CADILLAC CATERA 1997 1.G Service Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Cadillac
Air bags affect how your Catera should be serviced.
There
are parts of the air bag systems in several places
around your vehicle. Your Catera dealer and the Catera
Service Manual have information about servicing your
vehicle and the air bag systems.
To purchase a service
manual, see “Service and Owner Publications” in
the Index.
A JAUTION:
For up to 10 seconds after the ignition key is
turned off and the battery is disconnected, an air
bag can still inflate during improper service. You
can be injured
if you are close to an air bag when
it inflates. Avoid
wires wrapped with yellow felt,
wires wrapped with yellow tape or yellow
connectors. They
are probably part of the air bag
systems. Be sure to follow proper service
procedures, and make sure the person
performing work for you
is qualified to do so.
The air bag systems do not need regular maintenance.
Rear Seat Passengers
It’s very important for rear seat passengers to buckle up!
Accident statistics show that unbelted people in the rear
seat are hurt more often in crashes than those who are
wearing safety belts.
Rear passengers who aren’t safety belted can be thrown
out of the vehicle in a crash. And they can strike others
in the vehicle who are wearing safety belts.
Rear Seat Outside Passenger Positions
n
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The positions next to the windows have lap-shoulder
belts. Here’s how to wear one properly.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let
it get twisted.
The 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.
2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure. When
the shoulder belt is pulled out all the way,
it
will lock. If it does, let it go back all the way and
start again. If the belt is not long enough, see “Safety
Belt Extender” at the end of this section. 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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine n n
The lap part of the belt should be worn low and snug on
the hips, just touching the thighs. In a crash, this applies
force to the strong pelvic bones. And you'd be less likely
to slide under the lap belt. If you slid under it, the belt
would apply force at your abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should
go
over the shoulder and across the chest. These parts of the
body are best able to take belt restraining forces.
The safety belt locks if there's a sudden stop or a crash,
or
if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor. Each
position next to the windows has
a shoulder belt
height adjuster. Move the shoulder belt adjuster to the
height that
is right for you.
Press the release button and move the height adjuster to
the desired position. After you move the adjuster to where
you want it,
try to move it down without pressing the
release button to make sure it has locked into position.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Adjust the height so that the shoulder portion of the belt is
centered
on your shoulder. The belt should be away from
your face and neck, but not falling off your shoulder.
'A CAUTION:
I
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder belt is
too loose. In a crash, you would move forward
too much, which could increase injury. The
shoulder belt should fit against your body.
To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
Center Passenger Position
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Lap Belt
I1
When you sit in the center seating position, you have a
lap safety belt, which has no retractor.
To make the belt
longer, tilt the latch plate
and pull it along the belt.
To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as shown until
the belt
is snug.
Buckle, position and release
it the same way as the lap
part of a lap-shoulder belt. If the belt isn’t long enough,
see “Safety Belt Extender” at the end
of this section.
Make sure
the release button on the buckle is positioned
so you would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if you ever had to.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Children
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! That includes
infants and all children smaller than adult size.
In fact,
the law in every state in the United States and in every
Canadian province says children up to some age must be
restrained while in a vehicle.
Smaller Children and Babies
I A C U-ION:
Smaller children and babies should always be
restrained in
a child or infant restraint. The
instructions for the restraint will say whether it is
the right type and
size for your child. A very
young child’s hip bones are so small that a
regular belt might not stay low on the hips, as it
should. Instead, the belt will likely be over the
child’s abdomen. In
a crash, the belt would apply
force right on the child’s abdomen, which could
cause serious or fatal injuries. So, be sure that
any child small enough
for one is always properly
restrained in a child or infant restraint.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine I
Never hold a baby in your arms while riding in a
vehicle.
A baby doesn’t weigh much -- until a
crash. During
a crash a baby will become so
heavy you can’t hold it. For example, in a crash
CAUTION: (Continued)
at only 25 mph (40 km/h), a 124b. (5.5 kg) baby
will suddenly become a 240-lb. (110
kg) force on
your arms. The baby would be almost impossible
to hold.
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Child Restraints
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
find 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.
The instructions that come with the infant or child
restraint will show you how to do that.
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 at
General Motors therefore recommend that you put your
child restraint in the rear seat.
Never put a rear-facing
child restraint in the front passenger seat. Here’s why:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured if the right front passenger’s air
bag inflates. This is because the back
of a
rearfacing child restraint would be very close to
the inflating air bag. Always secure a rearfacing
child restraint in the rear seat.
You may, however, secure
a forward-facing child
restraint in the right front seat. Before you secure
a forward-facing child restraint, always move the
front passenger seat as
far back as it will go. Or,
secure the child restraint in the 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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Top Strap If your child restraint has a top strap, it should be
anchored. If you need to have an anchor installed, you
can ask your Catera dealer to put it in for you.
If you
want to install an anchor yourself, your dealer can tell
you how to do it.
Canadian law requires that child restraints have a top
strap, and that the strap be anchored.
If your child restraint has a top strap, your dealer can
obtain a kit with anchor hardware and installation
instructions specifically designed for this vehicle. The
dealer can then install the anchor for you. In Canada,
this work will be done for you free
of charge. Or, you
may install the anchor yourself using the instructions
provided in the
kit.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Outside Seat Position
You’ll be u,sing the lap-shoulder belt. See the earlier part
about the top strap if the child restraint has one.
1. Put the restraint on the seat. Follow the instructions
for the child restraint.
2. Secure the child in the child restraint as the
instructions say.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder
portions of the vehicle’s safety belt through or
around the restraint. The child restraint instructions
will show you how.
If the shoulder belt goes in front of the child’s face or
neck, put it behind the child restraint.
4. Buckle the belt. Make sure the release button is
positioned
so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if
you ever had to.
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