CADILLAC ELDORADO 1998 10.G Owner's Guide

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
Q; 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.
Q; If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
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.
If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should
I wear safety belts?
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
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 km/h).
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 vehicle,
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.
2. Adjust the seat (to see how. see “Seats” in the Index)
so you can sit up straight.
3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let
it get twisted.
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. 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 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.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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, pull out the
shoulder
belt. or open your door, the belt will become
tight again.
If this happens, you can reset it.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine f
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What’s wrong with this?
A CAUTION:
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. Don’t
allow more than
1 inch (25 mm) of slack.
A: The shoulder belt is too loose. It won’t give nearly
as much protection this way.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine @ What’s wrong with this?
A: The belt is buckled in the wrong place.
A CAUTION:
You can be seriously injured if your belt is
buckled in the wrong place like this. In a crash,
the belt would
go up over your abdomen. The
belt forces would be there, not at the pelvic
bones. This could cause serious internal injuries.
Always buckle your belt into the buckle
nearest you.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine f What's wrong with this?
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A: The shoulder belt is worn under the arm. It should
be
worn over the shoulder at all times.
A CAUTION:
You can be seriously injured if you wear the
shoulder belt under your arm. In a crash, your
body would move too
far forward, which would
increase the chance of head and neck injury.
Also, the belt would apply too much force to the
ribs, which aren't as strong as shoulder bones.
You could also severely injure internal organs
like your
liver or spleen.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine @ What’s wrong with this?
A: The belt is twisted across the body.
A CAUTION:
You can be seriously injured by a twisted belt. In
a crash, you wouldn’t have the full width of the
belt to spread impact forces.
If a belt is twisted,
make it straight
so it can work properly, or ask
your dealer
to fix it.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine F
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To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
The belt should go back out
of the way.
Before you close the door, be sure the belt is out
of the
way. If you slam the door on it, you can damage both the
belt and your vehicle.
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
Safety belts work for everyone, including pregnant
women. Like all occupants, they are more likely to be
seriously injured if they don’t wear safety belts.
A pregnant woman should wear a lap-shoulder belt, and
the lap portion should be worn as low as possible, below
the rounding, throughout
the pregnancy.
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Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the
mother. When a safety belt is worn properly, it’s more
likely that the
fetus won’t be hurt in a crash. For
pregnant women, as
for anyone, the key to making
safety belts effective is wearing them properly.
Right Front Passenger Position
To learn how to wear the right front passenger’s
safety belt properly,
see “Driver Position” earlier in
this section.
The right front passenger’s safety belt works the same
way as the driver’s safety belt
-- except for one thing.
If you ever pull the lap portion of the belt
out all the
way,
you will engage the child restraint locking feature.
If this happens, just let the belt go back all the way and
start again.
Supplemental Inflatable Restraint
(SIR) System
This part explains the Supplemental Inflatable Restraint
(SIR) system or air bag system.
Your vehicle has two air bags
-- one air bag for the
driver and another air bag for
the right front passenger. Here
are the most important
things to know about the air
bag system:
A CAUTION:
You can be severely injured or killed in a crash if
you aren’t wearing your safety belt -- even if you
have
air bags. Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance
of hitting things
inside the vehicle or being ejected
from it. Air
bags are “supplemental restraints” to the safety
belts.
All air bags are designed to work with
safety belts, but don’t replace them. Air bags are
designed
to work only in moderate to severe
crashes where the front of your vehicle hits
something. They aren’t designed to inflate at all
in rollover, rear, side or low-speed frontal
crashes. Everyone in your vehicle should wear a
safety belt properly
-- whether or not there’s an
air bag for that person.
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