Rele CHEVROLET EQUINOX 2008 1.G Owners Manual

Front Seats
Manual Seats
{CAUTION:
You can lose control of the vehicle if you try to
adjust a manual driver’s seat while the vehicle
is moving. The sudden movement could startle
and confuse you, or make you push a pedal
when you do not want to. Adjust the driver’s
seat only when the vehicle is not moving.
Lift the bar located under the front of the seat to unlock
it. Slide the seat to where you want it and release
the bar. Try to move the seat with your body to be sure
the seat is locked in place.
1-2

Manual Reclining Seatbacks
{CAUTION:
You can lose control of the vehicle if you try to
adjust a manual driver’s seat while the vehicle
is moving. The sudden movement could startle
and confuse you, or make you push a pedal
when you do not want to. Adjust the driver’s
seat only when the vehicle is not moving.
{CAUTION:
If the seatback is not locked, it could move
forward in a sudden stop or crash. That could
cause injury to the person sitting there. Always
push and pull on the seatback to be sure it is
locked.To adjust the seatback, lift the lever on the outboard
side of the seat and move the seatback to the desired
position. Then release the lever to lock the seatback
in place. If your front passenger’s seat is a at folding
seat, you must fully raise the lever to disengage
the seatback.Driver’s Seat shown, Passenger Seat similar
1-5

Passenger Folding Seatback
The front passenger’s seatback may fold at.
{CAUTION:
If you fold the seatback forward to carry longer
objects, such as skis, be sure any such cargo
is not near an airbag. In a crash, an inating
airbag might force that object toward a person.
This could cause severe injury or even death.
Secure objects away from the area in which
an airbag would inate. For more information,
seeWhere Are the Airbags? on page 1-59and
Loading Your Vehicle on page 4-22.
{CAUTION:
Things you put on this seatback can strike and
injure people in a sudden stop or turn, or in a
crash. Remove or secure all items before
driving.To fold the seatback, do the following:
1. Lower the head restraint all the way.
2. Lift the bar under the front of the seat to unlock it.
Slide the seat as far back as it will go and release
the bar. Try to move the seat back and forth to
make sure it is locked into place.
3. Lift the recliner lever, located on the outboard side
of the seat, up fully and fold the seatback forward
until it disengages.
1-8

To fold the seatback down, do the following:
Notice:Folding a rear seat with the safety belts
still fastened may cause damage to the seat or the
safety belts. Always unbuckle the safety belts
and return them to their normal stowed position
before folding a rear seat.
1. Ensure all three of the safety belts are unbuckled
and the front seatbacks are not reclined.
2. Lift the lever located on the top of the seatback to
release the seatback.
3. Fold the seatback forward to the desired position.To recline the seatback, do the following:
1. Lift and hold the lever located on top of the
seatback.
2. Tilt the seatback rearward, then release the lever
when the seatback is in the desired position.
To slide the entire seat forward or rearward, do the
following:
1. Lift and hold the release bar located under the front
of the seat cushion to unlock the seat.
2. Slide the seat to the desired position.
3. Release the bar.
4. Try to move the seat back and forth to ensure the
seat is locked in place.
1-11

Lap-Shoulder Belt
All seating positions in your vehicle have a
lap-shoulder belt.
Here is 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, you may engage the child
restraint locking feature. If this happens, just let
the belt go back all the way and start again.3. 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 is not long enough, seeSafety Belt
Extender on page 1-30.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if necessary.
4. If equipped with a shoulder belt height adjuster,
move it to the height that is right for you. Improper
shoulder belt height adjustment could reduce
the effectiveness of the safety belt in a crash.
See “Shoulder Belt Height Adjustment” later
in this section.
1-25

Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster
Your vehicle has a shoulder belt height adjuster for
the driver and right front passenger.
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. Improper shoulder belt height adjustment
could reduce the effectiveness of the safety belt
in a crash.
To move it up or down,
squeeze the release
buttons (A) together and
move the height adjuster
to the desired position.
After you move the height adjuster to where you want it,
try to move it up or down without squeezing the release
buttons to make sure it has locked into position.
Safety Belt Pretensioners
Your vehicle has safety belt pretensioners for front
outboard occupants. Although you cannot see them,
they are part of the safety belt assembly. They can
help tighten the safety belts during the early stages of
a moderate to severe frontal and near frontal crash if
the threshold conditions for pretensioner activation
are met.
Pretensioners work only once. If they activate in a
crash, you will need to get new ones, and probably other
new parts for your safety belt system. SeeReplacing
Restraint System Parts After a Crash on page 1-73.
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides
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 on
a shoulder belt, the comfort guide positions the belt
away from the neck and head.
1-27

{CAUTION:
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 and across the chest. These parts of
the body are best able to take belt restraining
forces.
4. Buckle, position, and release the safety belt as
described previously in this section. Make sure
that the shoulder belt crosses the shoulder.
To remove and store the comfort guide, squeeze the
belt edges together so that you can take them out
of the guide. Slide the guide back onto its storage clip
located on the seatback.
1-29

3. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Make sure the release button is positioned so you
would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if necessary.4. Pull the rest of the shoulder belt all the way out of
the retractor to set the lock.
1-51

You will be using the lap-shoulder belt to secure the
child restraint in this position. Follow the instructions
that came with the child restraint.
1. Move the seat as far back as it will go before
securing the forward-facing child restraint.
When the passenger sensing system has turned off
the right front passenger’s frontal airbag, the off
indicator on the passenger airbag status indicator
should light and stay lit when you start the
vehicle. SeePassenger Airbag Status Indicator
on page 3-28.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
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.4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Make sure the release button is positioned so you
would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if necessary.
1-54

What Makes an Airbag Inate?
In a deployment event, the sensing system sends
an electrical signal triggering a release of gas from the
inator. Gas from the inator lls the airbag causing
the bag to break out of the cover and deploy. The
inator, the airbag, and related hardware are all part
of the airbag module.
Frontal airbag modules are located inside the steering
wheel and instrument panel. For vehicles with
roof-rail airbags, there are airbag modules in the
ceiling of the vehicle, near the side windows that
have occupant seating positions.
How Does an Airbag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel
or the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the
inside of the vehicle.Airbags supplement the protection provided by safety
belts. Frontal airbags distribute the force of the
impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually. Roof-rail airbags
distribute the force of the impact more evenly over
the occupant’s upper body.
Rollover capable roof-rail airbags are designed to
help contain the head and chest of occupants in the
outboard seating positions in the rst and second rows.
The rollover capable roof-rail airbags are designed to
help reduce the risk of full or partial ejection in rollover
events, although no system can prevent all such
ejections.
But airbags would not help in many types of collisions,
primarily because the occupant’s motion is not
toward those airbags. SeeWhen Should an Airbag
Inflate? on page 1-61for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts.
1-63