belt FORD ESCORT 1997 6.G User Guide

²The driver air bag in the middle
of the steering wheel and the
passenger air bag above the
glove compartment.
²The electrical system, made up
of impact sensors, a diagnostic
module, and a backup power
supply.
The air bags inflate within a
fraction of a second after air bag
sensors detect a severe frontal
collision. Gas generators within the
air bags fill the air bags with a
non-toxic, non-flammable gas.
After the vehicle occupants have
impacted the air bags, the gas
empties through holes in the air
bags and the air bags deflate. You
may notice smoke and smell the
escaping gas after the air bags
deflate. This is normal.
You and your passengermustwear
your safety belts in order for the
air bag system to operate
effectively.
AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT AND
WARNING CHIME
When you turn the ignition key to
the ON position, the air bag system
performs a self-check of the:
²air bag sensors
²air bag module
²air bag inflators
²available battery power
²air bag warning light
Following a successful system
self-check, the
warning light
Seating and safety restraints
64

they are restrained in front seating
positions.
Rear-facing infant seats
should never be placed in
the front seat.
CHILDREN AND SAFETY BELTS
Children who are too large for
child safety seats (as specified by
the manufacturer of your child
safety seat) should always wear
safety belts.
Follow all the important safety
restraint and air bag precautions
that apply to adult passengers in
your vehicle.
If the shoulder belt portion of a
combination lap and shoulder belt
can be positioned so it does not
cross or rest in front of the child's
face or neck, the child should wear
the lap and shoulder belt. Moving
the child closer to the center of
the vehicle may help to provide a
good shoulder belt fit.
To improve the fit of lap and
shoulder belts on children who
have outgrown child safety seats,
Ford recommends use of a
belt-positioning booster seat that is
labelled as conforming to all
Federal motor vehicle safety
standards. Belt-positioning booster
seats raise the child and provide a
shorter, firmer seating cushion that
encourages safer seating posture
and better fit of lap and shoulder
belts on the child. A
Seating and safety restraints
66

belt-positioning booster should be
used if the shoulder belt rests in
front of the child's face or neck, or
if the lap belt does not fit snugly
on both thighs, or if the thighs are
too short to let the child sit all the
way back on the seat cushion
when the lower legs hang over the
edge of the seat cushion. You may
wish to dicuss the specific needs of
your child with your pediatrician.
CHILDREN AND INFANT OR
CHILD SAFETY SEATS
Carefully follow all of the
manufacturer's instructions
included with the safety seat you
put in your vehicle. If you do not
install and use the safety seat
properly, the child may be
injured in a sudden stop or
collision.
When installing a child safety seat:
²use the correct safety belt
buckle for that seating position.
²make sure the tongue is
securely fastened in the buckle.
²keep the buckle release button
pointing up and away from the
safety seat, with the tongue
between the child seat and the
release button, to prevent
accidental unbuckling.
²place seatbacks in the upright
position.
Seating and safety restraints
67

²put the safety belt in the
automatic locking mode. Refer
toUsing the automatic locking
modein this chapter.
Installing child safety seats in
combination lap and shoulder
belt seating positions
1. Position the child safety seat in
a seat with a combination lap and
shoulder belt.
If you choose to install a child
safety seat in the front passenger
seat, move the seat as far back as
possible.
2. Pull down on the shoulder belt
and then grasp the shoulder belt
and lap belt together.
Seating and safety restraints
68

3. While holding the shoulder and
lap belt portions together, route
the tongue through the child seat
according to the child seat
manufacturer's instructions. Be
sure the belt webbing is not
twisted.
4. Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle until you hear and
feel the latch engage. Make sure
the tongue is latched securely by
pulling on it.
5. To put the retractor in the
automatic locking mode, grasp the
shoulder portion of the belt and
pull downward until all of the belt
is extracted.
6. Allow the belt to retract. The
belt will click as it retracts to
indicate it is in the automatic
locking mode.
Seating and safety restraints
69

7. Pull the lap belt portion across
the child seat toward the buckle
and pull up on the shoulder belt
while pushing down on the child
seat to tighten the belt as much as
possible.
8. Allow the safety belt to retract
to remove any slack in the belt.
9. Before placing the child in the
seat, forcibly tilt the seat from side
to side and forward and back to
make sure the seat is securely held
in place.
10. Try to pull the belt out of the
retractor to make sure the
retractor is in the automatic
locking mode (you should not be
able to pull more belt out). If the
retractor is not locked, unbuckle
the belt and repeat steps two
through nine.
²Check to make sure the child
seat is properly secured before
each use.
Installing child safety seats in
the rear center seating position
1. Tip the tongue and pull to
lengthen the lap belt.
2. Place the child safety seat in the
center seating position.
3. Route the lap belt through the
child safety seat according to the
child seat manufacturer's
instructions.
Seating and safety restraints
70

4. Insert the tongue into the
proper buckle.
5. Push down on the child safety
seat while pulling on the loose part
of the lap belt webbing to tighten
the belt.
6. Before placing the child in the
child safety seat, forcibly tilt the
seat from side to side and forward
and back to make sure the seat is
securely held in place. If the child
seat moves excessively, repeat
steps five and six or properly
install the child seat in a different
seating position.
Using a tether strap
Contact the manufacturer of your
safety seat for information about
ordering a tether strap if one is not
provided with the seat. The tether
anchor hardware kit is part
number 613D20.
Your vehicle has tether anchor
attachment locations on the rear
package tray behind the back seat
(sedan) or along the rear edge of
the roof (wagon). Carefully follow
the instructions provided with the
kit.
Seating and safety restraints
71

Ford recommends you attach
tethered safety seats in a rear
seating position with the tether
strap attached to the tether
anchoring bracket as shown in the
instructions provided with the
tether anchor kit.
If a tethered seat must be installed
in the front passenger seat:
1. Install the child safety seat in
the front passenger seat. For
instructions on how to install the
seat, refer toInstalling child
safety seats in combination lap
and shoulder belt seating
positionsin this chapter.
2. Hook the tether strap clip to the
tongue of the rear center lap belt
and ensure that the belt is pulled
tight.
To install a child safety seat using
a tether strap in the back seat:
1. Install the child safety seat in
the rear right, left or center seat
position. For instructions on how
to install the seat, refer to
Installing child safety seats in
lap belt seating positionsin this
chapter.
²Sedan
Seating and safety restraints
73

²Wagon
2. Refer to the instructions
provided with the tether anchor
kit.
3. Refer to the instructions
provided with your child safety
seat to securely attach the child
safety seat by tether to the tether
strap anchor location.
Failure to follow these
precautions could increase
the risk and / or severity of
injury in a collision.
BUILT-IN CHILD SEAT (IF
EQUIPPED)
The rear seat may include a
built-in child seat. This child seat
conforms to all federal and
Canadian motor vehicle safety
standards.
Read the labels located on the
child seat cushion and the
shoulder belt for information on
the built-in child seat.
Use the built-in child seatonly
under the following conditions:
At least one year old 10-27 kg (22-60 lb) Shoulders must be
below the shoulder
harness slots on the
built-in child seat
Children not meeting these
requirements should be secured in
an approved aftermarket child
seat. Refer toChildren and
infant or child safety seatsin this
chapter.
Seating and safety restraints
74

Regularly inspect the lap and
shoulder belt system of your child
seat. If there is any damage to the
system or if it is not functioning
properly, see your dealer.
Placing your child in the built-in
child seat
Failure to follow all of the
instructions on the use of
this child restraint system can
result in your child striking the
vehicle's interior during a sudden
stop or crash.
Never use the built-in
child seat as a booster
cushion with the adult safety
belts. A child using the adult
belts could slide forward and out
from under the safety belts.
The rear seatback must be
fully locked before
operating the child restraint
system.
Seating and safety restraints
75