BUICK REGAL 1997 Owner's Manual

Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as
it goes.
Take
the simplest vehicle. Suppose it's just a seat
on wheels. Put
someone
on it.
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Get it up to speed. Then stop the vehicle. The rider
doesn't stop. The
person keeps gomg until stopped by something.
In a real vehicle, it could be the windshield ...
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or the instrument panel ...
L
or the safety belts!
With safety belts,
you slow down as the vehicle does.
You get more time
to stop. You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones take the forces. That's why
safety belts make such
good sense.
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Here Are Questions Many People Ask &= If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
About Safetv Belts -- and the Answers home, why should I wear safety belts?
Q=
A:
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A:
u
Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?
You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upside down. And your chance of
being conscious during and after an accident,
so
you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if
you are belted.
If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in
most of them in the future. But they are
supplemental systems only;
so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for sale has required the use of
safety belts. Even if you’re in a vehicle that has air
bags,
you still have to buckle up to get the most
protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and other collisions.
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
accident
-- even one that isn’t your fault -- you
and your passengers can be hurt. Being a good
driver doesn’t protect you from things beyond
your control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
25 miles (40 km)
of home. And the greatest number
of serious
injuries and deaths occur at speeds of less than
40 mph (65 km/h).
Safety belts are for everyone.
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How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
Adults
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there are special things to know about
safety belts and children. And there are different
rules for smaller children and babies. If
a child
will be riding in your Buick,
see the part of this
manual called “Children.” Follow those rules for
everyone’s protection.
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We’ll start with the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to wear
it properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat (to see how, see “Seats” in the Index)
so you can sit up straight.
3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
The shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt across
you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt go back
slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt across you
more slowly.
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4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt isn’t long enough, see “Safety Belt
Extender” at the end of this section.
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.
5. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end of the belt as you pull up
on the shoulder belt.
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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’d 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.
The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop or crash, or
if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.
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Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster
Before you begin to drive, move the shoulder belt
adjuster to the height that
is right for you.
To move it down, squeeze the release lever and move
the height adjuster to the desired position.
You can move
the adjuster up just by pushing up on the shoulder belt
guide. After
you move the adjuster to where you want it,
try to move it down without squeezing the release lever
to make sure it has locked into position.
Adjust the height
so that the shoulder portion of the
belt is centered on your shoulder. The belt should be
away from your face and neck, but
not falling off
your shoulder.
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@ What’s wrong with this?
A: The shoulder belt is too loose. It won’t give nearly
as
much protection this way.
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 fit against your body.
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What's wrong with this?
A: The belt is buckled in the wrong place.
You can be seriously injured if your belt is
buckled in the wrong place like this. In
a crash,
the belt would go up over your abdomen. The belt
forces would be there, not at the pelvic bones.
This could cause serious internal injuries. Always
buckle your belt into the buckle nearest you.
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Q: What’s wrong with this?
A: The shoulder belt is worn under the arm. It should
be worn over the shoulder at all times.
You can be seriously injured if you wear the
shoulder belt under your arm. In
a crash, your
body would move too far forward, which would
increase the chance of head and neck injury.
Also, the belt would apply too much force to the
ribs, which aren’t
as strong as shoulder bones.
You could also severely injure internal organs
like your liver
or spleen.
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