belt GMC ACADIA 2009 Owner's Guide

To access the comfort guide,
you will rst need to move
the headrest forward by pulling
on the handle behind the
seatback. The comfort guide will
now be accessible.
Pull the comfort guide out of
its storage location and
then return the headrest to
its upright position.The elastic cord on the comfort
guide is adjustable. You can
make it longer or shorter
by squeezing both ends of
the plastic adjuster.
2. Place the guide over the belt and
insert the two edges of the belt
into the slots of the guide.3. Be sure that the belt is not twisted
and it lies at. The elastic cord
must be under the belt and the
guide on top.
Third Row Center Position
1-26 Seats and Restraint System

{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
previously in this section. Make
sure that the shoulder belt
crosses the shoulder.To remove and store the comfort
guide, squeeze the belt edges
together so that the safety belt can
be removed from the guide.
Slide the guide into its storage
location or on its storage clip.
Seats and Restraint System 1-27

Safety Belt Use During
Pregnancy
Safety belts work for everyone,
including pregnant women. Like all
occupants, they are more likely
to be seriously injured if they do not
wear safety belts.
A pregnant woman should wear a
lap-shoulder belt, and the lap portion
should be worn as low as possible,
below the rounding, throughout
the pregnancy.The best way to protect the fetus is
to protect the mother. When a
safety belt is worn properly,
it is more likely that the fetus will not
be hurt in a crash. For pregnant
women, as for anyone, the key to
making safety belts effective is
wearing them properly.
Safety Belt Extender
If the safety belt will fasten around
you, you should use it.
But if a safety belt is not long
enough, your dealer/retailer 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, attach it to
the regular safety belt. For more
information, see the instruction
sheet that comes with the extender.
1-28 Seats and Restraint System

Child Restraints
Older Children
Older children who have outgrown
booster seats should wear the
vehicle’s safety belts.The manufacturer’s instructions that
come with the booster seat, state
the weight and height limitations for
that booster. Use a booster seat
with a lap-shoulder belt until
the child passes the below t test:
Sit all the way back on the
seat. Do the knees bend at the
seat edge? If yes, continue.
If no, return to the booster seat.
Buckle the lap-shoulder belt.
Does the shoulder belt rest on the
shoulder? If yes, continue. If no,
try using the rear safety belt
comfort guide. See “Rear Safety
Belt Comfort Guides” under
Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 1-23
for more information. If the
shoulder belt still does not rest on
the shoulder, then return to the
booster seat.
Does the lap belt t low and snug
on the hips, touching the thighs?
If yes, continue. If no, return to the
booster seat.
Can proper safety belt t be
maintained for the length of the
trip? If yes, continue. If no, return
to the booster seat.
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.
This applies belt force to
the child’s pelvic bones in a
crash. It should never be worn
over the abdomen, which
could cause severe or even fatal
internal injuries in a crash.
Also see “Rear Safety Belt Comfort
Guides” underLap-Shoulder Belt
on page 1-23.
Seats and Restraint System 1-29

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.
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.{CAUTION
Never do this.
Never allow two children to wear
the same safety belt. The safety
belt can not properly spread the
impact forces. In a crash, the two
children can be crushed together
and seriously injured. A safety
belt must be used by only one
person at a time.
{CAUTION
Never do this.
Never allow a child to wear the
safety belt with the shoulder belt
behind their back. A child can be
seriously injured by not wearing
the lap-shoulder belt properly. In a
crash, the child would not be
restrained by the shoulder belt.
The child could move too far
forward increasing the chance of
head and neck injury. The child
might also slide under the lap
belt. The belt force would then be
applied right on the abdomen.
(Continued)
1-30 Seats and Restraint System

CAUTION (Continued)
That could cause 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 the United States and
in every Canadian province says
children up to some age must
be restrained while in a vehicle.
{CAUTION
Children can be seriously injured
or strangled if a shoulder belt is
wrapped around their neck and
the safety belt continues to
tighten. Never leave children
unattended in a vehicle and never
allow children to play with the
safety belts.Airbags plus lap-shoulder belts offer
protection for adults and older
children, but not for young children
and infants. Neither the vehicle’s
safety belt system nor its airbag
system is designed for them. Every
time infants and young children
ride in vehicles, they should have
the protection provided by
appropriate child restraints.
Children who are not restrained
properly can strike other people, or
can be thrown out of the vehicle.
Seats and Restraint System 1-31

For most basic types of child
restraints, 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
restraint will have a label saying
that it meets federal motor
vehicle safety standards.
The restraint manufacturer’s
instructions that come with the
restraint state the weight
and height limitations for a
particular child restraint. In
addition, there are many kinds of
restraints available for children
with special needs.{CAUTION
To reduce the risk of neck and
head injury during a crash, infants
need complete support. This is
because an infant’s neck is not
fully developed and its head
weighs so much compared with
the rest of its body. In a crash, an
infant in a rear-facing child
restraint settles into the restraint,
so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest
part of an infant’s body, the back
and shoulders. Infants should
always be secured in rear-facing
child restraints.
{CAUTION
A young child’s hip bones are still
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.
Seats and Restraint System 1-33

Child Restraint Systems
A rear-facing infant seat (A) 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.
A forward-facing child seat (B)
provides restraint for the child’s body
with the harness.A booster seat (C) is a child
restraint designed to improve the t
of the vehicle’s safety belt system.
A booster seat can also help a child
to see out the window. (A) Rear-Facing Infant Seat
(B) Forward-Facing Child Seat
(C) Booster Seats
1-34 Seats and Restraint System

Securing an Add-On Child
Restraint in the Vehicle
{CAUTION
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’s safety 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 restraint systems
must be secured in vehicle seats by
lap belts or the lap belt portion of a
lap-shoulder belt, or by the LATCH
system. SeeLower Anchors and
Tethers for Children (LATCH) on
page 1-37for more information. A
child 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 instructions that
come with the restraint which may be
on the restraint itself or in a booklet,
or both, and to this 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.
Securing the Child Within the
Child Restraint
{CAUTION
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 a child restraint
system or infant restraint system
secured in a rear seating position.
We recommend that children and
child restraints be secured in a rear
seat, including: an infant or a child
riding in a rear-facing child restraint;
a child riding in a forward-facing child
seat; an older child riding in a booster
seat; and children, who are large
enough, using safety belts.
Seats and Restraint System 1-35

Lower Anchors and
Tethers for Children
(LATCH)
The LATCH system holds a child
restraint during driving or in a crash.
This system is designed to make
installation of a child restraint easier.
The LATCH system uses anchors
in the vehicle and attachments
on the child restraint that are made
for use with the LATCH system.
Make sure that a LATCH-compatible
child restraint is properly installed
using the anchors, or use the
vehicle’s safety belts to secure the
restraint, following the instructions
that came with that restraint, and
also the instructions in this manual.
When installing a child restraint with
a top tether, you must also use either
the lower anchors or the safety belts
to properly secure the child restraint.
A child restraint must never be
attached using only the top tether
and anchor.In order to use the LATCH system in
your vehicle, you need a child
restraint that has LATCH
attachments. The child restraint
manufacturer will provide you with
instructions on how to use the child
restraint and its attachments. The
following explains how to attach a
child restraint with these attachments
in your vehicle.
Not all vehicle seating positions or
child restraints have lower anchors
and attachments or top tether
anchors and attachments.
Lower Anchors
Lower anchors (A) are metal bars
built into the vehicle. There are
two lower anchors for each
LATCH seating position that will
accommodate a child restraint
with lower attachments (B).Top Tether Anchor
A top tether (A, C) anchors the
top of the child restraint to the
vehicle. A top tether anchor is built
into the vehicle. The top tether
attachment (B) on the child restraint
connects to the top tether anchor
in the vehicle in order to reduce the
forward movement and rotation
of the child restraint during driving
or in a crash.
Your child restraint may have a
single tether (A) or a dual tether (C).
Either will have a single
attachment (B) to secure the
top tether to the anchor.
Seats and Restraint System 1-37