belt GMC SIERRA 1993 User Guide

Seats & Safety Belts
AM110001
This figure lights up when you turn the key to RUN or START when your
safety belt isn’t buckled, and you’ll hear a buzzer or t\
one, too. It’s the
reminder to buckle up. In many states and Canadian provinces, \
the law says
to wear safety belts. Here’s why:
They work.
You never know if you’ll be in a crash. If you do have a cra\
sh, you don’t
know
if it will be a bad one.
A few crashes are very mild. In them, you won’t get hurt eve\
n if you’re not
buckled up. And some crashes can be
so serious, like being hit by a train,
that even buckled up a person wouldn’t survive. But most cr\
ashes are in
between. In many
of them, people who buckle up can survive and sometimes
walk away. Without belts they could be badly hurt or killed.
After
25 years of safety belts in vehicles, the facts are clear. In most crashes
buckling up does matter
. . . a lot!
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AM11 001 8A1
Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as it goes. For example, if
the bike is going 10 mph (16 kmlh), so is the child. When the bike hits the
block, it stops. But the child keeps going!
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Seats & Safety Belts
AMI 15003 AM1 15004
Take the simplest “vehicle.” Suppose it’s just a seat on wheels. Put someone
on it.
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AM115005
Get it up to speed. Then stop the “vehicle.” The rider doesn’t stop.
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Seats & Safety Belts
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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 for\
ces.
That’s why safety belts make such good sense.
Here Are Questions Many People Ask About Safety
Belts-and the Answers
Q: Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an accident if I’m wearing a
safety belt?
A: You could be-whether you’re wearing a safety belt or not. But you can
easily 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.
Q: Why don’t they just put in air bags so people won’t have to wear
safety belts?
A: “Air bags,” or Supplemental Inflatable Restraint systems, are in some
vehicles today and will be in more 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.
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Q: If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from home, why should I
wear safety belts?
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.
Safety Belt Reminder Light
K244
When the key is turned to RUN or START, a light will come on for about
eight seconds to remind people to fasten their safety belts. Unless the driver’\
s
safety belt is buckled, a buzzer or tone will also sound.
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Seats & Safety Belts
How To Wear Safety Belts Properry
Adults
This part is only for people of adult size.
* There are special things to know about safety belts and children. And
there are different rules for babies and smaller children. If a child will
be riding in your vehicle, see the part after this one, calle\
d
“Children.” Follow these rules for everyone’s protection.\

I
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your vehi\
cle has. We’ll start
with the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
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AM120007
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.
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3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. On some models
you may hear
a clicking sound as the shoulder belt is pulled out or
when released back into the cover. This is the shoulder belt tension
reducing feature operating properly. Don’t let the belt get \
twisted.
4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
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Seats & Safety Belts
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 faces upward or ou\
tward
so you
would be able
to unbuckle it quickly if you ever had to.
The lap part of the belt should be 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 ac\
ross 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 a crash.
Q: What’s wrong with this?
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AM1200‘
A: The shoulder belt is too loose. It won’t give nearly as much protection this
way.
CAUTION I
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder belt is too loose. In a
The shoulder belt should
fit against your body.
b crash you would move forward too much, which could increase in\
jury.
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Q: What's wrong with this?
A: The belt is buckled in the wrong place.
CAUTION
I
A
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. Thi\
s could
cause serious internal injuries. Always buckle your belt into the
buckle nearest vou.
Q: What's wrong with this?
A: The belt is over an af"nreSt.
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Seats & Safety Belts
You can be seriously injured if your belt goes over an armrest like
this. The belt would be much
too high. In a crash, you can slide
under the belt. The belt force would then be applied at the \
abdomen,
not at the pelvic bones, and that could cause serious or fatal in\
juries.
Be sure the belt goes under the armrests.
Q: What’s wrong with this?
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AM125001
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
I or spleen.
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