child restraint GMC SAVANA 2004 Owner's Guide

Top Strap
Some child restraints have a top strap, or “top tether.” It
can help restrain the child restraint during a collision.
For it to work, a top strap must be properly anchored to
the vehicle. Some top strap-equipped child restraints
are designed for use with or without the top strap being
anchored. Others require the top strap always to be
anchored. Be sure to read and follow the instructions for
your child restraint. If yours requires that the top strap
be anchored, don’t use the restraint unless it is anchored
properly.
If the child restraint does not have a top strap, one can
be obtained, in kit form, for many child restraints.
Ask the child restraint manufacturer whether or not a kit
is available.
In Canada, the law requires that forward-facing child
restraints have a top strap, and that the strap be
anchored. In the United States, some child restraints
also have a top strap. If your child restraint has a
top strap, it should be anchored.
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Anchor the top strap to one of the following anchor
points. Be sure to use an anchor point located on the
same side of the vehicle as the seating position
where the child restraint will be placed.
{CAUTION:
Each top tether bracket is designed to anchor
only one child restraint. Attaching more than
one child restraint to a single bracket could
cause the anchor to come loose or even break
during a crash. A child or others could be
injured if this happens. To help prevent injury
to people and damage to your vehicle, attach
only one child restraint per bracket.
Once you have the top strap anchored, you’ll be ready
to secure the child restraint itself. Tighten the top
strap when and as the child restraint manufacturer’s
instructions say.
Top Strap Anchor Location
On vehicles with a front passenger seat, the anchor for
a top strap is located at the rear of the seat cushion
on the right front passenger’s seat.
Cargo Van Models
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If your vehicle is a passenger van with rear seats, an
anchor bracket for a top strap is located at the rear
of the seat cushion for each three-passenger rear bench
seat. Don’t use a child restraint with a top strap in the
right front passenger’s position, or in any four-passenger
rear bench seat.
The top strap is designed for the second row driver side
position and the third/fourth row center searing
positions in a three-passenger rear bench seat.
Anchor the top strap to this bracket. For the second row
only, in the left outboard seating position, use anchor
point (A). For the right outboard seating position,
use anchor point (B). For a center seating position, use
either anchor point (A) or (B).Passenger Van 3–Passenger Rear Seats
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Lower Anchorages and Top Tethers
for Children (LATCH System)
If you have a passenger van, it may have the LATCH
system. If it does, you’ll nd two sets of anchors (A)
in the second row of seats in the driver and passenger
side seating positions, where the seatback meets
the seat cushion.This system, designed to make installation of child
restraints easier, does not use the vehicle’s safety belts.
Instead, it uses vehicle anchors (A, B) and child
restraint attachments to secure the restraints. Some
restraints also use another vehicle anchor to secure a
top tether strap (C).
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In order to use the LATCH system in your vehicle, you
need a child restraint designed for that system.
To assist you in locating the lower anchors for this child
restraint system, each seating position with the
LATCH system has a label on the seatback at each
lower anchor position.The LATCH system labels
are located on the
outboard and inboard
positions of the seats.
{CAUTION:
If a LATCH-type child restraint is not attached
to its anchorage points, the restraint will not
be able to protect the child correctly. In a
crash, the child could be seriously injured or
killed. Make sure that a LATCH-type child
restraint is properly installed using the
anchorage points, or use the vehicle’s safety
belts to secure the restraint, following the
instructions that came with that restraint, and
also the instructions in this manual.
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Securing a Child Restraint Designed
for the LATCH System (Rear)
1. Find the LATCH anchorages for the seating
position you want to use, where the bottom of the
seatback meets the back of the seat cushion.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
3. Attach and tighten the LATCH attachments on the
child restraint to the LATCH anchorages in the
vehicle. The child restraint instructions will show
you how.
4. If the child restraint is forward-facing, attach and
tighten the top tether to the top tether anchorage.
The child restraint instructions will show you
how. Also seeTop Strap on page 1-49.
5. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.
To remove the child restraint, simply unhook the top
tether from the top tether anchorage and then
disconnect the LATCH attachments from the LATCH
anchorages.
Securing a Child Restraint Designed
for the LATCH System (Front)
Unless your vehicle has an air bag off switch and you
have used it to turn the passenger’s air bag off,
never put a rear-facing child restraint in the right front
passenger’s seat. Here’s why:
{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s air bag inates. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child restraint
would be very close to the inating air bag. If
your vehicle is a passenger van, always secure
a rear-facing child restraint in a rear seat. If
your vehicle is a cargo van with a right front
passenger air bag and an air bag off switch, be
sure to turn off the air bag before using a
CAUTION: (Continued)
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CAUTION: (Continued)
rear-facing child restraint in the right front seat
position. If your vehicle is a cargo van with a
right front passenger air bag but does not
have an air bag off switch, do not use a
rear-facing child restraint in this vehicle.
Even though the air bag off switch is designed
to turn off the passenger’s frontal air bag, no
system is fail-safe and no one can guarantee
that an air bag will not deploy under some
unusual circumstance, even though it is turned
off. GM recommends that rear-facing child
restraints be transported in vehicles with a
rear seat that will accommodate a rear-facng
child restraint whenever possible.
If you secure a forward-facing child restraint in
the right front passenger position, always move
the passenger seat as far back as it will go.
A rear seat is a safer place to secure a forward-facing
child restraint. SeeWhere to Put the Restraint on
page 1-45.
{CAUTION:
If the air bag readiness light ever comes on
when you have turned off the air bag, it means
that something may be wrong with the air bag
system. The right front passenger’s air bag
could inate even though the switch is off. If
this ever happens, don’t let anyone whom the
national government has identied as a
member of a passenger air bag risk group sit
in the right front passenger’s position (for
example, don’t secure a rear-facing child
restraint in your vehicle) until you have your
vehicle serviced. See″Air Bag Off Switch″in
the Index.
1. If your vehicle has a passenger air bag and an air
bag off switch, and you are using a rear-facing child
restraint in this seat, make sure the air bag is
turned off. SeeAir Bag Off Switch on page 1-75.If
your child restraint is forward-facing, always
move the seat as far back as it will go before
securing it in this seat. SeePower Seat on page 1-4
orManual Seats on page 1-3.
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2. Find the LATCH anchorages for the seating
position you want to use, where the bottom of the
seatback meets the back of the seat cushion.
3. Put the child restraint on the seat.
4. Attach and tighten the LATCH attachments on the
child restraint to the LATCH anchorages in the
vehicle. The child restraint instructions will show
you how.
5. If the child restraint is forward-facing, attach and
tighten the top tether to the top tether anchorage.
The child restraint instructions will show you
how. Also seeTop Strap on page 1-49.
6. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.
To remove the child restraint, simply unhook the top
tether from the top tether anchorage and then
disconnect the LATCH attachments from the LATCH
anchorages.If you were using a rear-facing child restraint in a
vehicle with an air bag off switch, turn on the right front
passenger’s air bag when you remove the rear-facing
child restraint from the vehicle unless the person
who will be sitting there is a member of a passenger air
bag risk group. SeeAir Bag Off Switch on page 1-75.
{CAUTION:
If the right front passenger’s air bag is turned
off for a person who isn’t in a risk group
identied by the national government, that
person won’t have the extra protection of an
air bag. In a crash, the air bag wouldn’t be able
to inate and help protect the person sitting
there. Don’t turn off the passenger’s air bag
unless the person sitting there is in a risk
group. See″Air Bag Off Switch″in the Index
for more on this, including important safety
information.
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Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Outside Seat Position
If your child restraint is equipped with the LATCH
system, seeLower Anchorages and Top Tethers for
Children (LATCH System) on page 1-52. SeeTop Strap
on page 1-49if the child restraint has one.For vehicles with a third, fourth or fth row, there are no
top strap anchors in the rear outside seat positions of
the third, fourth or fth row. Do not secure a child seat in
these positions if a national or local law requires that
the top strap be anchored, or if the instructions that
come with the child restraint say that the top strap must
be anchored.
If your child restraint does not have the LATCH system,
you will be using the lap-shoulder belt to secure the
child restraint in this position. Be sure to follow the
instructions that came with the child restraint. Secure
the child in the child restraint when and as the
instructions say.
1. Put the restraint on the seat.
2. 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.
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5. To tighten the belt, pull the shoulder portion of the
belt to tighten the lap portion of the belt and feed
the shoulder belt back into the retractor. If you
are using a forward-facing child restraint, you may
nd it helpful to use your knee to push down on
the child restraint as you tighten the belt.
6. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.
To remove the child restraint, just unbuckle the vehicle’s
safety belt and let it go back all the way. The safety
belt will move freely again and be ready to work for an
adult or larger child passenger.
Securing a Child Restraint in a
Center Seat Position (2nd Row)
If your child restraint is equipped with the LATCH
system, seeLower Anchorages and Top Tethers for
Children (LATCH System) on page 1-52. SeeTop Strap
on page 1-49if the child restraint has one.
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