HONDA CIVIC COUPE 1999 Owner's Guide

Protecting Children

Installing a Rear-Facing Child Seatwith a Lap/Shoulder Belt

The lap/shoulder belts in the outer back seats have a locking
mechanism that must be activated tosecure a child seat.
The following pages provide instructions on how to secure a rear-
facing child seat with this type of seat belt. See page 32 for how to secure a rear-
facing child seat in the center back seat with the lap belt.
For tips on installing a rear-facing
child seat with a seat belt, see page
32.

1. With the child seat in the desiredback seating position, route the
belt through the child seataccording to the seat maker's
instructions, then insert the latch
plate into the buckle.

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Protecting Children

2. To activate the lockable retractor, slowly pull the shoulder part of the
belt all the way out until it stops, then let the belt feed back into theretractor (you might hear a
clicking noise as the belt retracts).
3. After the belt has retracted, tug on it. If the belt is locked, you will not
be able to pull it out. If you can pull
the belt out, it is not locked and
you will need to repeat these steps. 4. After confirming that the belt is
locked, grab the shoulder part of
the belt near the buckle and pull
up to remove any slack from thelap part of the belt. Remember, if
the lap part of the belt is not tight,
the child seat will not be secure.
To remove slack, it may help to put weight on the child seat, or
push on the back of the seat, while
pulling up on the belt. 5. Push and pull the child seat
forward and from side to side to
verify that it is secure enough to stay upright during normal drivingmaneuvers. If the child seat is not
secure, unlatch the belt, allow it to
retract fully, then repeat these

steps.

To deactivate the locking mechanism and remove a child seat,
unlatch the buckle, unroute the seat
belt, and let the belt fully retract.
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Protecting Children

Installing a Rear-Facing Child Seat
with the Lap Belt

To install a rear-facing child seat in the center back seat with the lap belt,follow instruction number 1 on page 30 for routing and latching the seat
belt. Then pull hard on the loose end
of the belt to remove any slack (it may help to put weight on the child
seat while pulling on the belt).
Finally, follow instruction number 5
on page 31 to verify that the child
seat is secure.
Rear-Facing Child Scat Installation
Tips

For proper protection, an infant must
ride in a reclined, or semi-reclined
position. To determine the properreclining angle, check with the baby's
doctor or follow the seat maker's
recommendations.
To achieve the desired reclining angle, it may help to put a rolled up
towel under the toe of the child seat,

as shown.
When properly installed, a rear-
facing child seat may prevent the
driver or a front-seat passenger from moving the seat as far back as
recommended (see page 12). Or it may prevent them from locking the
seat-back in the desired upright
position (see page 13).
In either case, we recommend that
you place the child seat directly
behind the front passenger seat, move the front seat as far forward as
needed, and leave it unoccupied. Or
you may wish to get a smaller child seat that allows you to safely carry afront passenger.

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Additional Precautions for Infants Never hold an infant on your lap.

If you are not wearing a seat belt
in a crash, you could be thrown
forward into the dashboard and crush the infant.
If you are wearing a seat belt, the
infant can be torn from your arms.For example, if your car crashes
into a parked vehicle at 30 mph (48 km/h), a 20-lb (9 kg) infant
will become a 600-lb (275 kg) force, and you will not be able to hold on.
Never put a seat belt over yourself

and an infant. During a crash, the

belt could press deep into the infant and cause very serious
injuries. Protecting Small Children
Child Seat Type
A child who can sit up without support, and who fits within the child
seat maker's weight and height
limits, should be restrained in a
forward-facing, upright child seat.
Of the different seats available, we
recommend those that have a five-
point harness system as shown. We also recommend that a small
child stay in the child seat as long as
possible, until the child reaches the
weight or height limit for the seat.
Child Seat Placement

In this car, the best place to install a
forward-facing child seat is in one of
the seating positions in the back seat.

Placing a forward-facing child seat in the front seat of a car equipped with
a passenger airbag can be hazardous.
If the car seat is too far forward, or
the child's head is thrown forward during a collision, an inflating
passenger's airbag can strike the
child with enough force to cause
very serious or fatal injuries. If a small child must be closely watched,
we recommend that another adult sit in the back seat with the child.

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Protecting Children

If it is necessary to put a forward-
facing child seat in the front, move
the vehicle seat as far to the rear as possible, be sure the child seat is
firmly secured to the vehicle, and the child is properly strapped in the seat.
Installing a Child Seat with a Lap/
Shoulder Belt

The lap/shoulder belts in the outer back and front passenger seatingpositions have a locking mechanism
that must be activated to secure a
child seat.
The following pages provideinstructions on how to securea forward-facing child seat with
this type of seat belt.
See page 36 for how to secure a
forward-facing child seat in the
center back seat with the lap belt.
For tips on installing a forward-
facing child seat with either typeof seat belt, see page 32. 1. With the child seat in the desired
seating position, route the belt
through the child seat according
to the seat maker's instructions, then insert the latch plate into the
buckle.
Driver and Passenger Safety

Improperly placing a forward-

facing child seat in the front seat can result in serious injury
or death if the airbags inflate.
If you must place a forward-
facing child seat in front, move
the vehicle seat as far back as
possible and properly restrain

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2. To activate the lockable retractor, slowly pull the shoulder part of the
belt all the way out until it stops, then let the belt feed back into the
retractor (you might hear a
clicking noise as the belt retracts).
3. After the belt has retracted, tug on it. If the belt is locked, you will not
be able to pull it out. If you can pull the belt out, it is not locked and
you will need to repeat these steps.
4. After confirming that the belt is

locked, grab the shoulder part of

the belt near the buckle and pullup to remove any slack from the

lap part of the belt. Remember, if
the lap part of the belt is not tight,

the child seat will not be secure. It
may help to put weight on the

child seat, or push on the back of

the seat, while pulling up on the

belt. 5. Push and pull the child seat
forward and from side to side to
verify that it is secure enough tostay upright during normal driving
maneuvers. If the child seat is not secure, unlatch the belt, allow it to
retract fully, then repeat these
steps.

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To deactivate the locking mechanism in order to remove a
child seat, unlatch the buckle,

unroute the seat belt, and let the belt

fully retract.
Installing a Child Seat with the Lap
Belt

To install a forward-facing child seat in the center back seat with the lap
belt, follow instruction number 1 on
page 34 for routing and latching the seat belt. Then pull hard on the loose
end of the belt to remove any slack;
it may help to put weight on the child
seat while pulling on the belt. Finally,
follow instruction number 5 on page 35 to verify that the child seat is

secure.
Additional Precautions for Small
Children
Never hold a small child on your

lap. If you are not wearing a seat
belt in a crash, you could be
thrown forward into the dashboard and crush the child.
If you are wearing a seat belt, the
child can be torn from your arms.
For example, if your car crashes into a parked vehicle at 30 mph
(48 km/h), a 30-lb (14 kg) child
will become a 900-lb (410 kg)
force, and you will not be able to
hold on.
Never put a seat belt over yourself

and a child. During a crash, the

belt could press deep into the child and cause very serious injuries.

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Protecting Larger Children
When a child reaches the recommended weight or height limit
for a forward-facing child seat, the child should sit in one of the outer
back seats and wear a lap/shoulder belt. The lap/shoulder belt provides
better protection than the lap belt.
If a child is too short for the shoulder
part of the belt to properly fit, we
recommend that the child use a
booster seat until they are tall enough to use the seat belt without a

booster.

The following pages give instructions on how to check properseat belt fit, what kind of booster
seat to use if one is needed, and
important precautions for children
who must sit in the front seat.
Checking Seat Belt Fit

To determine if a lap/shoulder belt properly fits a child, have the child
put on the seat belt. Follow theinstructions on page 13 . Then check
how the belt fits.

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Driver and Passenger Safety

Allowing a larger child to sit
improperly in the front seat canresult in injury or death if the
airbags inflate.
If a larger child must sit in front,
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If the shoulder part of the belt restsover the child's collarbone and
against the center of the chest, as
shown, the child is large enough to
wear the seat belt. However, if the belt touches or
crosses the child's neck, the child
needs to use a booster seat.

Do not let a child wear a seat belt
across the neck. This could result in
serious neck injuries during a crash.
Do not let a child put the shoulder
part of a seat belt behind the back or under the arm. This could cause
very serious injuries during a crash. It also increases the chance that thechild will slide under the belt in a
crash and be injured.
Do not put any accessories on a seat

belt. Devices intended to improve
occupant comfort or reposition the
shoulder part of a seat belt, severely
compromise the protective capability of seat belts and increase the chance
of serious injury in a crash.

Two children should never use the

same seat belt. If they do, they could
be very seriously injured in a crash.
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Using a Booster Seat
If a child needs a booster seat, we
recommend choosing a style that
allows the child to use the lap/
shoulder belt directly, without a
shield, as shown.
Whichever style you select, follow the booster seat maker's instructions. A child may continue using a booster
seat until the tops of the ears are
even with the top of the seat-back. A
child of this height should be tall
enough to use the lap/shoulder belt
without a booster.
When Can a Larger Child Sit in Front

The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and Transport Canada recommend that all children
ages 12 and under be properly
restrained in the back seat.
The back seat is the safest place for a child of any age or size.
In addition, the passenger's airbag
poses serious risks to children. If theseat is too far forward, or the child's
head is thrown forward during a collision, or the child is unrestrained
or out of position, an inflating airbag
can kill or seriously injure the child.
Of course, children vary widely. And
while age may be one indicator of
when a child can safely ride in the front, there are other important
factors you should consider.

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