child restraint GMC SIERRA 2005 Owner's Guide

Securing a Child Restraint in the
Right Front Seat Position (Regular
and Extended Cab) (With Passenger
Sensing System)
Your vehicle has a right front passenger airbag. A rear
seat is a safer place to secure a forward-facing child
restraint. SeeWhere to Put the Restraint on page 1-42.
In addition, your vehicle has the passenger sensing
system. The passenger sensing system is designed to
turn off the right front passenger’s frontal airbag
when an infant in a rear-facing infant seat or a small
child in a forward-facing child restraint or booster seat is
detected. SeePassenger Sensing System on page 1-76
andPassenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 3-36
for more information on this including important
safety information.
{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s airbag inates. This is because
the back of the rear facing child restraint
would be very close to the inating airbag. Be
sure the airbag is off before using a rear-facing
child restraint in the right front seat position.
Even though the passenger sensing system is
designed to turn off the passenger’s frontal
airbag under certain conditions, no system is
fail-safe, and no one can guarantee that an
airbag will not deploy under some unusual
circumstance, even though it is turned off.
General Motors recommends that rear-facing
child restraints be transported in vehicles with
a rear seat that will accommodate a rear-facing
child restraint, whenever possible.
1-62

If you need to secure a forward-facing child restraint in
the right front seat position, move the seat as far
back as it will go before securing the forward-facing
child restraint. SeePower Seats on page 1-4orManual
Seats on page 1-3.
If your vehicle is an extended cab and your child
restraint is equipped with the LATCH system, seeLower
Anchorages and Top Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) on page 1-47. SeeTop Strap on page 1-43if
your child restraint has one.
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. Your vehicle has a right front passenger’s frontal
airbag. SeePassenger Sensing System on
page 1-76. General Motors recommends that
rear-facing child restraints be secured in a rear seat,
even if the airbag is off. If your child restraint is
forward-facing, move the seat as far back as it will
go before securing the child restraint in this
seat. SeePower Seats on page 1-4orManual
Seats on page 1-3.
When the passenger sensing system has turned off
the right front passenger’s frontal airbag, the off
indicator in the passenger airbag status indicator
should light and stay lit when you turn the ignition to
RUN or START. SeePassenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 3-36.
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.
1-63

6. To tighten the belt, push down on the child restraint,
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. You should not be
able to pull more of the belt from the retractor
once the lock has been set.
7. Push and pull the child restraint in different
directions to be sure it is secure.8. If the airbag is off, the off indicator in the inside
rearview mirror will be lit and stay lit when the
key is turned to RUN or START.
If a child restraint has been installed and the on
indicator is lit, turn the vehicle off. Remove the child
restraint from the vehicle and reinstall the child restraint.
If after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting
the vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, check to make
sure that the vehicle’s seatback is not pressing the child
restraint into the seat cushion. If this happens, slightly
recline the vehicle’s seatback and adjust the seat
cushion if possible. Also make sure the child restraint is
not trapped under the vehicle head restraint. If this
happens, adjust the head restraint.
If the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in the child
restraint in a rear seat position in the vehicle and
check with your dealer.
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.
1-65

{CAUTION:
Airbags inate with great force, faster than the
blink of an eye. If you are too close to an
inating airbag, as you would be if you were
leaning forward, it could seriously injure you.
Safety belts help keep you in position before
and during a crash. Always wear your safety
belt, even with airbags. The driver should sit
as far back as possible while still maintaining
control of the vehicle.
{CAUTION:
Anyone who is up against, or very close to,
any airbag when it inates can be seriously
injured or killed. Airbags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer the best protection for adults, but
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
not for young children and infants. Neither the
vehicle’s safety belt system nor its airbag
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,
seeOlder Children on page 1-33andInfants
and Young Children on page 1-35.
There is an airbag
readiness light on the
instrument panel cluster,
which shows the airbag
symbol.
The system checks the airbag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical
problem. SeeAirbag Readiness Light on page 3-34
for more information.
1-67

To turn off the right front passenger’s airbag, insert your
ignition key into the switch, push in, and move the
switch to the off position.
The airbag off light will come on to let you know that the
right front passenger’s airbag is off. The light will stay
on to remind you that the airbag is off. The right
front passenger’s airbag will remain off until you turn it
back on.
{CAUTION:
If the airbag readiness light ever comes on
when you have turned off the airbag, it means
that something may be wrong with the airbag
system. The right front passenger’s airbag
could inate even though the switch is off.
If your vehicle is a regular cab pickup or an
extended cab pickup and this ever happens,
do not let anyone whom the national
government has identied as a member of a
passenger airbag risk group sit in the right
front passenger’s position (for example, do not
secure a rear-facing child restraint in your
vehicle) until you have your vehicle serviced. United States
Canada
1-75

The passenger sensing system works with sensors that
are part of the right front passenger’s seat and safety belt.
The sensors are designed to detect the presence of a
properly seated occupant and determine if the
passenger’s frontal airbag should be enabled
(may inate) or not.
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they are
restrained in the rear rather than the front seat. General
Motors recommends that child restraints be secured in a
rear seat, including an infant riding in a rear-facing infant
seat, a child riding in a forward-facing child seat and an
older child riding in a booster seat. Never put a child in a
rear-facing child restraint in the right front passenger seat
unless the passenger airbag status indicator shows off.
Never put a rear-facing child restraint in the right front
passenger seat unless the airbag is off.
{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s airbag inates. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child restraint
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
would be very close to the inating airbag. Be
sure the airbag is off before using a rear-facing
child restraint in the right front seat position.
Even though the passenger sensing system is
designed to turn off the passenger’s frontal
airbag if the system detects a rear-facing child
restraint, no system is fail-safe, and no one
can guarantee that an airbag will not deploy
under some unusual circumstance, even
though it is turned off. General Motors
recommends that rear-facing child restraints
be secured in a rear seat whenever possible,
even if the airbag is off.
The passenger sensing system is designed to turn off
the right front passenger’s frontal airbag if:
the right front passenger seat is unoccupied
the system determines that an infant is present in a
rear-facing infant seat
the system determines that a small child is present
in a forward-facing child restraint
1-77

the system determines that a small child is present
in a booster seat
a right front passenger takes his/her weight off of
the seat for a period of time
the right front passenger seat is occupied by a
smaller person, such as a child who has outgrown
child restraints
or if there is a critical problem with the airbag
system or the passenger sensing system
When the passenger’s frontal airbag has been turned
off by the passenger sensing system, the off indicator
will light and stay lit to remind you that the airbag is off.
If a child restraint has been installed and the on
indicator is lit, turn the vehicle off. Remove the child
restraint from the vehicle and reinstall the child restraint
following the child restraint manufacturer’s directions
and refer toSecuring a Child Restraint in the Right Front
Seat Position (Regular and Extended Cab) (With
Airbag Off Switch) on page 1-56orSecuring a Child
Restraint in the Right Front Seat Position (Regular and
Extended Cab) (With Passenger Sensing System)
on page 1-62.If after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting the
vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, check to make
sure that the vehicle’s seatback is not pressing the child
restraint into the seat cushion. If this happens, slightly
recline the vehicle’s seatback and adjust the seat
cushion if possible. Also make sure the child restraint is
not trapped under the vehicle head restraint. If this
happens, adjust the head restraint.
If the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in the child
restraint in a rear seat position in the vehicle if one
is available and check with your dealer.
The passenger sensing system is designed to enable
(may inate) the right front passenger’s frontal
airbag anytime the system senses that a person of adult
size is sitting properly in the right front passenger’s
seat. When the passenger sensing system has allowed
the airbag to be enabled, the on indicator will light
and stay lit to remind you that the airbag is active.
For some children who have outgrown child restraints
and for very small adults, the passenger sensing system
may or may not turn off the right front passenger’s frontal
airbag, depending upon the person’s seating posture
and body build. Everyone in your vehicle who has
outgrown child restraints should wear a safety belt
properly — whether or not there is an airbag for that
person.
1-78

When you turn the right front passenger’s airbag off,
this light will come on and stay on to remind you that the
airbag has been turned off. This light will go off when
you turn the airbag on.
{CAUTION:
If the right front passenger’s airbag is turned off
for a person who is not in a risk group identied
by the national government, that person will not
have the extra protection of an airbag. In a
crash, the airbag will not be able to inate and
help protect the person sitting there. Do not turn
off the passenger’s airbag unless the person
sitting there is in a risk group. SeeAirbag Off
Switch on page 1-73for more on this, including
important safety information.
{CAUTION:
If the airbag readiness light ever comes on
when you have turned off the airbag, it means
that something may be wrong with the airbag
system. The right front passenger’s airbag
could inate even though the switch is off.
If your vehicle is a regular cab pickup and this
ever happens, do not let anyone whom the
national government has identied as a
member of a passenger airbag risk group sit in
the right front passenger’s position (for
example, do not secure a rear-facing child
restraint in your vehicle) until you have your
vehicle serviced.
If your vehicle is an extended cab pickup and
this ever happens, do not let anyone whom the
national government has identied as a
member of the passenger airbag risk group sit
in the right front passenger’s position (for
example, do not secure a rear-facing child
restraint in the right front passenger’s seat)
until you have your vehicle serviced.
3-35

Passenger Airbag Status Indicator
If your vehicle has the passenger sensing system, your
rearview mirror will have a passenger airbag status
indicator.
When the ignition key is turned to RUN or START, the
passenger airbag status indicator will light ON and
OFF, or the symbol for on and off, for several seconds
as a system check. Then, after several more seconds,the status indicator will light either ON or OFF, or either
the on or off symbol to let you know the status of the
right front passenger’s frontal airbag.
If the word ON or the on symbol is lit on the passenger
airbag status indicator, it means that the right front
passenger’s frontal airbag is enabled (may inate).
{CAUTION:
If the on indicator comes on when you have a
rear-facing child restraint installed in the right
front passenger’s seat, it means that the
passenger sensing system has not turned off
the passenger’s frontal airbag. A child in a
rear-facing child restraint can be seriously
injured or killed if the right front passenger’s
airbag inates. This is because the back of the
rear-facing child restraint would be very close
to the inating airbag. Do not use a rear-facing
child restraint in the right front passenger’s
seat unless the airbag has been turned off. Passenger Airbag Status Indicator – United States
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator – Canada
3-36

{CAUTION:
Do not load your vehicle any heavier than the
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), or either
the maximum front or rear Gross Axle Weight
Rating (GAWR). If you do, parts on your
vehicle can break, and it can change the way
your vehicle handles. These could cause you
to lose control and crash. Also, overloading
can shorten the life of your vehicle.
Notice:Overloading your vehicle may cause
damage. Repairs would not be covered by your
warranty. Do not overload your vehicle.
Using heavier suspension components to get added
durability might not change your weight ratings. Ask your
dealer to help you load your vehicle the right way.
If you put things inside your vehicle—like suitcases,
tools, packages, or anything else—they go as fast as the
vehicle goes. If you have to stop or turn quickly, or if
there is a crash, they’ll keep going.
{CAUTION:
Things you put inside your vehicle can strike
and injure people in a sudden stop or turn, or
in a crash.
Put things in the cargo area of your
vehicle. Try to spread the weight evenly.
Never stack heavier things, like suitcases,
inside the vehicle so that some of them
are above the tops of the seats.
Do not leave an unsecured child restraint
in your vehicle.
When you carry something inside the
vehicle, secure it whenever you can.
Do not leave a seat folded down unless
you need to.
There’s also important loading information for off-road
driving in this manual. See “Loading Your Vehicle
for Off-Road Driving“ underOff-Road Driving with Your
Four-Wheel-Drive Vehicle on page 4-20.
4-54