FORD F250 2009 Owners Manual

9. Attach the tether strap (if the
child seat is equipped). Refer to
Attaching child safety seats with
tether strapslater in this chapter.
10. Before placing the child in the
seat, forcibly move the seat forward
and back to make sure the seat is
securely held in place. To check
this, grab the seat at the belt path
and attempt to move it side to side
and forward. There should be no
more than one inch (2.5 cm) of movement for proper installation.
11. Ford recommends checking with a NHTSA Certified Child Passenger
Safety Technician (CPST) to make certain the child restraint is properly
installed.
Installing child safety seats in cinch tongue combination lap and
shoulder belt seating positions (Regular Cab front center and
Super/Crew cab rear center positions)
The belt webbing below the tongue is the lap portion of the combination
lap/shoulder belt, and the belt webbing above the tongue is the shoulder
belt portion of the combination lap/shoulder belt.
WARNING:Always use both lap and shoulder safety belt in the
Regular Cab center seating position if applicable.
Note:Although the child seat illustrated is a forward facing child seat,
the steps are the same for installing a rear facing child seat.
1. Position the child safety seat in
the center seat.
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WARNING:Airbags can kill or injure a child in a child seat. If
you must use a forward-facing child seat in the front seat, move
seat all the way back.
WARNING:Rear facing child seats should NEVER be placed in
front of an active airbag.
2. Slide the tongue up the webbing.
3. While holding both shoulder and
lap portions next to the tongue,
route the tongue and webbing
through the child seat according to
the child seat manufacturer’s
instructions. Be sure that the belt
webbing is not twisted.
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4. Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle for that seating
positions until you hear a snap and
feel it latch. Make sure the tongue is
securely latched to the buckle by
pulling on the tongue.
5. Remove remaining slack from the
belt. Force the seat down with extra
weight, e.g., by pressing down or
kneeling on the child restraint while
pulling up on the shoulder belt in
order to force slack from the belt.
This is necessary to remove the
remaining slack that will exist once
the additional weight of the child is
added to the child restraint. It also
helps to achieve the proper
snugness of the child seat to the vehicle. Sometimes, a slight lean
towards the buckle will additionally help to remove remaining slack from
the belt.
6. Attach the tether strap (if the child seat is equipped). Refer to
Attaching child safety seats with tether strapslater in this chapter.
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7. Before placing the child in the
seat, forcibly move the seat forward
and back to make sure the seat is
securely held in place. To check
this, grab the seat at the belt path
and attempt to move it side to side
and forward. There should be no
more than one inch (2.5 cm) of
movement for proper installation.
8. Ford recommends checking with a NHTSA Certified Child Passenger
Safety Technician (CPST) to make certain the child restraint is properly
installed.
Installing child safety seats in the front row lap belt seating
positions (Super Cab and Crew Cab)
WARNING:Installing a child safety seat in the front row lap
seating position should be avoided if at all possible.
WARNING:Never place a rear-facing child seat in the front
center seating position of a vehicle with rear seating positions.
WARNING:Front seating positions only: If seating two adults
and a child, Ford recommends properly restraining the child in
the center front seating position, but only if doing so will not interfere
with driving the vehicle. This arrangement provides lap and shoulder
belt and airbag protection for adult occupants and an attachment
method for a child restraint. If the child seat interferes with driving the
vehicle and the child restraint is forward-facing, the child may be
restrained in the passenger seat. Move the seat as far rearward as
possible to minimize the likelihood of interaction with the front
passenger airbag. Never place a rear-facing child seat in front of an
active airbag. All occupants of the vehicle should always properly wear
their safety belts. Ensure the child is properly restrained in an
appropriate child seat or with the use of a booster.
1. Lengthen the lap belt. To lengthen the belt, hold the tongue so that its
bottom is perpendicular to the direction of webbing while sliding the
tongue up the webbing.
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2. Place the child safety seat in the center seating position.
3. Route the tongue and webbing through the child seat according to the
child seat manufacturer’s instructions.
4. Insert the belt tongue into the proper buckle for the center seating
position until you hear a snap and feel it latch. Make sure the tongue is
securely fastened to the buckle by pulling on the tongue.
5. Push down on the child seat while pulling on the loose end of the lap
belt webbing to tighten the belt.
6. Before placing the child into the child seat, forcibly tilt the child seat
from side to side and in forward direction to make sure that the seat is
securely held in place. To check this, grab the seat at the belt path and
attempt to move it side to side and forward and back. There should be
no more than one inch (2.5 cm) of movement for proper installation.
7. Ford recommends checking with a NHTSA Certified Child Passenger
Safety Technician (CPST) to make certain the child restraint is properly
installed.
Note:For Super Cab and Crew Cab there is no top tether anchor for the
front center seating position. SeeAttaching child safety seats with
tether strapslater in this chapter.
Attaching child safety seats with LATCH
(Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren) attachments
The LATCH system is composed of three vehicle anchor points: two (2)
lower anchors located where the vehicle seat back and seat cushion meet
(called the “seat bight”) and one (1) top tether anchor located behind
that seating position. Your vehicle isnotequipped with the lower anchor
points in the seat bight. For this vehicle use the vehicle safety belt and
upper tether to secure a child seat. SeeAttaching child safety seats
with tether strapsandRecommendations for attaching safety
restraints for childrenin this chapter for more information.
Attaching child safety seats with tether straps
Many forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap which
extends from the back of the child safety seat and hooks to an anchoring
point called the top tether anchor. Tether straps are available as an
accessory for many older safety seats. Contact the manufacturer of your
child seat for information about ordering a tether strap, or to obtain a
longer tether strap if the tether strap on your safety seat does not reach
the appropriate top tether anchor in the vehicle.
The passenger seats of your vehicle may be equipped with built-in tether
strap anchors located behind the seats as described below.
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The tether anchors in your vehicle may be straps on the seatback or an
anchor bracket on the rear edge of the seat cushion or an anchor bracket
mounted to the body shell on the back panel.
The SuperCab rear seat has three straps behind the top of the seat back
that function as both routing loops for the tether straps and anchor
loops.
The tether strap anchors in your vehicle are in the following positions
(shown from top view):
•F-Series Regular Cab
•F-Series SuperCab
•F-Series Crew Cab
Attach the tether strap only to the appropriate tether anchor as shown.
The tether strap may not work properly if attached somewhere other
than the correct tether anchor.
Once the child safety seat has been installed using the safety belt, you
can attach the top tether strap.
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Tether strap attachment
1. Route the child safety seat tether strap over the back of the seat.
For vehicles with adjustable head restraints, route the tether strap under
the head restraint and between the head restraint posts, other wise route
the tether strap over the top of the seatback. If the top of the safety seat
hits the head restraint, raise the head restraint to let the child seat fit
further rearward.
2. Locate the correct anchor for the selected seating position.
3. You may need to pull the seatback forward to access the tether
anchors. Make sure the seat is locked in the upright position before
installing the child seat. Refer to theRear folding seat system with load
floorsection in this chapter for information on how to operate the rear
seats.
4. Remove tether cover.
5. Clip the tether strap to the anchor as shown.
•Front seats (Regular Cab)
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•Front seat (SuperCab)
•Rear seats (Crew Cab)
If the tether strap is clipped incorrectly, the child safety seat may not be
retained properly in the event of a collision.
6. Refer to theInstalling child safety seats with combination lap and
shoulder beltssection of this chapter for further instructions to secure
the child safety seat.
7. Tighten the child safety seat tether strap according to the
manufacturer’s instructions.
If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child being
injured in a collision greatly increases.
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Tether strap attachment (rear SuperCab only)
There are three loops of webbing just above the back of the rear seat
(along the bottom edge of the rear window) in the SuperCab. These
loops are to be used as both routing loops and anchor loops for up to
three child safety seat tether straps.
These straps may be secured below the back of the seat with rubber
bands. To access, reach below the back of the seat and pull tether loop
out of the rubber band securing it.
Many tether straps cannot be tightened if the tether strap is hooked to
the loop directly behind the child seat. To provide a tight tether strap:
1. Route the tether strap through
the loop directly behind the child
seat.
2. Attach the strap hook onto the
loop behind an adjacent seating
position.
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3. Install the child safety seat tightly
using the vehicle belts. Follow the
instructions in this chapter.
4. Tighten the tether strap
according to the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions.
A single loop can be used to route and anchor more than one child seat.
For example, the center loop can be used as a routing loop for a child
safety seat in the center rear seat and as an anchoring loop for child
seats installed in the outboard rear seats.
Child booster seats
The belt-positioning booster (booster seat) is used to improve the fit of
the vehicle safety belt. Children outgrow a typical child seat (e.g.,
convertible or toddler seat) when they weigh about 40 lb (18 kg) and are
around four (4) years of age. Consult your child safety seat owner guide
for the weight, height, and age limits specific to your child safety seat.
Keep your child in the child safety seat if it properly fits the child,
remains appropriate for their weight, height and age AND if properly
secured to the vehicle.
Although the lap/shoulder belt will provide some protection, children
who have outgrown a typical child seat are still too small for lap/shoulder
belts to fit properly, and wearing an improperly fitted vehicle safety belt
could increase the risk of serious injury in a crash. To improve the fit of
both the lap and shoulder belt on children who have outgrown child
safety seats, Ford Motor Company recommends use of a belt-positioning
booster.
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