ECU BUICK LESABRE 2004 Owner's Manual

Front Seats......................................................1-2
Manual Seats................................................1-2
Power Seats..................................................1-2
Manual Lumbar..............................................1-3
Power Lumbar...............................................1-3
Heated Seats.................................................1-4
Reclining Seatbacks........................................1-4
Head Restraints.............................................1-6
Safety Belts.....................................................1-6
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone.................1-6
Questions and Answers About Safety Belts......1-11
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly.................1-11
Driver Position..............................................1-12
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy..................1-18
Right Front Passenger Position.......................1-19
Center Front Passenger Position.....................1-19
Rear Seat Passengers..................................1-21
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for
Children and Small Adults..........................1-24
Safety Belt Extender.....................................1-26
Child Restraints.............................................1-27
Older Children..............................................1-27
Infants and Young Children............................1-29
Child Restraint Systems.................................1-33Where to Put the Restraint.............................1-36
Top Strap....................................................1-37
Top Strap Anchor Location.............................1-38
Lower Anchorages and Top Tethers for
Children (LATCH System)...........................1-39
Securing a Child Restraint Designed for
the LATCH System....................................1-41
Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Seat Position............................................1-42
Securing a Child Restraint in the Right
Front Seat Position....................................1-44
Air Bag Systems............................................1-47
Where Are the Air Bags?...............................1-50
When Should an Air Bag Inate?....................1-51
What Makes an Air Bag Inate?.....................1-53
How Does an Air Bag Restrain?.....................1-53
What Will You See After an Air
Bag Inates?............................................1-54
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle.........1-56
Restraint System Check..................................1-56
Checking Your Restraint Systems...................1-56
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash............................................1-57
Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
1-1

Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to wear it
properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat so you can sit up straight. To see
how, see “Seats” in the Index.3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
The lap-shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt
across you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt
go back slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt
across you more slowly.
4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt isn’t long enough, seeSafety Belt
Extender on page 1-26.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
1-12

If the belt stops before it reaches the buckle, tilt the
latch plate and keep pulling until you can buckle it.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt is not long enough, seeSafety Belt
Extender on page 1-26.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to.3. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder part.
1-22

Every time infants and young children ride in vehicles,
they should have the protection provided by appropriate
restraints. Young children should not use the vehicle’s
adult safety belts alone, unless there is no other choice.
Instead, they need to use a child restraint.
{CAUTION:
People should never hold a baby in their arms
while riding in a vehicle. A baby doesn’t weigh
much -- until a crash. During a crash a baby
will become so heavy it is not possible to hold
it. For example, in a crash at only 25 mph
(40 km/h), a 12-lb. (5.5 kg) baby will suddenly
become a 240-lb. (110 kg) force on a person’s
arms. A baby should be secured in an
appropriate restraint.
1-30

The restraint manufacturer’s instructions that come
with the restraint state the weight and height
limitations for a particular child restraint. In addition,
there are many kinds of restraints available for
children with special needs.
{CAUTION:
Newborn infants need complete support,
including support for the head and neck. This
is necessary because a newborn infant’s neck
is weak and its head weighs so much
compared with the rest of its body. In a crash,
an infant in a rear-facing seat settles into the
restraint, so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest part of an
infant’s body, the back and shoulders. Infants
always should be secured in appropriate infant
restraints.
{CAUTION:
The body structure of a young child is quite
unlike that of an adult or older child, for whom
the safety belts are designed. A young child’s
hip bones are still so small that the vehicle’s
regular safety belt may not remain low on the
hip bones, as it should. Instead, it may settle
up around the child’s abdomen. In a crash, the
belt would apply force on a body area that’s
unprotected by any bony structure. This alone
could cause serious or fatal injuries. Young
children always should be secured in
appropriate child restraints.
1-32

Q:How do child restraints work?
A:A child restraint system is any device designed for
use in a motor vehicle to restrain, seat, or position
children. A built-in child restraint system is a
permanent part of the motor vehicle. An add-on
child restraint system is a portable one, which
is purchased by the vehicle’s owner.
For many years, add-on child restraints have used
the adult belt system in the vehicle. To help
reduce the chance of injury, the child also has to be
secured within the restraint. The vehicle’s belt
system secures the add-on child restraint in the
vehicle, and the add-on child restraint’s harness
system holds the child in place within the restraint.
One system, the three-point harness, has straps that
come down over each of the infant’s shoulders and
buckle together at the crotch. The ve-point harness
system has two shoulder straps, two hip straps and a
crotch strap. A shield may take the place of hip
straps. A T-shaped shield has shoulder straps that
are attached to a at pad which rests low against the
child’s body. A shelf- or armrest-type shield has
straps that are attached to a wide, shelf-like shield
that swings up or to the side.When choosing a child restraint, be sure the child
restraint is designed to be used in a vehicle. If it is, it
will have a label saying that it meets federal motor
vehicle safety standards.
Then follow the instructions for the restraint. You may
nd these instructions on the restraint itself or in a
booklet, or both. These restraints use the belt system in
your vehicle, but the child also has to be secured
within the restraint to help reduce the chance of personal
injury. When securing an add-on child restraint, refer
to the instructions that come with the restraint which may
be on the restraint itself or in a booklet, or both, and
to this manual. The child restraint instructions are
important, so if they are not available, obtain a
replacement copy from the manufacturer.
1-35

Where to Put the Restraint
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear rather than the front seat. We,
therefore, recommend that child restraints be secured
in a rear seat, including an infant riding in a rear-facing
infant seat, a child riding in a forward-facing child
seat and an older child riding in a booster seat.Never
put a rear-facing child restraint in the front passenger
seat. Here is why:
{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s air bag inates. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child restraint
would be very close to the inating air bag.
Always secure a rear-facing child restraint in a
rear seat.
If you secure a forward-facing child restraint in
the right front seat, always move the front
passenger seat as far back as it will go. It is
better to secure the child restraint in a rear seat.
{CAUTION:
A child in a child restraint in the center front
seat can be badly injured or killed by the right
front passenger’s air bag if it inates. Never
secure a child restraint in the center front seat.
It is always better to secure a child restraint in
the rear seat.
If you secure a forward-facing child restraint in
the right front passenger seat, always move
the front passenger seat as far back as it will
go. It is better to secure the child restraint in a
rear seat.
Wherever you install it, be sure to secure the child
restraint properly.
Keep in mind that an unsecured child restraint can
move around in a collision or sudden stop and injure
people in the vehicle. Be sure to properly secure
any child restraint in your vehicle – even when no child
is in it.
1-36

Anchor the top strap to an anchor point specied inTop
Strap Anchor Location on page 1-38. Be sure to use
an anchor point located on the same side of the vehicle
as the seating position where the child restraint will
be placed.
{CAUTION:
Each top tether bracket is designed to anchor
only one child restraint. Attaching more than
one child restraint to a single bracket could
cause the anchor to come loose or even break
during a crash. A child or others could be
injured if this happens. To help prevent injury
to people and damage to your vehicle, attach
only one child restraint per bracket.
Once you have the top strap anchored, you’ll be ready
to secure the child restraint itself. Tighten the top
strap when and as the child restraint manufacturer’s
instructions say.
Top Strap Anchor Location
Your vehicle has top strap anchors already installed for
the rear seating positions. You’ll nd them behind
the rear seat on the ller panel.
Do not use a child restraint with a top strap in the right
front passenger’s position because there is no place
to anchor the top strap.
In order to get to a bracket, you’ll have to open the
trim cover.
1-38

Lower Anchorages and Top Tethers
for Children (LATCH System)
Your vehicle has the LATCH system. You will nd
anchors (A) for all three rear seating positions.
This system, designed to make installation of child
restraints easier, does not use the vehicle’s safety belts.
Instead, it uses vehicle anchors (A, B) and child
restraint attachments to secure the restraints. Some
restraints also use another vehicle anchor to secure a
top tether strap (C).
1-39

{CAUTION:
If a LATCH-type child restraint isn’t attached to
its anchorage points, the restraint won’t be
able to protect the child correctly. In a crash,
the child could be seriously injured or killed.
Make sure that a LATCH-type child restraint is
properly installed using the anchorage points,
or use the vehicle’s safety belts to secure the
restraint. See “Securing a Child Restraint
Designed for the LATCH System” or “Securing
a Child Restraint in a Rear Seat Position” in
the Index for information on how to secure a
child restraint in your vehicle.
Securing a Child Restraint Designed
for the LATCH System
1. Find the anchors for the seating position you want
to use, where the bottom of the seatback meets the
back of the seat cushion.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
3. Attach the anchor points on the child restraint to the
anchors in the vehicle. The child restraint
instructions will show you how.
4. If the child restraint is forward-facing, attach the top
strap to the top strap anchor. SeeTop Strap on
page 1-37. Tighten the top strap according to
the child restraint instructions.
5. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.
To remove the child restraint, simply unhook the top
strap from the top tether anchor and then disconnect the
anchor points.
1-41