FORD EXPEDITION 1997 1.G Owners Manual

safety seats made especially for
children. Check your local and
state laws for specific
requirements regarding the safety
of children in your vehicle.
Never let a passenger hold
a child on his or her lap
while the vehicle is moving. The
passenger cannot protect the
child from injury in a collision.
Do not leave children,
unreliable adults, or pets
unattended in your vehicle.
Always follow the instructions and
warnings that come with any infant
or child restraint you might use.
If possible, place children in the
rear seat of your vehicle. Accident
statistics suggest that children are
safer when properly restrained in
rear seating positions than when
they are restrained in front seating
positions.
CHILDREN AND SAFETY BELTS
Children who are too large for
child safety seats (as specified by
your child safety seat
manufacturer) 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
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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 provide a
good shoulder belt fit.
If the shoulder belt cannot be
properly positioned:
²move the child to one of the
seats with a lap belt only (if
equipped)
OR
²if the child is the proper size,
restrain the child in a safety
seat.
Do not leave children,
unreliable adults, or pets
unattended in your vehicle.
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
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
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way back on the seat cushion
when the lower legs hang over the
edge of the seat cushion. You may
wish to discuss the special needs
of your child with your
pediatrician.
INSTALLING CHILD SAFETY
SEATS IN THE REAR SEATING
POSITIONS
To install a child safety seat in a
center rear 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
manufacturer's instructions.
4. Insert the tongue into the
proper buckle.
5. Push down on the child safety
seat while pulling the loose part of
the belt webbing to tighten the
belt.
6. Before placing the child in the
safety seat, forcibly tilt the seat
from side to side and forward and
back to make sure that the seat is
held securely in place. If the child
seat moves excessively, repeat
steps five and six, install a tether
strap or properly install the child
seat in another seating position.
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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.
Rear-facing child seats or
infant carriers should
never be placed in the front
seats.
2. Pull down on the shoulder belt
and then grasp the shoulder belt
and lap belt together.
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3. While holding the shoulder and
lap belt portions together, route
the tongue through the child seat
according to the child seat
manufacturers' instructions. Be
sure the belt webbing is not
twisted.
4. Insert the belt tongue into the
proper buckle for that seating
position 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 and a click is heard.
6. Allow the belt to retract. The
belt will click as it retracts to
indicate it is in the automatic
locking mode.
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7. Pull the lap belt portion across
the child seat toward the buckle
and pull up on the shoulder belt
while pushing down with knee on
the child seat.
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 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.
Check to make sure the child seat
is properly secured before each
use.
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Child 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.
Ford recommends the use of a
child safety seat having a top
tether strap. Install the child safety
seat in a seating position which is
capable of providing a tether
anchorage. For more information
on top tether straps seeAttaching
safety seats with tether strapsin
this chapter.
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.
²Put the safety belt in the
automatic locking mode. Refer
toUsing the automatic locking
modein this chapter.
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Using a tether strap
Ford recommends using child
safety seats with a top tether
strap. Contact the manufacturer of
your safety seat for information
about ordering a tether strap if one
is not provided to you.
Ford recommends you attach
tether safety seats in a rear seating
position (if possible), with the
tether strap attached to the tether
anchor bracket.
Tether anchor brackets may also
be installed to the floor behind the
second row seats.
Tether anchor hardware
A tethered seat can be installed in
the front seat; put the tether strap
over the seatback and attach it to
a anchor bracket.
A anchor bracket can be installed
on the rear edge of the front seat
cushion.
The provision (attaching hole) is
provided in the rear edge of the
front passenger seat cushion
frame. The anchor bracketmust
be installed using the
instructions provided with the
kit.
Contact your Ford dealer for a free
tether anchor kit (613D74).
Carefully follow the instructions
provided with the kit.
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BEFORE STARTING YOUR
VEHICLE
Important safety precautions
A computer system controls the
engine's idle revolutions per
minute (RPM). When the engine
starts, the idle RPM runs faster to
warm the engine. If the engine idle
speed does not slow down
automatically, have the vehicle
checked. Do not allow the vehicle
to idle for more than ten minutes.
Extended idling at high
engine speeds can produce
very high temperatures in the
engine and exhaust system,
creating the risk of fire or other
damage.
Do not park, idle, or drive
your vehicle in dry grass
or other dry ground cover. The
emission system heats up the
engine compartment and exhaust
system, which can start a fire.
Do not start your vehicle
in a closed garage or in
other enclosed areas. Exhaust
fumes can be toxic. Always open
the garage door before you start
the engine. SeeGuarding
against exhaust fumesin this
chapter for more instructions.
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If you smell exhaust fumes
inside your vehicle, have
your dealer inspect your vehicle
immediately. Do not drive if you
smell exhaust fumes.
Preparing to start the vehicle
Engine starting is controlled by the
spark ignition system. This system
meets all Canadian
Interference-Causing Equipment
standard requirements regulating
the impulse electrical field strength
of radio noise.
When starting a fuel-injected
engine, avoid pressing the
accelerator before or during
starting. Only use the accelerator
when you have difficulty starting
the engine. For more information
on starting the vehicle, refer to
Starting the vehiclein this
chapter.
Before starting the vehicle:
1. Make sure all vehicle occupants
have buckled their safety belts. For
more information on safety belts
and their proper usage, refer to
theSeating and safety restraints
chapter.
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