ECU CHEVROLET EXPRESS 1998 1.G Owners Manual

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.
1-17

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Air bags inflate with great force, faster than the
blink of an eye.
If you’re too close to an inflating
air bag, it could seriously injure you. This is true
even with reduced-force frontal air bags. Safety
belts help’keep you in position before and during
a crash. Always wear your safety belt, even with
reduced-force air bags. The driver should sit as
far back as possible while still maintaining
control of the vehicle.
If your vehicle has an air bag for the right front
passenger, please read this:
r
A CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very close to,
an air bag when it inflates can be seriously
injured or killed. This is true even
if your vehicle
has reduced-force frontal air bags. Air bags plus
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
lap-shoulder belts offer the best protection for
adults, but not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system nor its
air bag 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 the part of this manual called “Children” and
see the caution labels on the sunvisors and the
right front passenger’s safety belt.
AIR
BAG
There is an air bag readiness
light on the instrument panel,
which shows
AIR BAG.
The system checks the
air bag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells
you if there is an electrical
problem. See “Air Bag Readiness Light” in the Index
for more information.
I 1-28

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 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.
1-35

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. Neither
the distance traveled nor the age and size
of the traveler
changes the need, for everyone, to use safety restraints.
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 (Except Cargo
Vans with Passenyr Air
Bags)
A CAUTION:
- - I
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. This is true even
if your vehicle has
reduced-force frontal
air bags. Air bags plus
lap-shoulder belts offer the best protection for
adults, but not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system nor its air
bag 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.
1-41

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine / CAUTION:
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. Infants need complete support, including support for the
head and neck.
This is necessary because an infant’s neck
is weak and its head weighs
so much compared with the
rest
of its body. In a crash, an infant in a rear-facing
restraint settles into the restraint,
so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest part of the infant’s body,
the back
and shoulders. A baby should be secured in an
appropriate infant restraint. This is so important that many
hospitals today won’t release a newborn infant
to its
parents unless there is an infant restraint available for
the
baby’s first trip in a motor vehicle.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine ~~ 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 240-1b. (110
kg) force on
your arms. The baby would be almost impossible
to hold.
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
1-43

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine 1 Smaller Children and Babies (Cargo Vans
with Passenger Air Bags)
r
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. This is true even if your vehicle has
reduced-force frontal air bags. Air bags plus
lap-shoulder belts offer the best protection for
adults, but not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system nor its air
bag 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.
A CL-. ON:
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. Smaller children
and babies should always be restrained in a child
restraint. However, infants, who should be
restrained in a rear-facing child restraint, cannot
ride safely in this vehicle. The instructions for the
restraint will say whether it
is the right type and
size for your child.
If a forward-facing child
restraint is suitable for your child, be sure the
child is always properly restrained while riding in
this vehicle.
1-44

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine A rear-facing infant restraint (B) positions an infant
to face the rear
of the vehicle. Rear-facing infant
restraints are designed for infants of up to about
20 lbs. (9 kg) and about one year of age. This type
of restraint faces the rear so that the infant’s head,
neck and body can have the support they need in a
crash. Some infant seats come in two parts
-- the
base stays secured in the vehicle and the seat part
is removable.
1-47

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine When choosing a child restraint, 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. Both the owner’s
manual and the child restraint instructions are important,
so if either one of these is not available, obtain a
replacement copy from the manufacturer.
Where to Put the Restraint (Except Cargo
Vans and Cab and Chassis Models)
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 a rear seat.
If your vehicle has a front
passenger air bag,
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 or killed if the right front
passenger’s air bag inflates, even
if your vehicle
has reduced-force frontal air bags. This
is
because the back of the rear-facing child
restraint would be very close to the inflating air
bag.
If your vehicle has a right front passenger’s
air bag, always secure a rearfacing child
restraint in a rear seat.
You may secure a forward-facing child restraint
in the right front seat, but before you do, always
move the front passenger seat as far back
as it
will go. It’s better to secure the child restraint in
a 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.

Downloaded from www.Manualslib.com manuals search engine Where to Put the Restraint (Cargo Vans
and Cab and Chassis
Models)
The child restraint must be secured properly in the
passenger seat.
If your vehicle has a passenger air bag,
never put a rear-facing child restraint in this vehicle.
Here's why:
I ' A CAUTIO€'
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can
be seriously injured or killed if the passenger's
air bag inflates, even if your vehicle has
reduced-force frontal air bags. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child restraint would
be very close
to the inflating air bag. Do not use
a rear-facing child restraint in this vehicle.
If a forward-facing child restraint is suitable for
your child, always move the passenger seat as far
back as it will go.
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.
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
GM dealer to put it in for you. If you want
to install an anchor yourself, your dealer can tell you
how
to do it.