belt OLDSMOBILE AURORA 2003 Owner's Manual

Safety Belt Extender
If the vehicle’s safety belt will fasten around you, you
should use it.
But
if a safety belt isn’t long enough to fasten, your
dealer will order
you an extender. It’s free. When you go
in to order it, take the heaviest coat you will wear,
so
the extender will be long enough for you. The extender
will be just for you, and just for the seat in your
vehicle that you choose. Don’t let someone else use it,
and use it only for the seat it is made
to fit. To wear
it, just attach it to the regular safety belt.
4. Buckle, position and release the safety belt as
described in
Rear Seat Passengers on page 1-27.
Make sure that the shoulder belt crosses the
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To remove and store the comfort guides, squeeze the
belt edges together
so that you can take them out of the
guides. Slide the guide into its storage pocket on the
side of the seatback.
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Child Restraints
Older Children
Older children who have outgrown booster seats should
wear the vehicle’s safety belts.
Q: What is the proper way to wear safety belts?
A: If possible, an older child should wear a
lap-shoulder belt and get the additional restraint a
shoulder belt can provide. The shoulder belt
should not cross the face or neck. The lap belt
should fit snugly below the hips, just touching the
top
of the thighs. It should never be worn over
the abdomen, which could cause severe or even
fatal internal injuries in a crash.
Accident statistics show that children are safer
if they
are restrained in the rear seat.
In a crash, children who are not buckled up can strike
other people who are buckled up, or can be thrown
out of the vehicle. Older children need to use safety
belts properly.
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Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same belt.
The belt can’t properly spread the impact
forces. In a crash, the two children can be
crushed together and seriously injured.
A belt
must be used by only one person at a time.
Q: What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder belt,
but the child
is so small that the shoulder belt
is very close to the child’s face or neck?
A: If the child is sitting in a seat next to a window,
move the child toward the center
of the vehicle.
If the child
is sitting in the center rear seat
passenger position, move the child toward the
safety belt buckle. In either case, be sure that the
shoulder belt still is on the child’s shoulder,
so
that in a crash the child’s upper body would have
the restraint that belts provide.
If the child is
sitting in a rear seat outside position, see
Rear
Safety Beit Comfort Guides for Chiidren and Smaii
Adults on page 1-25.
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I
Never do this.
Here a child is sitting in a seat that has a
lap-shoulder belt, but the shoulder part is
behind the child. If
the child wears the belt in
this way, in a crash the child might slide under
the belt. The belt’s force would then be applied right on the child’s abdomen. That could cause
serious or fatal injuries.
Wherever the child sits, the lap portion of the belt
should be worn
low and snug on the hips, just touching
the child’s thighs. This applies belt force to the child’s
pelvic bones
in a crash.
Infants and Young Children
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! This includes
infants and all other children. Neither the distance
traveled nor the age and size
of the traveler changes
the need, for everyone, to use safety restraints. In fact,
the law in every state in the United States and in
every Canadian province
says children up to some age
must be restrained while in a vehicle.
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Every time infants and young children ride in vehicles,
they should have the protection provided by appropriate
restraints. Young children should not use the vehicle’s
adult safety belts alone, unless there
is no other choice.
Instead, they need to use a child restraint. People should never hold a baby in their arms
while riding in a vehicle.
A baby doesn’t weigh
much
-- until a crash. During a crash a baby
will become
so heavy it is not possible to hold
it. For example, in a crash at only 25 mph
(40 km/h), a 12-lb.
(5.5 kg) baby will suddenly
become a 240-lb.
(1 10 kg) force on a person’s
arms.
A baby should be secured in an
appropriate restraint.
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Children who are up against, or very close to,
any air bag when
it inflates can be seriously
injured
or killed. Air bags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer outstanding protection for adults
and older children, but not for young children
and infants. Neither
the vehicle’s safety belt
system nor its air bag system is designed for
them. Young children and infants need the
protection that a child restraint system can
provide.
Q: What are the different types of add-on child
restraints?
A: Add-on child restraints, which are purchased by the
vehicle’s owner, are available in four basic types.
Selection
of a particular restraint should take
into consideration not only the child’s weight, height
and age but also whether or not the restraint will
be compatible with the motor vehicle in which it will
be used.
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For most basic types of child restraints, there are
many different models available. When purchasing a
child restraint, be sure it is designed to be used
in a motor vehicle.
If it is, the restraint will have a
label saying that it meets federal motor vehicle
safety standards.
The restraint manufacturer’s instructions that come
with the restraint state the weight and height
limitations for a particular child restraint. In addition,
there are many kinds of restraints available for
child
1 with special needs.
Newborn infants need complete support,
including support for the head and neck. This
is necessary because a newborn infant’s neck
is weak and its head weighs
so much
c~mparpd with the rest nf its body. In a crash?
an infant in a rear-facing seat settles into the
restraint,
so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest part of an
infant’s body, the back and shoulders. Infants
always should be secured in appropriate infant
restraints. The body structure of
a young child is quite
unlike that
of an adult or older child, for whom
the safety belts are designed.
A young child’s
hip bones are still
so small that the vehicle’s
regular safety belt may not remain low on the
hip bones, as
it should. Instead, it may settle
up around the child’s abdomen. In a crash, the
belt would apply force on a body area that’s unprotected by any bony structure. This alone
could cause serious or fatal injuries. Young children always should be secured
in
appropriate child restraints.
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A forward-facing child seat (C-E) provides restraint for
the child’s body with the harness and also sometimes
with surfaces such as T-shaped or shelf-like shields. A booster seat (F-G) is a child restraint designed to
improve the fit
of the vehicle’s safety belt system. Some
booster seats have a shoulder belt positioner, and
A booster seat can also help a child to see out the
window.
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Q: How do child restraints work?
A: A child restraint system is any device designed for
use in a motor vehicle to restrain, seat, or position
children.
A built-in child restraint system is a
permanent part
of the motor vehicle. An add-on
child restraint system is a portable one, which
is purchased by the vehicle’s owner.
For many years, add-on child restraints have used
the adult belt system in the vehicle. To help
reduce the chance of injury, the child also has to be
secured within the restraint. The vehicle’s belt
system secures the add-on child restraint in the
vehicle, and the add-on child restraint’s harness
system holds the child in place within the restraint.
One system, the three-point harness, has straps
that come down over each of the infant’s shoulders
and buckle together at the crotch. The five-point
harness system has two shoulder straps, two
hip straps and a crotch strap. A shield may take the
place of hip straps. A T-shaped shield has
shoulder straps that are attached to a flat pad which
rests low against the child’s body.
A shelf- or
armrest-type shield has straps that are attached to
a wide, shelf-like shield that swings up or to
the side. When
choosing a child restraint, be sure the child
restraint is designed to be used in a vehicle.
If it is, it
will have a label saying that it meets federal motor
vehicle safety standards.
Then follow the instructions for the restraint. You may
find these instructions on the restraint itself or in a
booklet, or both. These restraints use the belt system in
your vehicle, but the child also has to be secured
within the restraint to help reduce the chance of personal
injury. When securing an add-on child restraint, refer
to the instructions that come with the restraint which may
be on the restraint itself or in a booklet, or both, and
to this manual. The child restraint instructions are
important,
so if they are not available, obtain a
replacement copy from the manufacturer.
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If a LATCHty child restraint isn’t attached to
its anchorage- points, the restraint won’t be
able to protect a child sitting there. 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. See “Securing a Child Restraint
Designed for the LATCH System’’
or “Securing
a Child Restraint
in a Rear Seat Position” in
the Index for information on how to secure a
child restraint
in your vehicle.
With this system, use the
LATCH system instead of the
vehicle’s safety belts to secure a child restraint.
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