PONTIAC BONNEVILLE 1994 Owner's Guide

Seats & Restraint Systems
Smaller Children and Babies
(CONT)
ChiZd Restraints
Be sure to 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.
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:
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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.
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 Pontiac dealer to put it
in for you.
If you want to install an anchor
yourself, your dealer can tell you how to
do it.
For cars first sold in Canada, child
restraints with a
top strap must be
anchored according to Canadian Law.
Your dealer can obtain the hardware kit
and install it for you, or you may install it
yourself using the instructions provided in
the kit.
Use the tether hardware kit available from
the dealer. The hardware and installation
instructions were specifically designed for
this vehicle.
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Seats & Restraint Systems
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Securing a Child Restraint
in a Rear Outside Position
You’ll be using the lap-shoulder belt. See
the earlier section about
the top sfrap if
the child restraint has one.
1. Put the restraint on the seat. Follow
the instructions for the child restraint.
2. Secure the child in the child restraint
as the instructions say.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap
and shoulder portions
of the vehicle’s
safety belt through
or around the
restraint. The child restraint
instructions will show you how. If
the shoulder
belt goes in front of the
child’s face
or neck, put it behind the
child restraint.
4. Buckle the belt. Make sure the release
button
is positioned so you would be
able to unbuckle the safety belt
quickly
if you ever had to.
5. Pull the rest of the lap belt all the way
out
of the retractor to set the lock.
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6. To tighten the belt, feed the lap belt
into the retractor while you push down
on the child restraint. 7. Push and pull the child restraint in
different directions to be sure it is
secure.
To remove the child restraint, just
unbuckle the vehicle’s safety belt and let
it go back all the way. The safety belt will
move freely again and be ready to work
for an adult or larger child passenger.
Securing a Child Restraint
in
a Center Seat Position
When you secure a child restraint in a
center seating position, you’ll be using the
lap belt.
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Seats & Restraint Systems
Securing a Child Restraint
in a Center Seat Position
(CONT.)
... 34
See the earlier section about the top strap
if the child restraint has one.
1. Make the belt as long as possible by
tilting the latch plate and pulling
it
along the belt.
2. Put the restraint on the seat. Follow
the instructions for the child restraint.
3. Secure the child in the child restraint
as the instructions say.
4. Run the vehicle’s safety belt through
or around the restraint. The child
restraint instructions will show you
how.
5. Buckle the belt. Make sure the release
button is positioned
so you would be
able to unbuckle the safety belt
quickly
if you ever had to.
6. To tighten the belt, pull its free end
while you push down on the child
restraint.
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7. Push and pull the child restraint in
different directions to be sure it is
secure.
If the child restraint isn’t
secure,
turn the latch plate over and
buckle it again. Then see if it is
secure. If it isn’t, secure the restraint
in a different place in the vehicle and
contact the child restraint maker for
their advice about how to attach the
child restraint properly.
To remove the child restraint, just
unbuckle the vehicle’s safety belt. It will
be ready to work for an adult or larger
child passenger.
Securing a Child Restraint
in the Right Front Seat
Your vehicle has a right-front passenger’s
air bag.
NEVER put a rear-facing child
restraint in this seat. Here’s why:
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Seats & Restraint Systems
Securing a Child Restraint
in the Right Front Seat
(CONT.)
You’ll be using the lap-shoulder belt. See
the earlier section about the top strap
if
the child restraint has one.
1. Because your vehicle has a right-front
passenger’s air bag, always move the
seat as far back as
it will go before
securing a front-facing child restraint.
2. Put the restraint on the seat. Follow
the instructions for the child restraint.
3. Secure the child in the child restraint
as the instructions say.
4. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap
and shoulder portions
of the vehicle’s
safety belt through or around the
restraint. The child restraint
instructions
will show you how.
If the shoulder belt goes
in front of the
child’s face
or neck, put it behind the
child restraint.
5. Buckle the belt.
Make sure the release button is
positioned
so you would be able to
unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if you
ever had to.
6. Pull the rest of the lap belt all the way
out of the retractor to set the lock.
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7. To tighten the belt, feed the lap belt
back into the retractor while you push
down on the child restraint.
’
8. Push and pull the child restraint in
different directions to be sure it is
secure.
To remove the child restraint, just
unbuckle the vehicle’s safety belt and let
it go back all the way.
The safety belt will move freely again and
be ready to work for an adult or larger
child passenger. Larger Children
Children who have outgrown child
restraints should wear the vehicle’s safety
belts.
If you have the choice, a child should sit
next to a window
so the child can wear a
lap-shoulder belt and get the additional
restraint
a shoulder belt can provide.
Accident statistics show that children are
safer if they are restrained in the rear seat.
But they need
to use the safety belts
properly.
0 Children who aren’t buckled up can
be thrown out in a crash.
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Seats & Restraint Systems
Larger Children (CONK)
Children who aren’t buckled up can
strike other people who are.
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: Move the child toward the center of
the vehicle, but 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 so
small that the shoulder belt is still very
close to the child’s face or neck,
you
might want to place the child in the
center seat position, the one that has
only
a lap belt.
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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.
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.
Checking Your
Restraint Systems
Now and then, make sure all your belts,
buckles, latch plates, retractors,
anchorages and reminder systems are
working properly. Look for any loose
parts or damage. If you see anything that might
keep a restraint system from doing
its job, have it repaired.
Replacing Safety Belts
After a Crash
If you’ve had a crash, do you need new
belts?
After a very minor collision, nothing may
be necessary. But if the belts were
stretched, as they would be
if worn during
a more severe crash, then you need new
belts.
If belts are cut or damaged, replace them.
Collision damage also may mean you will
need to have safety belt or seat parts
repaired or replaced. New parts and
repairs may be necessary even if the belt
wasn’t being used at the time of the
collision.
If your seat adjuster won’t work after a
crash, the special part of the safety belt
that goes through the seat to the adjuster
may need to be replaced.
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