warning CHEVROLET COLORADO 2011 1.G Owner's Manual

Black plate (12,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
3-12 Seats and Restraints
Safety Belts
This section of the manual
describes how to use safety belts
properly. It also describes some
things not to do with safety belts.
{WARNING
Do not let anyone ride where a
safety belt cannot be worn
properly. In a crash, if you or your
passenger(s) are not wearing
safety belts, the injuries can be
much worse. You can hit things
inside the vehicle harder or be
ejected from the vehicle. You and
your passenger(s) 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 passenger(s) are
restrained properly too.
{WARNING
People riding on the tailgate (if
equipped) can easily lose their
balance and fall even when the
vehicle is operated at low speeds.
Falling from a moving vehicle may
result in serious injuries or death.
{WARNING
It is extremely dangerous to ride
in a cargo area, inside or outside
of a vehicle. In a collision, people
riding in these areas are more
likely to be seriously injured or
killed. Do not allow people to ride
in any area of your vehicle that is
not equipped with seats and
safety belts. Be sure everyone in
your vehicle is in a seat and using
a safety belt properly.This vehicle has indicators as a
reminder to buckle the safety belts.
See
Safety Belt Reminders on
page 5‑9 for additional information.
In most states and in all Canadian
provinces, the law requires wearing
safety belts. Here is why:
You never know if you will be in a
crash. If you do have a crash, you
do not know if it will be a
serious one.
A few crashes are mild, and some
crashes can be so serious that even
buckled up, a person would not
survive. But most crashes are in
between. In many of them, people
who buckle up can survive and
sometimes walk away. Without
safety belts they could have been
badly hurt or killed.
After more than 40 years of safety
belts in vehicles, the facts are clear.
In most crashes buckling up does
matter ... a lot!

Black plate (16,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
3-16 Seats and Restraints
Q: What is wrong with this?
A:The shoulder belt is too loose.
It will not give as much
protection this way.
{WARNING
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
snugly against your body. Q: What is wrong with this?
A:
The lap belt is too loose. It will
not give nearly as much
protection this way.
{WARNING
You can be seriously hurt if your
lap belt is too loose. In a crash,
you could slide under the lap belt
and apply force on your
abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries. The
lap belt should be worn low and
snug on the hips, just touching
the thighs.

Black plate (17,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-17
Q: What is wrong with this?
A:The belt is buckled in the wrong
buckle.
{WARNING
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.
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
The belt forces would be there,
not on the pelvic bones. This
could cause serious internal
injuries. Always buckle your belt
into the buckle nearest you.
Q: What is wrong with this?
A: The belt is over an armrest.
{WARNING
You can be seriously injured if
your belt goes over an armrest
like this. The belt would be much
too high. In a crash, you can slide
under the belt. The belt force
would then be applied on the
abdomen, not on the pelvic
bones, and that could cause
serious or fatal injuries. Be sure
the belt goes under the armrests.

Black plate (18,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
3-18 Seats and Restraints
Q: What is wrong with this?
A:The shoulder belt is worn under
the arm. It should be worn over
the shoulder at all times.
{WARNING
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
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
belt would apply too much force
to the ribs, which are not as
strong as shoulder bones. You
could also severely injure internal
organs like your liver or spleen.
The shoulder belt should go over
the shoulder and across the
chest.
Q: What is wrong with this?
A: The belt is behind the body.
{WARNING
You can be seriously injured by
not wearing the lap-shoulder belt
properly. In a crash, you would
not be restrained by the shoulder
belt. Your body could move too
far forward increasing the chance
of head and neck injury. You
might also slide under the lap
belt. The belt force would then be
applied right on the abdomen.
That could cause serious or fatal
injuries. The shoulder belt should
go over the shoulder and across
the chest.

Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-19
Q: What is wrong with this?
A:The belt is twisted across
the body.
{WARNING
You can be seriously injured by a
twisted belt. In a crash, you would
not 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.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
All seating positions in the vehicle
have a lap-shoulder belt except for
the center front passenger position,
if equipped, which has a lap belt.
See Lap Belt on page 3‑24 for more
information.
The following instructions explain
how to wear a lap-shoulder belt
properly.
1. Adjust the seat, if the seat is adjustable, so you can sit up
straight. To see how, see “Seats”
in the Index.
2. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. Do not 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.
If you ever pull the shoulder
portion of a passenger belt out
all the way, the child restraint locking feature may be engaged.
If this happens, just let the belt
go back all the way and start
again.
Engaging the child restraint
locking feature in the right front
seating position may affect the
passenger sensing system,
if equipped. See
Passenger
Sensing System on page 3‑32
for more information.
3. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.

Black plate (22,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
3-22 Seats and Restraints
Rear Safety Belt Comfort
Guides
This vehicle may have rear shoulder
belt comfort guides for the rear
outside positions. If not, they are
available through your dealer.
Rear shoulder belt comfort guides
may provide added safety belt
comfort for older children who have
outgrown booster seats and for
some adults. When installed and
properly adjusted, the comfort guide
positions the belt away from the
neck and head.
Here is how to install a comfort
guide to the shoulder belt:
1. Slide the guide off of its storageclip located between the interior
body and the seatback.
2. Place the guide over the beltand insert the two edges of the
belt into the slots of the guide.
3. Be sure that the belt is nottwisted and it lies flat. The
elastic cord must be under the
belt and the guide on top.
{WARNING
A safety belt that is not properly
worn may not provide the
protection needed in a crash. The
person wearing the belt could be
seriously injured. The shoulder
belt should go over the shoulder
(Continued)

Black plate (23,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-23
WARNING (Continued)
and across the chest. These parts
of the body are best able to take
belt restraining forces.
4. Buckle, position, and release thesafety belt as described
previously in this section. Make
sure the shoulder portion of the
belt is on the shoulder and not
falling off of it. The belt should
be close to, but not contacting,
the neck. To remove and store the comfort
guide, squeeze the belt edges
together so that the safety belt can
be removed from the guide. Slide
the guide back on its storage clip
located between the interior body
and the seatback.
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 do not
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.
The best way to protect the fetus is
to protect the mother. When a safety
belt is worn properly, it is more likely
that the fetus will not be hurt in a
crash. For pregnant women, as for
anyone, the key to making safety
belts effective is wearing them
properly.

Black plate (25,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-25
from doing its job. See your dealer
to have it repaired. Torn or frayed
safety belts may not protect you in a
crash. They can rip apart under
impact forces. If a belt is torn or
frayed, get a new one right away.
Make sure the safety belt reminder
light is working. SeeSafety Belt
Reminders on page 5‑9 for more
information.
Keep safety belts clean and dry.
See Safety Belt Care on page 3‑25.
Safety Belt Care
Keep belts clean and dry.
{WARNING
Do not bleach or dye safety belts.
It may severely weaken them. In
a crash, they might not be able to
provide adequate protection.
Clean safety belts only with mild
soap and lukewarm water.
Replacing Safety Belt
System Parts After a
Crash
{WARNING
A crash can damage the safety
belt system in the vehicle.
A damaged safety belt system
may not properly protect the
person using it, resulting in
serious injury or even death in a
crash. To help make sure the
safety belt systems are working
properly after a crash, have them
inspected and any necessary
replacements made as soon as
possible. After a minor crash, replacement of
safety belts may not be necessary.
But the safety belt assemblies that
were used during any crash may
have been stressed or damaged.
See your dealer to have the safety
belt assemblies inspected or
replaced.
New parts and repairs may be
necessary even if the safety belt
system was not being used at the
time of the crash.
Have the safety belt pretensioners
checked if the vehicle has been in a
crash, or if the airbag readiness light
stays on after you start the vehicle
or while you are driving. See
Airbag
Readiness Light on page 5‑10.

Black plate (26,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
3-26 Seats and Restraints
Airbag System
The vehicle has the following
airbags:
.A frontal airbag for the driver.
.A frontal airbag for the right front
passenger.
Your vehicle may also have the
following airbags:
.A roof-rail airbag for the driver
and the passenger seated
directly behind the driver.
.A roof-rail airbag for the right
front passenger and the
passenger seated directly
behind the right front passenger.
All of the airbags in your vehicle will
have the word AIRBAG embossed
in the trim or on an attached label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear on the middle
part of the steering wheel for the
driver and on the instrument panel
for the right front passenger. With roof-rail airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear along the
headliner or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement
the protection provided by safety
belts. Even though today's airbags
are also designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from the force of an
inflating bag, all airbags must inflate
very quickly to do their job.
Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:{WARNING
You can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing your safety belt
—even if
you have airbags. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, but do not replace them.
Also, airbags are not designed to
deploy in every crash. In some
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
crashes safety belts are your only
restraint. SeeWhen Should an
Airbag Inflate? on page 3‑29.
Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance
of hitting things inside the vehicle
or being ejected from it. Airbags
are “supplemental restraints” to
the safety belts. Everyone in your
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly —whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
{WARNING
Airbags inflate with great force,
faster than the blink of an eye.
Anyone who is up against, or very
close to, any airbag when it
inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. Do not sit unnecessarily
(Continued)

Black plate (27,1)Chevrolet Colorado Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-27
WARNING (Continued)
close to the airbag, as you would
be if you were sitting on the edge
of your seat or leaning forward.
Safety belts help keep you in
position before and during a
crash. Always wear your safety
belt, even with airbags. The driver
should sit as far back as possible
while still maintaining control of
the vehicle.
Occupants should not lean on or
sleep against the door or side
windows in seating positions with
roof-rail airbags.
{WARNING
Children who are up against,
or very close to, any airbag when
it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. Airbags plus(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
lap-shoulder belts offer protection
for adults and older children, but
not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle's safety belt
system nor its airbag system is
designed for them. Young
children and infants need the
protection that a child restraint
system can provide. Always
secure children properly in your
vehicle. To read how, see Older
Children on page 3‑39 orInfants
and Young Children on
page 3‑41.
There is an airbag readiness light
on the instrument panel, which
shows the airbag symbol. The system checks the airbag
electrical system for malfunctions.
The light tells you if there is an
electrical problem. See
Airbag
Readiness Light on page 5‑10 for
more information.
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver's airbag is in the middle
of the steering wheel.