OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA 1996 User Guide

But don’t have a seatback reclined if your vehicle
is moving.
. ‘I ,.
‘Sitting in a reclined position when your vehicle is
in motion can be dangerous. Even if you buckle
up, your safety belts can’t do their job when
you’re reclined like this.
The shoulder belt can?t do its job because
it
won’t be against your body. Instead, it will be in
front of you. In
a crash you could go into it,
receiving neck or other injuries.
The lap belt can’t
do its job either. In a crash the
belt could go up over your abdomen. The belt
forces would be there, not
at your pelvic bones.
This could cause serious internal injuries.
For proper protection when the vehicle is in
motion, have the seatback upright. Then sit well
back in the seat and
wear your safety belt properly.
Head Restraints
Slide the head restraint up or down so that the top of the
restraint is closest to the !top of your ears. This position
reduces the chance
of a neck injury in a crash.
The head restraints tilt forward and rearward also.
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Rear Seats The rear seat release handles are in the upper center of
the rear of the seatbacks. Push back
on the seatbacks as
you pull up on the handles.
To raise the seatbacks, just lift up the seatbacks and push
until they lock in the upright position.
Push and pull
on the seatbacks to check that the latches
have locked in the upright position. If they haven’t, have
them fixed immediately.
Your vehicle has
a folding rear seat which lets you fold
the seatbacks down for more cargo space.
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Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone
This part of the manual tells you how to use safety belts
properly.
It also tells you some things you should not do
with safety belts.
And it explains the Supplemental Inflatable Restraint
(SIR), or air bag system.
A CAUTION:
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Don’t let anyone ride where he or she can’t wear
a safety belt properly.
If you are in a crash and
you’re not wearing
a safety belt, your injuries
can be much worse. You can hit things inside the
vehicle or be ejected from it. You can be seriously
injured or killed.’In the same crash, you might
not be if you are buckled up. Always fasten your
safety belt, and check that your passengers’ belts
are fastened properly too.
Your vehicle has a light
that comes on as a reminder
to buckle
up. (See “Safety
Belt Reminder Light”
in
the Index.)
-
In most states and Canadian provinces, the law says to
wear safety belts, Here’s why:
They work.
You never know if you’ll be in a crash. If you do have a
crash, you don’t know
if it will be a bad one.
A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be so
serious that even buckled up a person wouldn’t survive.
But most crashes are in between. In many of them,
people who buckle
up can survive and sometimes walk
away. Without belts they could have been badly hurt
or killed.
After more than
25 years of safety belts in vehicles,
the facts are clear.
In most crashes buckling up does
matter
... a lot!
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Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as
it goes.
Take the simplest vehicle. Suppose it's just
a seat
on wheels. Put
someone
on it.
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Get it up to speed. Then stop the vehicle. The rider
doesn't stop. The
person keeps going until stopped by something.
In a real vehicle, it could be the windshield ...
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or the safety belts!
or the instrument panel ...
With safety belts, you slow down as the vehicle does.
You get more time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and
your strongest bones take the forces. That’s why
safety belts make such good sense.
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Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts
-- and the Answers
Q: Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upside down. And your chance of
being conscious during and after an accident,
so
you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if
you are belted.
If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be
in most of them in the future. But they are
supplemental systems
only; so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for sale has required the use of
safety belts. Even if you’re
in a vehicle that has air
bags, you still have
to buckle up to get the most
protection. That’s true
not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and other collisions.
&.’ If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should
I wear safety belts?
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
accident
-- even one that isn’t your fault -- you and
your passengers can be hurt. Being a good driver
doesn’t protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
25 miles (40 km)
of home. And the greatest number
of serious
injuries and deaths occur at speeds of less than
40 mph (65 km/h).
Safety belts are for everyone.
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How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
Adults
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there are special things to know about safety
belts and children. And there are different rules for smaller
children and babies. If
a child will be riding in your
Oldsmobile, see the part
of this manual called “Children.”
Follow those rules for everyone’s protection.
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We’ll start with the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to wear
it properly.
1. Close and lock the door,
2. Adjust the seat (to see how, see “Seats” in the Index)
so you can sit up straight.
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3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let
it get twisted.
4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt isn’t long enough, see “Safety Belt
Extender” at the end
of this section.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned
so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly
if you ever had to.
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5. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end
of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder belt. The lap
part
of the belt should be worn low and snug on
the hips, just touching the thighs. In a crash, this applies
force to the strong pelvic bones. And you’d be less likely
to slide under the lap belt: If you
slid under it, the belt
would apply force at your abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go
over the shoulder and across the chest. These parts of the
body
are best able to take belt restraining forces.
The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop or a crash.
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Q.' What's wrong with this?
4 CAUTION:
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder belt is
too loose. In a crash, you would move forward
too much, which could increase injury. The
shoulder belt should
fit against your body.
A: The shoulder belt is too loose. It won't give nearly
as much protection this way.
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