
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH System) 072 for more
information. Children can be
endangered in a crash if the child
restraint is not properly secured in the
vehicle.
When securing an add-on child
restraint, refer to the following: 1. Instruction labels provided on the
child restraint
2. Instruction manual provided with the child restraint
3. This vehicle owner's manual
The child restraint instructions are
important, so if they are not available,
obtain a replacement copy from the
manufacturer.
Keep in mind that an unsecured child
restraint can move around in a
collision or sudden stop and injure
people in the vehicle. Be sure to
properly secure any child restraint in
the vehicle —even when no child is
in it.
In some areas Certified Child
Passenger Safety Technicians (CPSTs)
are available to inspect and
demonstrate how to correctly use and
install child restraints. In the U.S.,
refer to the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA)
website to locate the nearest child
safety seat inspection station. For
CPST availability in Canada, check
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with Transport Canada or the
Provincial Ministry of Transportation
office.
Securing the Child Within the
Child Restraint
{Warning
A child can be seriously injured or
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 when
properly restrained in an appropriate
child restraint secured in a rear
seating position.
Whenever possible, children aged
12 and under should be secured in a
rear seating position.
Never put a rear-facing child restraint
in the front. This is because the risk
to the rear-facing child is so great if
the airbag deploys.
{Warning
A child in a rear-facing child
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 the front seat,
always move the front passenger(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
seat as far back as it will go. It is
better to secure the child restraint
in a rear seat.
SeePassenger Sensing System 060
for additional information.
When securing a child restraint with
the seat belts in a rear seat position,
study the instructions that came with
the child restraint to make sure it is
compatible with this vehicle.
Child restraints and booster seats vary
considerably in size, and some may fit
in certain seating positions better
than others. Do not install a child
restraint in any rear seating position
where it cannot be installed securely.
Depending on where you place the
child restraint and the size of the
child restraint, you may not be able to
access adjacent seat belts or LATCH
anchors for additional passengers or
child restraints. Adjacent seating
positions should not be used if the
child restraint prevents access to or
interferes with the routing of the
seat belt.
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SEATS AND RESTRAINTS 75
To assist in locating the lower
anchors, each seating position with
lower anchors has two labels, on the
seatback near the crease between the
seatback and the seat cushion.
The outboard lower anchors are
behind the vertical openings in the
seat trim.
To assist in locating the top tether
anchors, the top tether anchor symbol
is near the anchors.
The top tether anchors are on the
back of the rear seatbacks. Remove
the cargo cover before installing the
top tether. The cargo cover can be
replaced after the top tether is
properly installed. Be sure to use ananchor located directly behind the
seating position where the child
restraint will be placed.
Do not secure a child restraint in a
position without a top tether anchor if
a national or local law requires that
the top tether be attached, or if the
instructions that come with the child
restraint say that the top tether must
be attached.
According to accident statistics,
children and infants are safer when
properly restrained in a child restraint
system or infant restraint system
secured in a rear seating position. See
Where to Put the Restraint
071 for
additional information.
Securing a Child Restraint
Designed for the LATCH System
{Warning
A child could be seriously injured or
killed in a crash if the child
restraint is not properly attached to
the vehicle using either the LATCH
anchors or the vehicle seat belt.
(Continued)
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Warning (Continued)
Follow the instructions that came
with the child restraint and the
instructions in this manual.
{Warning
To reduce the risk of serious or
fatal injuries during a crash, do not
attach more than one child
restraint to a single anchor.
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(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
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’s neck. If the
shoulder belt is locked and
tightened around a child’s neck, the
only way to loosen the belt is to
cut it.
Buckle any unused seat 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’s seat belts.
This may damage these parts.(Continued)
Caution (Continued)
If necessary, move buckled seat
belts to avoid rubbing the LATCH
attachments.
Do not fold the rear seatback when
the seat is occupied. Do not fold the
empty rear seat with a seat belt
buckled. This could damage the
seat belt or the seat. Unbuckle and
return the seat belt to its stowed
position, before folding the seat.
If you need to secure more than one
child restraint in the rear seat, see
Where to Put the Restraint 071.
1. Attach and tighten the lower attachments to the lower anchors.
If the child restraint does not have
lower attachments or the desired
seating position does not have
lower anchors, secure the child
restraint with the top tether and
the seat belt. Refer to the child
restraint manufacturer instructions
and the instructions in this
manual.
1.1. Find the lower anchors for the desired seating position.
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78 SEATS AND RESTRAINTS
If the position you are using
has an adjustable headrest or
head restraint and you are
using a dual tether, raise the
headrest or head restraint and
route the tether under the
headrest or head restraint and
around the headrest or head
restraint posts.
3. Before placing a child in the child restraint, make sure it is securely
held in place. To check, grasp the
child restraint at the LATCH path
and attempt to move it side to side
and back and forth. There should
be no more than 2.5 cm (1 in) of
movement for proper installation.
Head Restraint Removal and
Reinstallation
The rear outboard head restraints can
be removed if they interfere with the
proper installation of the child
restraint.
To remove the head restraint:
1. Partially fold the seatback forward. See Rear Seats 045 for additional
information.
2. Press both buttons on the head restraint posts at the same time,
and pull up on the head restraint.
3. Store the head restraint in a secure place. 4. When the child restraint is
removed, reinstall the head
restraint before the seating position
is used.
{Warning
With head restraints that are not
installed and adjusted properly,
there is a greater chance that
occupants will suffer a neck/spinal
injury in a crash. Do not drive until
the head restraints for all occupants
are installed and adjusted properly.
To reinstall the head restraint: