belt BUICK RANDEZVOUS 2007 Owner's Guide

The lap part of the belt should be worn low and
snug on the hips, just touching the thighs. In
a crash, this applies force to the strong pelvic
bones. And you would be less likely to slide under
the lap belt. If you slid under it, the belt would
apply force at your abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries. The shoulder
belt should go over the shoulder and across the
chest. These parts of the body are best able
to take belt restraining forces.
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The safety belt locks if there is a sudden stop or a
crash, or if you pull the belt very quickly out of
the retractor.
{CAUTION:
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder
belt is too loose. In a crash, you would
move forward too much, which could
increase injury. The shoulder belt should
t against your body.
To unlatch the belt, push the button on the buckle.
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Center Rear Passenger Position
Lap-Shoulder Belt
If your vehicle has a bench seat, someone can sit
in the center position.
When you sit in the center seating position, you
have a lap safety belt, which has no retractor. You
also have a shoulder belt, which has a retractor.
In order to have the protection of the shoulder belt,
you must rst connect it to the lap belt.
1. Remove the shoulder belt from its stowage
location in the roof and pull it all the way
down to the lap belt.
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2. Insert the metal knob on the shoulder belt into
the keyhole on the lap belt buckle as shown.
Be sure to slide the shoulder belt part into
the keyhole until it locks into place.3. To make the lap belt longer, tilt the latch plate
and pull it along the belt.
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To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as
shown until the belt is snug
4. Buckle, position and release the lap-shoulder
belt the same way as the other lap-shoulder
belts. If the belt is not long enough, seeSafety
Belt Extender on page 56.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides
Rear shoulder belt comfort guides may provide
added safety belt comfort for older children
who have outgrown booster seats and for some
adults. When installed on a shoulder belt, the
comfort guide positions the belt away from
the neck and head.
There is a guide available for the center passenger
position in the second row rear seat. Here is
how to install the comfort guide to the safety belt.
53

For second row center position do the following:
1. Remove the elastic cord from under the head
restraint of the second row, driver’s side
position.2. Attach the elastic cord to the comfort guide on
the center passenger shoulder belt.
Second Row Center Position
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3. Be sure that the belt is not twisted and it lies
at. The guide must be on top of the belt.
{CAUTION:
A safety belt that is not properly worn
may not provide the protection needed in
a crash. The person wearing the belt
could be seriously injured. The shoulder
belt should go over the shoulder and
across the chest. These parts of the body
are best able to take belt restraining
forces.
4. Buckle, position, and release the safety belt
as described inCenter Rear Passenger
Position on page 51. Make sure that the
shoulder belt crosses the shoulder.
To remove and store the elastic cord, remove it
from the comfort guide. The elastic cord will
go back under the head restraint.
55

Safety Belt Pretensioners
Your vehicle has safety belt pretensioners for the
driver and right front passenger. Although you
cannot see them, they are located on the retractor
part of the safety belts. They help the safety
belts reduce a person’s forward movement in a
moderate to severe frontal or near frontal crash.
Pretensioners work only once. If they activate in a
crash, you will need to get new ones, and
probably other new parts for your safety belt
system. SeeReplacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash on page 105.
Safety Belt Extender
If the vehicle’s safety belt will fasten around you,
you should use it.
But if a safety belt is not long enough, your dealer
will order you an extender. When you go in to order
it, take the heaviest coat you will wear, so the
extender will be long enough for you. To help avoid
personal injury, do not let someone else use it, and
use it only for the seat it is made to t. The extender
has been designed for adults. Never use it for
securing child seats. To wear it, just attach it to the
regular safety belt. For more information see the
instruction sheet that comes with the extender.
56

Child Restraints
Older Children
Older children who have outgrown booster seats
should wear the vehicle’s safety belts.
Q:What is the proper way to wear safety belts?
A:An older child should wear a lap-shoulder belt
and get the additional restraint a shoulder belt
can provide. The shoulder belt should not
cross the face or neck. The lap belt should t
snugly below the hips, just touching the
top of the thighs. It should never be worn over
the abdomen, which could cause severe or
even fatal internal injuries in a crash.
According to accident statistics, children are safer
when properly restrained in the rear seating
positions than in the front seating positions.
In a crash, children who are not buckled up can
strike other people who are buckled up, or can be
thrown out of the vehicle. Older children need
to use safety belts properly.
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{CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same
belt. The belt can not properly spread the
impact forces. In a crash, the two children
can be crushed together and seriously
injured. A belt must be used by only one
person at a time.
Q:What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder
belt, but the child is so small that the
shoulder belt is very close to the child’s
face or neck?
A:If the child is sitting in a seat next to a
window, move the child toward the center of
the vehicle. Also seeRear Safety Belt
Comfort Guides on page 53. If the child is
sitting in the center rear seat passenger
position, move the child toward the safety belt
buckle. In either case, be sure that the
shoulder belt still is on the child’s shoulder, so
that in a crash the child’s upper body would
have the restraint that belts provide.
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