ECU AUDI A6 2017 Owner's Manual

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Automatic safety belt r etractors
Every safety be lt is equ ipped wi th an automatic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. Th is feature
l ocks the belt when the belt is p ulled out fast,
during hard braking and in an accident. The belt may also lock when you drive up or down a steep
h ill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv­
ing the belt lets you move freely .
Safety be lt pret en sioner s
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten­
sioner that helps to tighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated
c:;, page 145. The function of the pretensioner is
monitored by a warning light
c:;, page 17.
Con vertible loc king retractor
Every safety belt exc ept the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac­
tor that
mu st be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this featu re
c;, page 182.
A WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety be lts ca n cause
ser ious injury in an accide nt
c:;, page 143,
Safe ty belt position .
-Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upr ight and belts are
prope rly pos itioned on the bo dy.
- Always ma ke sure tha t the rear sea t bac k­
rest to wh ic h t he cente r rea r safety be lt* is
a ttached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used. If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen­
ger will move forward with the backrest dur­
ing sudden braking, in a sudden maneuver
and especially in a cras h.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle w ill red uce safety belt effec­
t iveness and can cause serious personal in­
jury.
- A passenger who is not p roperly restrained
can be seriously in ju red by the safety be lt it­
self when it moves from the stronger par ts
Safet y bel ts
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­
men .
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when yo u are securing a child seat in the ve­
hicle
c;,page 184.
(I} Tips
For information on safety belt pretensioners,
refer to
c:;, page 145 .
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting ma xi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig . 14 9 Safety belt pos it io n
Use the height adjustme nt to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
A WARNING ~
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can ca use
se rio us pe rsonal injury in an a cciden t.
- The s hou lde r belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body . Ho ld the bel t
above the latch tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest so tha t it sits as low as pos ­
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways fit
snug ly
c:;, fig. 149. Pu ll on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
inju ries by shifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable, soft tissue and cause serious i nju ry .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat io n
c:;, page 141 .
143

Safe ty belts
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety belts
corre ctly -throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 150 Safety be lt pos itio n during preg nan cy
To prov ide maximum protection , safety belts
must always be posit ioned correctly on the wear­
er's body
¢ page 143.
... Adjust the front seat and ad justable head re ­
straint* correctly ¢
page SO, Seats and stor­
age .
... Pull the safety belt even ly across the chest so
that it s its as low as possible on the pelv is and
there is no pressure on the abdomen
9 fig. 150, 9 .&,.
... Inser t the tong ue into the cor rec t buckle of
you r seat until you hea r it latch secure ly .
... Pull on the be lt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buck le .
A WARNING
Improperly pos itioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious persona l injury in an accident.
- Expectant mothers must a lways wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as pos­
sible across the pelvis and below the ro und­
ing of the abdomen .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information¢.&.
in Fasten­
ing safety belts on page 143 .
144
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped.
.,,
Fig . 151 Releasing the tongue from the buckle
... Push the red re lease button on the buck le
9 fig. 151. The belt tongue wi ll spring out of
the buck le
9 A .
... Let the belt wind up on the retractor as yo u
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving . Do ing so will increase your r isk of be­
ing inj ured or killed .
Adjusting safety belt he ight
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust­
ment, the three point safety belt strap routing
can be fitted to the shoulder area, according to
body size .
Fig . 15 2 Safety belt height adj ustme nt fo r the front seats
- loop -a rou nd f ittings
0 ,-. N 0 :i: .. m
The shoulder be lt shou ld lie as close to the center
of the co llar bo ne as poss ible and s hou ld fit well
o n the body
9 .&. in Safe ty belt posi tion on
page 143.
~

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" N .... 0 0 <..:l ' -Take the chi ld restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
P ASS ENGER A IR
BA G O FF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
The child seats listed in categories A to C have been statically tested by Audi only for the Ad­
vanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re­
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the vehicle, especially children:
~ Always use the right child safety seat for each child and a lways use it properly~
page 177.
~ Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child safe­
ty seat .
~ When using the vehicle safety be lt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety be lt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
¢page 182.
~ Push the child safety seat down with your fu ll
weight to get the safety be lt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm).
~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢ page 177.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re­
stra ined fo r their age and size.
_& WARNING
Not using a ch ild safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improper ly installing a
Ch ild safety
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestra ined or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the inter ior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle dur ing a sudden maneuve r or impact.
An unrest rained or improperly restrained
child is a lso at greater r is k of injury or death
through contact w ith an inflating a irbag.
- Commerc ially availab le child safe ty seats
are requi red to comply with U.S. Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 213
(in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restra int, select one
that fits your ch ild and the vehicle .
- Only use child restraint systems that fully
contact the flat portion of the seat cush­
ion. The ch ild restraint must not t ip or
lean to either side. Audi does not recom­
mend using child safety seats that rest on
legs or tube-like frames. They do not pro­
vide adequate contact with the seat.
- Always heed all lega l requirements per­
ta ining to the insta llation and use of child
safety seats and carefu lly follow the in­
structions provided by the manufacturer
of the seat you are using .
- Never a llow children under 57 inches
(1.45 mete rs) to wear a normal safety be lt.
They must a lways be restrained by a proper
child restraint system. Otherwise, they
could sustain injuries to the abdomen and
neck areas during sudden braking maneu­
vers or accidents .
- Never let more than one child occupy a child
safety seat.
- Never let babies or o lder children ride in a
vehicle while sitting on the lap of another
passenger .
- Holding a child in your arms is never a sub­
stitute for a chi ld restrain t system .
- The strongest person cou ld not ho ld the
ch ild with the forces that exist in an acci­
dent. The child will strike the interior of
the vehicle and can also be struck by the passenger.
175

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-Take the child restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
Fig . 163 Schemat ic overv iew: keep unused s-afety belts
away from children in chil d safety seats. @· oute r rear
sa fety belt,
@ -center rear safety belt*
If a chi ld safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especia lly with LA TCH universal lower anchorag­
es, the unused safety belts
must be secured so
that the child in the child restraint cannot reach
them
c::> ,& .
-Gui de the safety belt webbings @ and ®* be­
hind the head restra int of the seat where the
child restraint is installed
c::>fig. 163. When do­
ing so, do not engage the convertible lock ing
retractor! You should not hear a "click ing"
sound when w inding up the safety belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt
webbing .
A WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with the
LATCH lower anchorages or with the standard
safety belt or a child in a booste r seat on the
rear seat could play with unused rear seat
safety belts and become entangled. This
cou ld cause the chi ld serious personal injury
and even death.
- Always secure unused rear seat safety belts
out of reach of children in child seats such
as by proper ly routing them aro und the
Child safety
head restraint of the seat where the child
restraint is installed .
- Never activate the convertible locking re­
tractor when routing the safety belts around
the head restraints.
- Never let anyone sit at the center rear seat­
ing position if the center rear safety belt has
been routed around a rear head restraint.
Child seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old and
20 lbs. or
9 kg need special rearward-facing
child restraints that support the back, neck and
head in a crash.
Fig. 164 Sc hem atic overv iew: rearward -fac ing infa nt seat ,
properly installed o n the rear seat
., When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertib le locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the chi ld safety seat from moving
c::> poge 182 or install the seat using the LATCH
attachments .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2 .5 cm) .
., Sec ure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c::>page 177.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs . or 9 kg) are
best protected in special infant carriers and child
safety seats designed for the ir age group. Many
expe rts be lieve that infants and small children
shou ld ride only in special res tra ints in wh ich the
child faces the back of the vehicle. These infant ..,
177

Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats can
help protect toddlers and children over age one
who weigh between
20 and 40 lbs. (9 and 18 kg)
in a crash.
Fig. 165 Schemat ic overv iew: installatio n of the attac h­
ments app lica ble to a LA TCH seat
Fig. 166 Schematic overv iew : installat io n of the seat using
the vehicle 's safe ty be lt syste m
.. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
Q page 182 or install the seat us ing the LATC H
attachments .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your fu ll
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward o r sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm)
Qpage 182.
.. If the child safety seat is equipped with a tether
strap, attach it to the tether anchors
Q page 188.
.. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
Q page 177.
~ A toddler or child is usually too large for an in-
;::j fant restraint if it is more than one year old and
" 8 weighs more than 20 lbs . (9 kg) .
0 <..:l 'SI"
Child safety
Toddlers and children who are older than one
year up to about 4 years old and weigh more than
20 lbs (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must always be
properly restrained in a child safety seat certified
for their size and weight
Q fig. 165 and
q fig . 166.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the front
seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to
ride. The front seat is not the safest place for a
child in a forward -facing child safety seat. It is a
very dangerous place for an infant or a larger
child in a rearward-facing seat .
_&. WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, us ing the wrong
child safety seat or improperly instal ling a
chi ld restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death in a collision or oth ­
er emergency situation.
- Children on the front seat of any car, even
with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in­
jured or even killed when an airbag inflates.
A child in a rearward-facing ch ild safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carr ier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, center arm rest, door
or roof.
-Al ways install rear-fa cing child safety seats
on the rear seat .
- If you must insta ll a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rea r-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the a irbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer .
- The rear side of the ch ild safety seat shou ld
be positioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the veh icle seat.
II>-
179

Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs. and 80
lbs. (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9
in. (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall.
Fig. 167 Rear seat: child p roper ly restrained in a booster
seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit most
children until they are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in­
ches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about 80 lbs.
(36 kg). Booster seats raise these ch ildren up so
that the safety belt will pass properly over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt
can help protect them in a crash.
.,. Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to restrain
a chi ld on a booster seat .
.. The shoulder belt must lie as close to the cen­
ter of the child's collar bone as possible and must lie flat and snug on the upper body. It
must never lie across the throat or neck. The
lap belt must lie across the pelvis and never
across the stomach or abdomen. Make sure the
belt lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to tight­
en if necessary .
.,. If you must transport an older chi ld in a boos­
ter seat on the front passenger seat, you can
use the safety belt height adjustment to help
adjust the shoulder portion properly .
.. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
r:=>page 177.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs or
18 kg) are best protected in chi ld safety seats de-
~ signed for their age and we ight. Experts say that ....
~ the skeletal structure, part icularly the pelvis, of N
8 these children is not fully developed, and they 0 <.,;) 'SI'
Child safety
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
suitable child restraint.
It is usually best to put these children in appro­
priate booster seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicab le safety standards .
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass across
the child's body in the right places. The routing of
the be lt over the chi ld's body is very important
for the ch ild's protection, whether or not a boos­
ter seat is used. Children age 12 and under must
always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/
1.45 meters) tall can generally use the vehicle's
three point lap and shoulder belts . Never use the
lap belt portion of the vehicle's safety belt a lone
to restrain any ch ild, regard less of how big the
ch ild is. Always remember that child ren do not
have the pronounced pelvic structure required for
the proper function of lap be lt portion of the ve­
hicle's three point lap and shoulder belts. The
child's safety absolutely requires that a lap belt
portion of the safety belt be fastened snug ly and
as low as possible around the pe lvis. Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the child's stomach or abdomen .
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and with considerab le force. In order to do
its job, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be there to protect the occupant as the occu­
pant moves forward into the airbag .
A vehicle occ upant who is out of position and too
close to the a irbag gets in the way of an inflating
airbag. When an occupant is too close , he or she
will be struck violently and w ill receive serious or
possibly even fata l injury .
In order for the airbag to offer protect ion, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any children , who must be in the front seat be­
cause of exceptiona l circumstances, be properly
restrained and as far away from t he airbag as
poss ible. By keeping room between the child's ..,_
181

Child safety
body and the front of the passenger compart­
ment, the airbag can inflate completely and pro­
vide supplemental protection in certain frontal
collisions.
.,&. WARNING
Not using a booster seat, using the booster
seat improperly, incorrectly installing a boos­
ter seat or using the vehicle safety belt im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death in a collision or other emer­
gency situation. To help reduce the risk of se­
rious personal injury and/or death:
- The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possible
and must lie flat and snug on the upper
body.
It must never lie across the throat or
neck. The lap belt must lie across the pelvis
and never across the stomach or abdomen .
Make sure that the belt lies flat and snug.
Pull on the belt to tighten if necessary.
- Failure to properly route safety belts over a
child's body will cause severe injuries in an
accident or other emergency situation
¢ page 139.
-The rear side of the child safety seat should
be positioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the vehicle seat .
- For adjustable head restraints: adjust or re­
move the rear seat head restraint if it is dif­
ficult to install the child seat with the head
restraint in place
¢ page 52. Install the
head restraint again immediately once the
child seat is removed. Driving without head
restraints or with head restraints that are
not properly adjusted increases the risk of
serious or fatal neck injury dramatically.
- Never let a child put the shoulder belt under
the arm or behind the back, because it could
cause severe injuries in a crash.
- Children on the front seat of any car, even
with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in­
jured or even killed when an airbag inflates .
- Never let a child stand or kneel on any seat,
for example the front seat.
- Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle.
182
- Always remember that a child leaning for­
ward, sitting sideways or out of position in
any way during an accident can be struck by
a deploying airbag . This will result in serious
personal injury or death .
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of exceptional
circumstances the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light must come on and stay on, when­
ever the ignition is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks described ¢
page 159, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System .
-Take the child restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used¢
page 139, Safety belts,
¢ page 147, Airbag system and
¢ page 171, Important information.
Securing child seats
Securing a child safety seat using a safety
belt
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front pas­
senger con be locked with the convertible locking
retractor to properly secure child safety seats.
The safety belts emergency locking retractors for
the rear seats safety belts and for the front pas­
senger's seat safety belt have a convertible lock­
ing retractor for child restraints. The safety belt
must be locked so that belt webbing cannot un­
reel. The retractor can be activated to lock the
safety belt and prevent the safety belt webbing
from loosening up during normal driving . A child
safety seat can only be properly installed when
the safety belt is locked so that the child and
child safety seat will stay in place.
Always remember : Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger, .,.

co
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" N .... 0 0 <..:l ' should always ride in the back seat properly restrained for their age and size.
A WARNING
Improperly installed child safety seats in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
-Always make sure that the safety belt re­ tractor is locked when installing a child safety seat. An unlocked safety belt retrac­
tor cannot hold the child safety seat in place
dur ing normal driving or in a crash .
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it . A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always make sure that the rear seat back­
rest to wh ich the center rea r safety be lt* is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear cente r safety belt is being used to se­
cure a chi ld restraint.
- If the backrest is not securely latched, the
child and the child restraint will be thrown
forward together with the backrest and will
strike parts of the vehicle interior . The chi ld
can be seriously injured or killed.
- Never install rear-facing chi ld safety seats
or infant carriers on the front passenger
seat. A child will be serious ly injured and
can be killed when the passenger airbag in­
flates.
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear -facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Forward -facing ch ild safety seats or infant
carriers installed on the front passenger 's
seat may inte rfere with the deployment of
the a irbag and cause serious injury to the
child.
- It is safer to install a forward-fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the rear seat.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used
r:::> page 171 . Specia l precaut ions
Ch ild safety
apply when install ing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
r:::> page 148, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor­
tant things to know .
A WARNING
Always take special precautions if you must
i nstall a forward or rearward-facing child re­
stra int on the front passenger's seat in excep­
tional s ituations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-fac ing
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on .
- I f the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks described
r:::> poge 159, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System.
- Take the child restraint off the front passen ­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the
PAS SENGER AIR
BAG O FF
light does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
-Improper installat ion of child restraints can
reduce the ir effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protect ion.
- An improperly installed child restra int can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
serious ly injure or even kill the child.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carr ier.
- After checking to make sure that the child
restraint is properly installed, make certain
that the child restraint is correctly recog ­
n ized by the capacitive passenge r detection
system in the front passenger seat and that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light signals
the correct front passenger frontal airbag
stat us.
A WARNING
Forwa rd -facing child restraints :
-
183

Child safety
-Always make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up, against or very near the instrument pan­
el.
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest position in the up and down ad­
justment range and move it back to the
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air­
bag as possible, before installing the for­
ward-facing child restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is behind the child restraint and
not next to or in front of the child restraint
so that the safety belt will be properly posi­
tioned.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
Rearward-facing child restraints:
- A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
-Always be especially careful if you must in­
stall a rearward facing child safety seat on
the front passenger seat in exceptional cir­
cumstances.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in­
stall the rear-facing child safety seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Audi dealer.
184 ·
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufacturer's
instructions when installing a child restraint in
your vehicle. To activate the convertible locking retractor:
.. Place the child restraint on a seat, preferably
on the rear seat.
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the way out.
.. Route it around or through the child restraint
belt path
~ ,&. .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for that
seating position.
.. Guide the safety belt back into the retractor un­
til the belt lies flat and snug on the child safety
seat.
.. You should hear a "clicking" noise as the belt
winds back into the inertia reel. Test the con ­
vertible locking retractor by pulling on the belt.
You should no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the retractor. The convertible locking re­
tractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is facing
away from the child restraint so that it can be
unbuckled quickly.
.. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt is
properly tight and fastened so that the seat
cannot move forward or sideways more than
one inch (2 .5 cm) .
A WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint or an improp­
erly installed child restraint can cause serious
personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re­
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt retrac­
tor cannot hold the child safety seat in place
during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a crash.
IIJJ,-

co
co
.... N
" N .... 0 0 <..:l ' -Always make sure the seat backrest to which
the child restraint is installed is in an up­
right position and securely latched into
place and cannot fold forward. Otherwise,
the seatback with the child safety seat at­
tached to it could f ly forward in the event of
an accident or other emergency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used¢
page 171. Specia l precaut ions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 148, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor­
tant things to know.
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The convertible locking retractor for child re­
straints will be deactivated automatically when
the belt is wound all the way back into the re­
tractor .
~ Press the red button on the safety belt buckle.
The belt tongue will pop out of the buckle.
~ Guide the safety belt all the way back into its
stowed position .
Always let the safety belt retract completely into
its stowed position. The safety belt can now be
used as an ordinary safety belt without the con­
vertible locking retractor for child restraints.
If the convertible locking retractor should be ac­
tivated inadvertently, the safety belt must be un­
fastened and guided completely back into its
stowed position to deact ivate this feature. If the
convert ible locking retractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt w ill gradually become tighter and
uncomfortable to wear.
_& WARNING
-
Improperly installed chi ld safety seats in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deactivate
the convertible locking retractor for child re­
straints while the vehicle is moving . You
Child safety
would not be restrained and could be seri­
ously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing used
¢page 171. Special precautions
apply when install ing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 148, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor­
tant things to know.
LATCH system (lower
anchorages and tethers
for children)
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a simpler and more practicab le way to
attach the child restraint on the vehicle seat,
Federal regulations require special lower ancho­
rages in vehicles and devices on new child re­
straints to attach to the vehicle anchorages .
In the United States, the combination of the
tether anchorages and the lower anchorages is
now generally called the LATCH system for
"Lower Anchorages and Tethers for Children". In
Canada, the terms "top tether" with "lower uni­
versa l anchorages" (or "lower universal anchor­
age bars") are used to descr ibe the system .
In other countries the term "ISOFIX" is used to
describe the lower anchorages .
Forward-facing child restraints manufactured af­
ter September 1, 1999 , are required by U.S. fed­
eral regulations to comply with new child head
movement performance req uirements. These
new performance requirements make a tether
necessary on most new ch ild seats.
Installing a child restraint that requires a top
tethe r without one can seriously impair the per­
formance of the child restraint and its ab ility to
protect the child in a collision. Installing a child
restra int that requi res a top tether without the
top tether may be a violation of state law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LATCH lower
anchorages on their child seats w ith hook-on or ..,.
185