OLDSMOBILE INTRIGUE 1998 Service Manual

Lap Belt
When you sit in the center seating position, you have a
lap safety belt, which has no retractor.
To make the belt
longer, tilt the latch plate and pull it along the belt.
To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as shown until
the belt is snug.
Buckle, position and release it the same way as the lap
part of a lap-shoulder belt. 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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~ Children Smaller
Children and Babies
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! That includes
infants and all children smaller than adult size. 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.
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. This is true even if your vehicle has
reduced-force frontal
air bags. Air bags plus
lap-shoulder belts offer the best protection for
adults, 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. Always secure
children properly in your vehicle.
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Smaller children and babies should always be
restrained in a child
or infant restraint. The
instructions for the restraint will say whether
it is the right type and size for your child.
A
very young child’s hip bones are so small that a
regular belt might not stay low on the hips,
as it
should. Instead, the belt will likely be over the
child’s abdomen. In a crash, the belt would apply
force right
on the child’s abdomen, which could
cause serious or fatal injuries.
So, be sure that
any child small enough
for one is always properly
restrained in a child or infant restraint.
Infants need complete support, including support for
the head and neck. This is necessary because an infant’s
neck is weak and its head weighs so much compared with the rest
of its body. In a crash, an infant in a
rear-facing restraint settles into the restraint,
so the
crash forces can be distributed across the strongest part
of the infant’s body, the back and shoulders.
A baby
should be secured in an appropriate infant restraint.
This is
so important that many hospitals today won’t
release a newborn infant to its parents unless there is
an infant restraint available for the baby’s first trip in
a motor vehicle.
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A CAUTION:
1
Never hold a baby in your arms while riding in a
vehicle.
A baby doesn't weigh much -- until a
crash. During a crash
a baby will become so
heavy you can't hold it. For example, in a crash
CAUTION: (Continued) at
only 25 mph
(40 km/h), a 12-lb. (5.5 kg) baby
will suddenly become a 240-lb. (110 kg) force on
your arms. The baby would be almost impossible
to hold.
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
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Child Restraints
Every time infants and young children ride in
vehicles, they should have protection provided by
appropriate restraints.
@ What are the different types of add-on
At Add-on child restraints are available in four basic
types. When selecting a child restraint, take into
consideration not only the child’s weight and
size, but also whether or not the restraint will be
compatible with the motor vehicle in which it
will be used.
child restraints?
An infant car bed (A) is a special bed made for
use
in a motor vehicle. It’s an infant restraint
system designed to restrain or position a child
on
a continuous flat surface. With an infant car bed,
make sure that the infant’s head rests toward the
center of the vehicle.
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A rear-facing infant restraint (B) positions an infant
to face the rear of the vehicle. Rear-facing infant
restraints
are designed for infants of up to about
20 lbs. (9 kg) and about one year of age. This type
of restraint faces the rear so that the infant’s head,
neck and body can
have the support they need in a
crash. Some infant seats come in two parts
-- the
base stays secured in the vehicle and the seat part
is removable.
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A forward-facing child restraint (C-E) positions a
child upright to face forward in the vehicle. These
forward-facing restraints are designed to help protect
children who are
from 20 to 40 lbs. (9 to 18 kg) and
about 26
to 40 inches (66 to 102 cm) in height, or up
to around four years
of age. One type, a convertible
restraint, is designed to be used either as a rear-facing
infant seat or a forward-facing child seat.
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A booster seat (F, G) is designed for children who
are about
40 to 60 lbs. (1 8 to 27 kg) and about
four
to eight years of age. It’s designed to improve
the fit of the vehicle’s safety belt system. Booster
seats with shields use lap-only belts; however,
booster seats without shields use lap-shoulder
belts. Booster seats can also help a child
to see
out the window.
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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. The instructions that come with the
infant or child restraint will show you how
to do
that. Both the owner’s manual and the child restraint
instructions are important,
so if either one of these
is not available, obtain a replacement copy from
the manufacturer.
Where to Put the Restraint
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear rather than
the front seat. We at
General Motors therefore recommend that you put your
child restraint in the rear seat.
Never put a rear-facing
child restraint in the front passenger seat. Here’s why:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured if the right front passenger’s air
bag inflates, even if your vehicle has
reduced-force frontal
air bags. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child restraint would
be very close to the inflating air bag.
Always
secure a rear-facing child restraint in a rear seat.
You may secure a forward-facing child restraint
in the right front seat, but before you do, always
move the front passenger seat as far back as it
will go. It’s better to secure the child restraint in
a rear seat.
Wherever you install
it, be sure to secure the child
restraint properly.
Keep in mind that an unsecured child restraint can move
around in a collision or sudden stop and injure people in
the vehicle. Be sure
to properly secure any child
restraint
in your vehicle -- even when no child is in it.
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Top Strap
If your child restraint has a top strap, it should be
anchored. If
you need to have an anchor installed, you
can ask your Oldsmobile retailer
to put it in for you.
If you want to install an anchor yourself, your retailer
can tell
you how to do it.
Canadian law requires that child restraints have a top strap, and that the strap be anchored. If
your child restraint has a top strap, your retailer
can obtain a kit with anchor hardware and installation
instructions specifically designed for this vehicle. The
retailer can then install the anchor for
you. In Canada,
this work will be done for
you free of charge. Or, you
may install the anchor yourself using the instructions
provided in the kit.
Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear
Outside Seat Position
You’ll be using the lap-shoulder belt. See the earlier
part about the top strap
if the child restraint has one. 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. Put the restraint on the seat.
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