warning AUDI A7 2016 Owners Manual

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~ When using the vehicle safety belt to install a child safety seat , you must first activate th e
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
¢ page 177.
~ 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).
~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 172.
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
strained for their age and size.
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
mus t be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained child is also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- Commercially available child safety seats
are required to comply with U.S. Federal Mo­
tor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 213 (in
Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restraint, select one
that fits your child and the vehicle .
- Only use child restraint systems that fully contact the flat portion of the seat cush­
ion. The child restraint must not tip 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 legal requirements per­
taining to the installation and use of child
safety seats and carefully follow the in-
Child safety
structions provided by the manufacturer
of the seat you are using .
- Never allow children under 57 inches
(1.45 meters) to wear a normal safety belt.
They must always 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 older 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 child restraint system.
- The strongest person could not hold the child 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.
- The child and the passenger can also in­
jure each other in an accident.
- Never install rear -facing child safety seats or
infant carriers on the front passenger seat.
A child will be seriously injured and can be
killed when the passenger airbag inflates -
even with an Advanced 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 install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Forward-facing child safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat can interfere
with the airbag when it inflates and cause serious injury to the child. Always install for­
ward-facing child safety seats on the rear
seat.
- If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety and well-being require that the following
special precautions be taken:
Ill>
171

Child safety
-Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its manu ­
facturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side airbag .
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer 's
instructions provided with the child sa fety
seat or carrier .
- Always move the front passenger seat into
the rearmost position of the passenger
seat's fore and aft adjustment range, and
as far away from the airbag as possible be­
fore installing the child restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure that the backrest is in
the upright position .
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heat­
er for child seats) on the front passenger
seat if the device is connected to the 12-
volt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys ­
tem on this seat .
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or oth­
er liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion .
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a laptop, CD player, electronic games device ,
power inverter or seat heater for child
seats) . These may influence the electrical
capacitance measured by the capacitive passenger detection system and can also
fly around in an accident and cause serious
personal injury.
- 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 read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
c::> poge 135, Safety belts,
172
c::> page 143, Airbag system and
c::> page 167, Child safety .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on whenever a child re ­
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on .
- 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. 167 Schem ati c o verview: keep unused safety belt s
away fro m childre n in child safety seats. @ -ou te r rear
s a fe ty belt, @ -center rea r sa fety belt*
If a child safety sea t is used on the rear bench,
especially with LATCH universal lower anchorag ­
es, the unused safety belts
must be secured so
that the child in the child restraint cannot reach
them
c::> _&. .
- Guide the safety belt webbings @and ®* be ­
hind the head restraint of the seat where the
child restraint is installed
c::> fig . 167. When do­
ing so, do not engage the convertible locking
retractor! You should not hear a "clicking "
sound when winding up the safety belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt
webbing.

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_& 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 booster seat on the
rear seat could play with unused rear seat
safety belts and become entangled. This
could cause the child serious personal injury
and even death.
- Always secure unused rear seat safety belts
out of reach of children in child seats such
as by properly routing them around the
head restraint of the seat where the child re­
straint 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. 168 Schematic overview: rearward-facing infa nt seat,
prope rly instal led on t he rear seat
"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
r::;,page 177 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
Child safety
the seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2.5 cm).
... Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
r::;, page 172.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg) are
best protected in special infant carriers and child
safety seats designed for their age group. Many
experts believe that infants and small children
should ride only in special restraints in which the
child faces the back of the vehicle . These infant
seats support the baby's back, neck and head in a
crash
¢ fig. 168.
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 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, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of serious personal injury and death in a crash.
- Never install rear-facing child safety seats or
infant carriers on the front passenger seat -
even with an Advanced Airbag System. A
child will be seriously injured and can be kil­ led when the inflating airbag hits the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great force
and smashes the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof
r::;, page 144, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
-Always install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Never install a rear-facing child restraint in
the forward-facing direction. Such restraints
are designed for the special needs of infants
and very small children and cannot protect
them properly if the seat is forward-facing.
- If you must install 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
173

Child safety
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your Audi dealer .
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth ­
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restraint system on
this seat .
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, electronic games device,
power inverter or seat heater for child
seats). These may influence the electrical
capacitance measured by the capacitive pas­
senger detection system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause serious per­
sonal injury.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
r::!;> poge 135, Safety belts,
r::!;> page 143, Airbag system and
~ page 167, Important information .
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety sea ts con
help protect toddlers and children over age one
who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9 and 18 kg)
in a crash.
Fig. 169 Schema tic ov ervi ew: installatio n of th e atta ch­
m ents app lica ble to a LATCH seat
174
Fig. 170 Schem ati c ove rview : instal la ti on of the sea t using
t he vehicle' s sa fet y bel t system
.,. 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
¢
page 177 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)
r::!;> page 177.
.,. If the child safety seat is equipped with a tether
strap, attach it to the tether anchors
¢ page 183.
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 172.
A toddler o r child is usually too large for an in­
fant restraint if it is more than one year old and
weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
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¢
fig. 169 and
¢fig. 170 .
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, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of serious

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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 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 arm rest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
- If you must install 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 rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer .
- 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
r=;.page 56. 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.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
r=;, page 135, Safety belts,
r=;, page 143, Airbag system and
9 page 167, Important information.
_&. WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the front
passenger's seat, the child's safety and well-
Child safety
being require that the following special pre­
cautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has been
designed and certified by its manufacturer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's instruc­
tions provided with the child safety seat or
infant carrier .
- Always move the front passenger seat into
the rearmost position of the passenger
seat's fore and aft adjustment range, and as
far away from the airbag as possible before installing the child restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents the front passenger's seat from being moved to
the rearmost position in its fore and aft ad­
justment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an up­
right position.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat
if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth­
erwise added to the front passenger seat, never install any child restraint system on
this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CO player, electronic games device,
power inverter or seat heater for child
seats). These may influence the electrical
capacitance measured by the capacitive pas­
senger detection system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause serious per­
sonal injury.
- 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 forward-facing child seat at a seat-
ing position on the rear seat and have the
Ill-
175

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In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any children, who must be in the front seat be­
cause of exceptional circumstances, be properly
restrained and as far away from the airbag as
possible . By keeping room between the child's
body and the front of the passenger compart­
ment, the airbag can inflate completely and pro­
vide supplemental protection in certain frontal
collisions .
A 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 135.
-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 56. 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 .
- 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.
-
Child safety
-Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle.
- 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 154, 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 135, Safety belts,
¢ page 143, Airbag system and
¢ page 167, 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 can 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
177

Child safety
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re­
strained 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 safe­
ty seat . An unlocked safety belt retractor
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 collision.
- Always make sure that the rear seat back­
rest to which the center rear safety belt* is
attached is securely latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used to se­
cure a child 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 child can be seriously injured or killed.
- Never install rear-facing child safety seats or
infant carriers on the front passenger seat.
A child will be seriously injured and can be killed when the passenger airbag inflates.
- 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 install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat .
- Forward-facing child safety seats or infant
carriers installed on the front passenger's
seat may interfere with the deployment of
the airbag and cause serious injury to the child.
- It is safer to install a forward-facing child
safety seat on the rear seat.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
Qpage 167. Special precautions
178
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
Q page 144, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor­
tant things to know.
A WARNING
Always take special precautions if you must
install a forward or rearward-facing child re­
straint on the front passenger's seat in excep­
tional situations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-facing
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.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks described
Q page 154, 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.
- Improper installation of child restraints can
reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protection.
- An improperly installed child restraint can interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
seriously injure or even kill the child .
-Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- After checking to make sure that the child
restraint is properly installed, make certain
that the child restraint is correctly recog­
nized by the capacitive passenger detection
system in the front passenger seat and that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light signals
the correct front passenger frontal airbag
status.
A WARNING
Forward-facing child restraints:
-

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-Always mak e 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 pu t the forward-facing child restraint
up, aga inst or very near the ins trument pan­
el.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air­
bag as possib le befo re installing the for­
wa rd-fac ing child restra int. The backres t
must be ad justed to an up right posit io n.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and s tays on all the t ime
whe never the ignition is switched on.
_& WARNING
Rearw ard-fac ing ch ild restra ints:
- A ch ild in a rearwa rd-facing child safety seat
installed on the fron t passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be k ille d if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Ad ­
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflati ng a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great fo rce and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and chi ld
against the backrest, center armrest, door
o r roof.
- Always be especially caref ul if you must in­
stall a rearward facing ch ild 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 t ime
whenever the ignition is switched on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immed iately in­
stall the rear-fac ing c hild safety seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Au di deale r.
Child sa fety
Act ivating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint .
Always heed the ch ild safety seat manufac ture r's
ins truc tions when ins talling a child res train t in
your vehicle . T o activate the convertible locking
re tractor:
.. Place the child restraint on a sea t, preferably on
the rear sea t.
.. Slowly p ull the belt
all the way out .
.. Route it a round or through the child rest ra int
be lt pat h
~ .& .
.. Push the c hild safety sea t down with you r full
we igh t to ge t the sa fe ty belt re ally t igh t.
.. Insert the belt tongue into the buc kle for tha t
seating posit ion .
.. Guide the saf ety belt back into the retractor un ­
til the belt lies flat and sn ug on the ch ild safety
seat .
.. You should hear a "clicking" noise as the belt
w inds bac k into the ine rtia reel. Test the con­
vert ible locking retracto r by pu lli ng on the belt .
Yo u shou ld no lo nger be able to pull the belt
ou t of the re tr actor. The conve rtible locking re­
t racto r is now ac tiva ted .
.. Ma ke s ure that the red release button is fac ing
away from the child rest raint so that it can be
unbuckled quickly .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety be lt is
properly tight and fastened so t hat the se at
cannot move forward or sideways more than
one inch (2 .5 cm) .
_& WARNING
Using the wrong child re straint o r an i mprop­
e rly insta lled child rest raint can cau se serious
p erson al injury or deat h in a cra sh .
- Always ma ke sure that the safe ty belt re­
tr act o r i s lo cked when in sta lling a child safe­
ty seat . An unloc ked sa fety belt retrac tor
cannot hold the child safety seat in place
du ring normal d riving or in a c rash.
- Always buckle the child sa fe ty seat firmly in
p lace even if a ch ild is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly aro und durin g
a sudden stop or in a c rash. ..,.
179

Child safety
-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 fly 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 vehicle is
being used¢
page 167 . Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 144, 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.
Th@ 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 deactivate this feature .
If the
convertible locking retractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt will gradually become tighter and
uncomfortable to wear.
_& WARNING
Improperly installed child 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
180
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
being used
¢page 167. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
c> page 144, 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 practicable way to
attach the chi ld restraint on the vehicle seat, Fed­
eral regulations require special lower anchorages
in vehicles and devices on new child restraints to
attach to the vehicle anchorages.
The combination of the tether anchorages and
the lower anchorages is now generally called the
LATCH system for " Lower Anchorages and
Tethers for Children ."
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 requirements . These
new performance requirements make a tether
necessary on most new child seats .
Installing a child restraint that requires a top
tether without one can seriously impair the per­
formance of the child restra int and its ability to
protect the child in a collision . Installing a child
restraint that requires 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 with hook-on or push-on connectors attached to adjustable
straps.
In addition to the LATCH lower anchorages, these
child restraint systems usually require the use of
tether straps to help keep the child restraint
firmly in pla ce. .,.

M N <( I.J "". rl I.O
"' N I.O rl
,&_ WARNING
Improper insta llation of chi ld restraints will
increase the risk of injury and death in a crash.
- Always follow the instructions prov ided by
the manufacturer of the child restraint you intend to install in your vehicle.
- Never install a child restraint witho ut a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instructions requ ire the top tether strap to be used .
- Improper use of child restraint LATCH lower
anchorage points can lead to injury in a colli­
sion. The LATCH lower anchorage po ints are
designed to withstand only those loads im­
posed by correctly fitted ch ild restraints .
- Never mount two child restraint systems on
one LATCH lower anchorage point .
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
item to the LATCH lower anchorages.
(D Tips
- In Canada, the terms "top tether" with
"lower universa l anchorages" (or "lower uni­
versal anchorage bars") are used to describe
the system.
- In other countries, the term "ISO FIX" is
used to describe the lower anchorages.
Location
F ig . 17 2 Sche matic overvi ew : LA TCH an ch o rag e point lo ca­
tions
The illustration shows the seating locations in
your ve hicle which are eq uipped w ith the lower
anchorages system.
Chil d sa fe ty
Description
T he lower anchorage positions are marked for
quick locating .
Fig. 173 Low er an cho rag es, co ver s marke d
Fig . 1 74 Re ar s eats: lowe r an cho rag e bra cket lo ca tion s
Lower anch orages
The circular markings on the rear sea t help you to
identify th e location of lower anchorages for the
two outboard seating posit ions ¢
fig. 173. The
LATCH low er universal anchorage attachm ent
points are between the rear seatback and re ar
seat cush ion .
Remov e the covers ¢
fig. 173 to access the lower
anchorage attachment points .
T he lower a nch o rage attachmen t po ints are visi ­
ble
¢ fig . 174.
Lower anchorages secure the child restraint in
the seat without using the vehicle's safety belts .
Anchorages provide a secure and easy -to-use at­
tachment and minim ize the poss ibility of improp ­
er child restraint installation.
All child rest raints manufactured after Septem ­
ber 1, 2002, must have lower anchorage at ta ch-
ments for the
LATCH system. .,.
181