CADILLAC DEVILLE 1996 7.G Owner's Manual

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine But don’t have a seatback reclined if your vehicle is
moving.
A CAUTION:
Sitting in a reclined position when your vehicle is
in motion can be dangerous. Even if you buckle
up, your safety belts can’t
do their job when
you’re reclined like this.
The shoulder belt can’t do its job because it
won’t be against your body. Instead, it will be in
front of you. In
a crash you could go into it,
receiving neck
or other injuries.
The lap belt can’t
do its job either. In a crash the
belt could
go up over your abdomen. The belt
forces would be there, not at your pelvic bones.
This could cause serious internal injuries.
For proper protection when the vehicle is in
motion, have the seatback upright. Then sit well
back in the seat and wear your safety belt properly.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Head Restraints
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Slide the head restraint up or down so that the top of the
restraint is closest to the top
of your ears. This position
reduces the chance of a neck injury in a crash.
Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone
This part of the manual tells you how to use safety belts
properly. It also tells you some things you should not do with safety belts.
And it explains the Supplemental Inflatable Restraint (SIR),
or air bag system.
I A CAUTION:
Don’t let anyone ride where he or she can’t wear
a safety belt properly. If you are in a crash and
you’re not wearing
a safety belt, your injuries
can be much worse. You can hit things inside the
vehicle or be ejected from it.
You can be seriously
injured or killed.
In the same crash, you might
not be
if you are buckled up. Always fasten your
~ safety belt, and check that your passengers’ belts
are fastened properly too.
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Your vehicle has a light that
comes on as a reminder to
buckle up. (See “Safety Belt
Reminder Light” in the
Index.)
In most states and Canadian provinces, the law says to wear safety belts. Here’s why:
They work.
You never know if you’ll be in a crash. If you do have a
crash, you don’t know if it will be a bad
one.
A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be so
serious that even buckled up a person wouldn’t survive.
But most crashes are in between. In many of them,
people
who buckle up can survive and sometimes walk
away. Without belts they could have been badly
hurt or
killed.
After more than
25 years of safety belts in vehicles,
the facts are clear. In most crashes buckling
up does
matter
... a lot!
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as it
goes.
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Take the simplest vehicle. Suppose it’s just a seat on
wheels.
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Put someone on it.

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Get it up to speed. Then stop the vehicle. The rider
doesn't stop. The person keeps going until stopped by something.
In a real vehicle, it could be the windshield ...
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or the instrument panel ... or the safety belts!
With safety belts, you slow down as the vehicle
does.
You get more time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones
take the forces. That’s why
safety belts make such good sense.
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Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
@ Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if I’m wearing
a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or
not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upside down. And your chance
of
being conscious during and after an accident, so
you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if
you are belted.
&: If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in
most of them in the future. But they are supplemental systems only;
so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for sale has required the use
of
safety belts. Even if you’re in a vehicle that has air
bags, you still have
to buckle up to get the most
protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and
other collisions.
wear safety belts?
@ If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
home, why should I wear safety belts?
accident -- even one that isn’t your fault -- you and
your passengers can be hurt. Being a good driver
doesn’t protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
25 miles (40 km) of
home. And the greatest number of serious injuries
and deaths occur at speeds of less
than 40 mph
(65 ww.
Safety belts are for everyone.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
Adults
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there are special
things to know about
safety belts
and children. And there are different rules
for smaller children
and babies. If a child will be riding
in your Cadillac, see the part of this manual called
“Children.” Follow those rules for everyone’s
protection.
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We’ll
start with the driver position.
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.
3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
2. Adjust the seat (to see how, see “Seats” in the Index)
so you can sit up straight.
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4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Be sure to use the correct buckle when buckling your lap-shoulder belt. If you find that the latch plate will
not go fully into the buckle, see if you are using the
buckle for the center passenger position.
Pull up
on the latch plate to make sure it is secure. 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.
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 crash.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Shoulder Beit Height Adjuster
Before you begin to drive, move the shoulder belt
adjuster to the height that is right for you.
To move it down, squeeze the release handle and move
the height adjuster to the desired position.
You can move
the adjuster up just by pushing up on the bottom of the
release handle. After you move the adjuster to where
you want it,
try to move it down without squeezing the
release handle to make sure it has locked into position.
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.
Shoulder Belt Tightness Adjustment
Your car has a shoulder belt tightness adjustment
feature. If the shoulder belt seems too tight, adjust it
before
you begin to drive.
1. Sit well back in the seat.
2. Start pulling the shoulder belt out.
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3. Just before it reaches the end, give it a quick pull.
4. Let the belt go back all the way.
You should hear a
slight clicking sound.
If you don’t, the adjustment
feature won’t set, and
you’ll have to start again.
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5. Now you can add a small amount of slack. Lean
forward slightly, then sit back.
If you’ve added more
than
1 inch (25 mm) of slack, pull the shoulder belt
out as you did before and start again.
If you move around in the vehicle enough, or if you pull
out the shoulder belt, the belt will become tight again.
If
this happens, you can reset it.
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