child restraint AUDI Q5 2014 Owner's Guide

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.
F ig . 175 Sche mati c overvi ew : ins tallat ion o f the at­
tachments appl icable to a LA TCH seat
F ig. 176 Schem atic overview: installat ion of t he seat
u sing the ve hicle' s safety b elt sy stem
.. When using the vehicle safety be lt to insta ll
a chi ld safety seat, you must f irst activate
the convertible locking feature on the safety
belt to prevent the child safety seat from
moving
c::> page 188 or install the seat using
the LATCH attachments .
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really t ight
so that the seat cannot
move forward or
s ideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c:;, page 188.
.,. If the child safety seat is equ ipped with a
tet her strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c:;, page 194 .
.. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:;, page 183.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in­
fant restraint if it is more than one year o ld
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
Child Safety 185
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 cert ified for their si ze and weight
c:;, fig . 175 and c:;, fig. 176 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to ride . The front sea t is not the sa fest
place for a child in a forward -facing child safe ­
ty seat .
It is a very dangerous place for a n in­
fant or a large r ch ild in a rearward-facing seat .
.&_ WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child s afety seat o r imprope rly in­
stalling a chi ld restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death in a
collision or other emergency situation .
- Ch ildren on the front seat o f any car,
even with Advanced Airbags, can be se ri­
ously injured or
even killed when an air­
bag inflates. A chi ld in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed o n the front
passenger seat will be serious ly injured
and can be k illed if the front airbag in­
flates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force a nd will smash the child safety seat
and child against the ba ckrest, center
a rmrest, doo r or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild safety
seats o n the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearwa rd fac ing
child safety seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan­
ces and t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
mediately insta ll the rear -fac ing chi ld
safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i dea ler .
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be pos itioned as close as poss ib le
~

186 Child Safety
to the backrest on the vehicle seat. Ad­
just or remove the rear seat head restraint if it is difficult to install the
child seat with the head restraint in place
<=> page 65 . Install the head restraint
again immediately once the child seat is
removed. Driving without head restraints
or with head restraints that are not prop­
erly adjusted increases the risk of serious
or fatal neck injury dramatically.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
<=> page 149, Safety
belts,¢ page 157, Airbag system
and
i=> page 178, Important things to know.
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's safe­
ty and well-being require that the follow­
ing special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed and certified by its manu­
facturer for use on a front seat with a passenger front and side airbag.
-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or infant carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat in­
to the rearmost position of the passen­
ger seat's fore and aft adjustment range,
and as far away from the airbag as possi­
ble 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 adjustment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an
upright position.
- 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 light does not stay on, perform the
checks
¢ page 168, Monitoring the Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
-
- Take the child restraint off the front pas­
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
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 .
"' ....
"' 0 ±
o5
Fig. 177 Rear seat: ch ild properly rest rai ned in a boos­
te r seat
The vehicle 's safety belts alone will not fit
most children until they are at least 4 ft . 9 in .
(57 inches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about
80 lbs. (36 kg). Booster seats raise these chil­
dren up so that the safety belt wil l pass prop­
erly over the stronger parts of their bodies
and the safety belt can he lp protect them in a
crash.
"' Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to re­
strain a child on a booster seat.
"'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 the belt lies flat and snug . Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary .
"'If you must transport an older child in a
booster seat on the front passenger seat,
you can use the safety belt height adjust­
ment to help adjust the shoulder portion
properly.

~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 183.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40
lbs. or 18 kg) are best protected in child safe­
ty seats designed for their age and weight. Ex­ perts say that the skeletal structure, particu­
larly the pelvis, of these children is not fully
developed, and they must not use the vehicle
safety belts without a suitable child restraint .
It is usually best to put these children in ap­
propriate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicable 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 belt over the child's body is very
important for the child's protection, whether
or not a booster 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 in­
ches/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 alone to restrain any child, regard­
less of how big the child is. Always remember
that children do not have the pronounced pel­
vic structure required for the proper function
of lap belt portion of the vehicle's three point
lap and shoulder belts. The child's safety ab­
solutely requires that a lap belt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as
possible around the pelvis. 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 considerable 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 occupant moves forward into the air­ bag.
A vehicle occupant who is out of position and
too close to the airbag gets in the way of an inflating airbag. When an occupant is too
close, he or she will be struck violently and
Child Safety 187
will receive serious or possibly even fatal in­
jury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especial­
ly any children, who must be in the front seat
because 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 passen­
ger compartment, the airbag can inflate com ­
pletely and provide supplemental protection
in certain frontal collisions .
_&. WARNING
Not using a booster seat, using the boos­
ter seat improperly, incorrectly installing a booster seat or using the vehicle safety
belt improperly increases the risk of seri­
ous personal injury and death in a collision
or other emergency situation. To help re­
duce the risk of serious personal injury
and/or death:
- The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possi­
ble and must lie flat and snug on the up­
per 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
tighten if necessary.
- Failure to properly route safety belts
over a child's body will cause severe inju­
ries in an accident or other emergency
situation
¢page 149.
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be positioned as close as possible
to the backrest on the vehicle seat. Ad­
just or remove the rear seat head re­ straint if it is difficult to install the child
seat with the head restraint in place
¢ page 65. Install the head restraint
again immediately once the child seat is
removed . Driving without head restraints
or with head restraints that are not prop­
erly adjusted increases the risk of serious
-
or fatal neck injury dramatically. ~
•
•

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 in­
fant carriers installed on the front pas­
senger's seat may interfere with the de­
ployment 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 whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used¢
page 178. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 158, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
A WARNING
Always take special precautions if you
must install a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint on the front passenger's
seat in exceptional situations:
-Whenever a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint is installed on the front
passenger 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 ¢
page 168, Moni­
toring the Advanced Airbag System.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas­
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN­
GER 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 protec­
tion.
- An improperly installed child restraint
can interfere with the airbag as it de­
ploys and seriously injure or even kill the
child.
Child Safety 189
- Always carefully follow the manufactur­
er's instructions provided with the child
safety seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis­
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can
cause injury in a crash.
A WARNING
Forward-facing child restraints:
- Always 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.
- Never put the forward-facing child re­ straint up, against or very near the in­
strument panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forward-facing child restraint. The
backrest must be adjusted to an upright
position.
- 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 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 be especially careful if you must
install a rearward facing child safety seat
on the front passenger seat in exception-
al circumstances. .,.
•
•

190 Child Safety
-A tight tether strap on a rearward-facing
child restraint attached to the front pas­
senger seat can put too much pressure on the weight-mat in the seat and regis­
ter a heavier weight in the Advanced Air­
bag System . The heavier weight regis­
tered can make the system work as
though an adult were on the seat and de­
ploy the Advanced Airbag when it must
be suppressed causing serious or even
fatal injury to the child.
- 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, immedi­
ately install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi dealer.
Activating the convertible locking
retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se­
cure a child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufactur­
er's instructions when installing a child re ­
straint in your vehicle . To activate the conver­
tible locking retractor:
• Place the child restraint on a seat, prefera­
bly on the rear seat.
• Slowly pull the belt
all the way out.
• Route it around or through the child re­
straint 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
until 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
convertible locking retractor by pulling on
the belt. You should no longer be able to pull the belt out of the retractor.
The con­
vertible locking retractor is now activated.
• Make sure that the red release button is fac­
ing 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).
_&. WARNING
-
Using the wrong child restraint or an im­
properly 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 re­
tractor 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.
- Always make sure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright position and securely latched
into place and cannot fold forward . Oth­
erwise, the seatback with the child safety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the event of an accident or other emer­
gency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
~page 178. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 158, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important 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 retractor.
" Press the red button on the safe ty belt bu ck­
le. The bel t tongue w ill pop out of the buck ­
l e .
" Guide the safety be lt all the way back into
its stowed position .
A lways le t the safety belt retrac t complete ly
into its stowed posit ion . The sa fety belt can
now be used as an ordinary safety belt with ­
out the convertib le locking ret ractor for chi ld
restra ints.
I f the convertible locking retracto r shou ld be
activated inadve rtently, the safety belt m ust
be unfastened and guided comp letely back in ­
to its stowed position to deactivate th is fea­
ture. If the co nvertib le locking retractor is not
deactivated, the safety belt will gradually be­
come tighter and u ncomfo rtable to wea r.
A WARNING
Imprope rly insta lled child saf ety seats in­
c rease the risk of ser ious perso nal inju ry
a n d death in a colli sion.
- Never unf asten the safety belt to deacti­
va te the convert ible lo cking re tr actor for
c hild re st rain ts w hile the veh icle is mov­
ing. You woul d not be rest rained and
cou ld be ser iously injure d in an accident.
- Always read and hee d all WARN INGS
whenever using a child rest rained in ave ­
hicle is being use d
¢page 178. Special
precautions apply when installing a ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 158, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
Child Sa fet y 191
LATCH Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To p rov ide a simple r and more practicable way
to attach the chil d restra in t on t he vehi cle
seat, Federal regulat ions req uire spec ia l lower
an cho rages in vehicles and devi ces on new
c h ild restraints to at tach to the vehicle ancho ­
rages.
T he combination o f the tether ancho rages and
th e lower ancho rages is now gener ally c alled
the
LATCH system fo r "L owe r Anchorages and
T ethers for Chil d ren."
Fo rw ard- facing ch ild restr ain ts manufa ctured
after September 1, 19 99, are requ ired by U .S .
f edera l reg ulations to comply wi th new child
head movement performance req uir ements .
These new performance requirements make a
tether necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a chi ld restraint that requires a top
tether without one can seriously impair the performance of the c hild restra int and its abil ­
ity to protect the child in a coll is ion. Insta lling
a chi ld restraint that requi res a top tether
without the top tether may be a violat io n of
state law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LATCH
lower anchorages on their child seats w ith
hook-on or push-on con nectors attached to
adjustable straps.
In add ition to the LATCH lower anchorages,
these chi ld restraint systems usually require
the use of tether straps to he lp keep the chi ld
r est raint fi rmly in place .
A WARNING
Imp roper installat io n of ch ild restra ints
will i ncrease the r is k of inj ury a nd deat h in
a c rash.
-
•
•

192 Child Safety
-Always follow the instructions provided
by the manufacturer of the child re­
straint you intend to install in your vehi­
cle.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instruc­
tions require the top tether strap to be
used.
- Improper use of child restraint LATCH
lower anchorage points can lead to injury
in a collision. The LATCH lower anchorage
points are designed to withstand only
those loads imposed by correctly fitted
child 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 anchorag­
es .
(j) Tips
-In Canada, the terms "top tether" with
"lowe r universal anchorages" (or "lower
universal anchorage bars") are used to
describe the system.
- In other countries, the term "ISOFIX" is
used to describe the lower anchorages.
Location
Fig. 178 Schematic overview: LATCH a nch orage point
locations
The illustration shows the seating locations in
your vehicle which are equipped with the low­
er anchorages system.
Description
The lower anchorage positions are marked
for quick locating.
Fig. 179 Lower anchorages, covers marked
Fig. 180 Rear seats: lower anc horage bracket locations
Lower anchorages
The lower anchorage attachment points are
located between the rear seatback and rear
seat cushion.
Remove the covers ¢
fig. 179 to access the
lower anchorage attachment points.
The lower anchorage attachment points are
visible <=>
fig. 180 .
Lower anchorages secure the chi ld restraint in
the seat without using the vehicle's safety
belts. Anchorages provide a secure and easy­
to-use attachment and minimize the possibili­
ty of improper child restraint installation .
All child restraints manufactured after Sep­
tember 1, 2002, must have lower anchorage
attachments for the
LATCH system.
Remember that the lower anchorage points
are only intended for installation and attach­
ment of child restraints specifically certified
for use with
LATCH lower anchorages. Child ..,_

restraints that are not equipped with the low­
er anchorage attachments can still be instal­
led in compliance with the ch ild restra int
manufacturer's instructions on using vehicle
safety belts.
A WARNING
Improper use of LATCH lower anchorages
can cause serious personal injury in an ac­
cident.
-Always carefully follow the ch ild re­
straints manufacturer's inst ruct ions for
proper installation of the child restra int
and proper use of the lowe r anchorages
or safe ty belts in your vehicle.
- Never secure o r attach any luggage or
other items to the
LATCH lower ancho­
rages.
- Always read and heed the important in­
formation about ch ild restra ints in this
chapter and WARNINGS
~ page 178,
Child Safety.
Installing a child restraint with LATCH
lower anchorages
Whenever you install a child restraint always
follow the child restraint manufacturer's in­
structions.
F ig. 181 Lower ancho rages: proper mount ing
Mounting
~ Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in the upr ight position and securely
latched in place.
~ Attach bot h hook-on connectors with the
spring catch release o n the child safety seat
onto the LATC H lower anchorage so that the
connectors lock into place~
fig. 181.
Child S afety 193
~Pullon the connector attachments to make
sure they are properly attached to the LATCH
lower anchorage.
~ Pull straps tight follow ing the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions.
R ele a sing
~ Loosen the tension on the straps following
the child restraint manufacturer's instruc­
tions.
~ Depress the spring catches to release the
anchorage hooks from the lower anchorag­
es .
Remember: Use tether straps to help keep the
ch ild restraint firmly in place.
A WARNING
Improper use of the LATCH system ca n in­
crease the r isk of serious personal injury
and death in an accident.
- These anchors were developed only for
child safety seats using the "LATCH" sys­
tem.
- Never attach other ch ild safety seats,
be lts or other objects to these anchors.
- Always make sure that you hear a click when latch ing the seat in place. If you do
not hear a click the seat is not secu re and
could fly forwa rd and hit the inter ior of
the vehicle, or be e jected from the vehi­
cle.
A WARNING
Improper installat ion of child restraints
will i ncrease the risk of injury in an acci­
dent .
- A lways follow the child restraint system
manufacturer's instructions for proper
installation of the ch ild restra int system
and proper use of tether straps as well as
the lower anchorages or safety belts in
your veh icle.
-Always read and heed the important in­
formation and WARNINGS about child
safety and the instal lation of ch ild re­
straint systems~
page 178, Child Safe­
ty.
-

194 Child Safe ty
Tether anchors and tether straps
Fig. 182 Tethe r ancho rs: attachment hook locatio ns
behind the rea r sea tbacks
The tether anchors for the rear seating posi­
tions are located on the backside of the rea r
seatbacks
~ fig. 182.
A tether is a straight or V-shaped strap that
attaches the top part of a child restraint to
specia l anchorage points in the veh icle.
The purpose of the tether is to reduce the for·
ward movement of the ch ild restra int in a
crash, in order to help reduce the r isk of head
in ju ry that could be ca used by striking the ve­
hicle interior.
Forward facing child restra ints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are required by U .S .
federal regulations to comply with new child
head movement performance requirements.
These new performance requ irements make a
tether necessary on most new chi ld safety
seats.
A WARNING
Improper insta llation of chi ld restraints
w ill increase the risk of injury and death in
a crash.
- Always follow the instructions prov ided
by the manufacturer of the ch ild re­
stra int you intend to install in your Audi.
- Improper use of c hild restra int anchors
(including tether anchors) can lead to in ·
jury in a co llision. Th e anchors are de·
sign ed to withstand only those loads im­
posed by cor rect ly fi tted ch ild restraints.
- Never mou nt two chi ld restraint systems
on one LA TCH lower anchor po int. -
Never attach two child restraint systems
to one tether strap or tether anchorage .
- Never attach a tether strap to a tie-down
hook in the luggage compartment.
- Never use child restraint tether ancho­
rages to secure safety belts or other
kinds of occupant restraints.
- Never secure or attac h any luggage or
other items to the LATCH lower ancho­
rages or to the tether anchors.
- If a tether or other strap is used to at­
tach a chi ld restraint to the front passen­
ger seat, make sure that it is not so
tight, that it causes the weight-sensing mat to measure more we ight than is ac­
tually on the seat.
- The heavier weight registered can make the Advanced Airbag System work as
though an adult were o n the seat and de·
p loy the Advanced Airbag when it mus t
be supp ressed causi ng serio us or even
fatal injury to the ch ild .
- If you must ins tall a rearw ard fa cing
c h ild safe ty seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan ­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on , im­
mediately insta ll the rear-fac ing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i deale r.

Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fig. 183 Tether strap: proper routing and mounting
Fig. 184 Tether strap: proper rout ing and mounting
In sta ll in g th e tether strap
• Release or deploy the tether strap on the
child restraint according to the child re­
straint manufacturer's instructions .
• Gu ide the upper tether strap
under the rear
head restraint and into the rear cargo area
Q fig. 184 (raise the head rest raint if neces­
sary) .
• Slide the tether strap hook over the anchor
bracket.
• Pull on the tether strap hook so that the
spring catch of the hook engages.
• Tighten the tether strap firmly following the
child restra int manufacturer's instruct ions .
Attaching to th e center se ating po sit ion
• Slide the rear seat forward Q page 64.
• Pull the anchor bracket forward and connect
the tether strap hook.
• Tighten the tether strap and move the seat
backward .
Releasing th e te th er stra p
• Loosen the tension following the child re­
straint manufacturer's instructions.
Child S afety 195
• Depress the spring catch on the hook and re­
lease it from the anchorage .
(D Note
If you leave the child restra int w ith the
tether strap firmly installed fo r several
days, this could leave a mark on the up­
holstery on the seat cushion and backrest
i n the area where the tether strap was in­
stalled. The upholstery would also be per­
manently stretched around the tether
strap . This applies especia lly to leather
seats.
Using tether straps on rearward-facing
child restraints
Cu rrently, few rear-facing child restraint sys­
tems come with a tether. Please read and
heed the child restraint system manufactur­
er's instructions carefully to determine how to
properly install the tether.
&, WARNING
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger seat
will be ser ious ly injured and ca n be killed if
the front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- The infla ting airbag will h it the ch ild
safety sea t or i nfan t carrie r with great
force and will smash the child safety seat and child against the backrest, center
armrest, o r door .
- A t ight tether or other strap on a rear­
ward-facing child rest raint attached to
the front passenger seat can p ut too
muc h pressure on the weight-mat in the
seat and register a heavier weight in the
Advanced A irbag System . The heavier
weight registered can make the system
wo rk as tho ugh an adult we re on th e seat
a nd deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
m ust be s uppressed causing ser ious or
even fatal injury to the ch ild .
- If you must insta ll a rearwa rd fa cing
child safety seat on t he front passenger
seat because of exceptional