PONTIAC BONNEVILLE 1996 Owner's Guide

To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as shown’until
the belt is snug.
Rear Seat Passengers
It’s very important for rear seat passengers to buckle up!
‘Accident statistics show that ‘anbelted people in the rear
seat are hurt more often in .crashes than those who are
wearing safety belts.
Rear passengers
who aren’t safety belted can be thrown
out
of the vehicle in a crash. And they can strike others
in the vehicle who are wearing safety belts.
Rear Seat Outside Passenger Positions
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 knd of this section. The positions next to the windows have lap-shoulder
Lap-Shoulder Belt
Make sure the release button on the buckle is positioned belts.
Here’s how to wear one properly.
so you would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if you ever had to.
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1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. Don’t let it get twisted.
If the belt stops before it reaches the buckle,
ti1.t the
latch plate and keep pulling until you can buckle it.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
If the belt is not 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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3. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end
of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder part.
I I I I I I I I I I I
The lap part of the belt shod 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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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
shlder belt should fit against your body.
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for
Children and Small Adults
Rear shoulder belt comfort guides will provide added safety belt comfort for children who have outgrown
child restraints and for small adults. When installed
on a
shoulder belt, the comfort guide pulls the belt away
from the neck and head.
There
is one guide for each outside passenger position in
the rear seat. To provide added safety belt comfort for
children who have outgrown child restraints and for
smaller adults, the comfort guides may be installed
on
the shoulder belts. Here’s how to install a comfort guide
and use the safety belt:
To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
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1. Pull the elastic cord out from between the edge of
the seatback
and the interior body to remove the
guide from its storage clip.
2. Slide the guide under and past the belt. .The elastic
cord must be under the belt.
Then, place the guide
over the belt,
and insert the two edges of the belt into
the slots of the guide.
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3. Be sure that the belt is not twisted and it lies flat.
The elastic cord must be under the belt and the guide
on
top.
4. Buckle, position and release the safety belt as
described
in “Rear Seat Outside Passenger Positions”
earlier
in this section. Make sure that the shoulder
belt crosses the shoulder.
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To remove and store the comfort guides, just perform
these steps
in reverse order. Squeeze the belt edges
together so that.you can take them out from the guides.
Full the guide upward to expose its storage clip, and
then slide the guide onto the clip. Rotate the guide and clip inward id
in between the seatback and the interior
body, leaving only the loop
of elastic cord exposed.
Children
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! That includes
infants and
all children smaller than adult size. 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.
Smaller Children- and Babies
A CAUTION:'
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 om 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.
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A CAUTION:
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)
CAUTION: (Contidued)
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
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.
Where to Put the Restraint
Accident statistics)show that chiIdren 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 CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured if the right front passenger's
air
bag inflates. This is because the back of a
sear-facing child restraint would be very close to
~ the inflating air bag. Always secure a rear-facing
child restraint in the
rear seat.
You may, however, secure a forward-facing child
restraint in the right front seat. Before you secure
a forward-facing child restraint, always move the
front passenger seat
as far back as it will go. Or,
secure the child restraint in the
rear seat.
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A Top Strap
I A CAUTION:
A child in a child.restraint in the center front seat
can be badly injured by the right frpnt passenger
air bag if it inflates. Never secure a child restraint
in the center front seat.
It's always better to
secure
a child restraint in the rear seat. You may,
however, secure
a forward-facing child restraint
in the right front passenger seat, but only with
the seat moved all the way back.
Wherever
you install it, be sure to secure the c,Md
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. 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. H.iou
want to install
an anchor yourself, your dealer can tell
you how to do it.
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