belt OLDSMOBILE CUTLASS 1997 Owners Manual

The 1997 Oldsrnobile Cutlass Owner’s Manual
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9-1 Seats and Restraint Systems
This section tells you how
to use your seats and safety belts properly. It also explains the “SRS” system.
Features and Controls
This section explains how to start and operate your Oldsmobile.\

Comfort Controls and Audio Systems
This section tells you how to adjust the ventilation and comfort controls and how to operate \
your audio system.
Your Driving and the Road
Here you’ll fiid helpful information and tips about the road and how to drive \
under different conditions.
Problems on the Road
This section tells what to do if you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire or ove\
rheated engine, etc.
Service and Appearance Care
Here the manual tells you how to keep your Oldsmobile running properly and looking good. \
Maintenance Schedule
This section tells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and \
what fluids and lubricants to use.
Customer Assistance Information
This section tells you how to contact Oldsmobile for assistance and how to get service and owner publications.
It also gives you information
on “Reporting Safety Defects” on page 8-8.
Index
Here’s an alphabetical listing of almost every subject in this manual. You can use it to quickly find
something you want to read.
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Vehicle Symbols
These are some of the symbols you may find on your vehicle.
For example,
these symbols
are used
on an
original battery:
POSSIBLE A
CAUTION
INJURY
PROTECT EYES BY
SHIELDING
CAUSTIC
ACID COULD BAllERY
CAUSE
BURNS
AVOID
SPARKS
OR
FLAMES
SPARK
OR ,\I/,
COULD FLAME
EXPLODE BATIERY
These symbols
are important
for you and
your passengers
whenever your vehicle is
driven:
DOOR LOCK
UNLOCK
FASTEN SEAT
BELTS
These symbols
have to do with
your lamps:
SIGNALS e
TURN
FOG LAMPS
# 0
These symbols
are on some
of
your controls:
WINDSHIELD
WIPER
WINDSHIELD DEFROSTER
WINDOW
DEFOGGER
VENTILATING FAN
(
These symbols
are used on
warning
and
indicator lights:
COOLANT -
TEMP -
CHARGING BAllERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE
(0)
COOLANT a
ENGINE OIL e,
PRESSURE
ANTI-LOCK
(@)
BRAKES
Here are some
other symbols
you may see:
FUSE
P
LIGHTER
HORN
)cr
SPEAKER
b
FUEL B
V
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Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
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Here you’ll find
information about the seats in your Oldsmobile and
how to use your safety belts properly. You can
also learn about some things you should not do with air bags and safety belts.
Seats and Controls
1-47 Replacing Parts After a Crash
Shoulder
Belt Height Adjuster 1-47 Checking
Your Restraint Systems
How to Wear
Safety Belts Properly 1-47 How to Obtain a Safety Belt Extender
Safety Belts 1-37 Child Restraint
Top Straps
Questions Many People Ask About Children
in Child Restraints
Why Safety Belts Work 1-36
Important Information for Buckling
Rear Seats 1-34 How to Use Child Restraints
Reclining Front Seatbacks 1-30
Safety Belt Comfort Guides
Power
Seats 1-23 Questions and Answers About
Air Baps
Manual Seats 1-20
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
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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.
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.
CAUTION: (Continued)
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.
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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 Restraint System
(SRS), or air bag system.
A CAUTION:
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.
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A CAUTIO
It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area,
inside or outside of a vehicle. In a collision,
people riding in these areas are more likely to be
seriously injured or killed. Do not allow people to
ride in any area of your vehicle that is not
equipped with seats and safety belts. Be sure
everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and using a
safety belt properly.
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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!
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.
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Q: If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should
I wear safety belts?
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
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.
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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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 crash, or
if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.
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@ What’s wrong with this?
I
A 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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&.' What's wrong with this?
A: The belt is buckled in the wrong place.
You can be seriously injured if your belt is
buckled in the wrong place like this. In a crash,
the belt would
go up over your abdomen. The
belt forces
would be there, not at the pelvic
bones. This could cause serious internal injuries.
Always buckle your belt into the buckle
nearest you.
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