PONTIAC BONNEVILLE 1997 Owner's Guide

CAUTION:
For up to 10 minutes after the ignition key is
turned off and the battery
is disconnected, an air
bag can still inflate during improper service.
You
can be injured if you are close to an air bag when
it inflates. Avoid wires wrapped with yellow tape
or yellow connectors. They are probably part of
the
air bag system. Be sure to follow proper
service procedures, and make sure the person
performing work for you is qualified to do
so.
The air bag system does not need regular maintenance.
Center Passenger Position
Lap Belt
If your vehicle has front and rear bench seats, someone
can sit
in the center positions.
When you sit in a 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.
1-24
ProCarManuals.com

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.
Rear Seat Passengers
It’s very important for rear seat passengers to buckle up!
Accident statistics show that unbelted 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
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The positions next to the windows have lap-shoulder
belts. Here’s how to wear one properly.
1-25
ProCarManuals.com

1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. If
the belt stops before it reaches the buckle, tilt 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.
1-26
ProCarManuals.com

3. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end
of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder part. 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.
1-27
ProCarManuals.com

The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop or a crash.
I
/A CAUTION: I
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.
To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.
1-28
ProCarManuals.com

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:
1. Pull the elastic cord out from between the edge (
the seatback and the interior body to remove the
guide from its storage clip.
1-29
ProCarManuals.com

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.
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.
1-30
ProCarManuals.com

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.
To remove and store the comfort guides, squeeze the belt
edges together
so that you can take them out from the
guides.
Pull the guide upward to expose its storage clip,
and then slide the guide onto the clip. Rotate the guide and \
clip inward and
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.
?-xa?r CPdren and BaPs
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.
1-31
ProCarManuals.com

A CAUTION: I
=!!ever 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)
I CAUTION: (Continued)
at only 25 mph (40 km/h),
a 12-lb. (5.5 kg) baby
will suddenly become
a 240-1b. (110 kg) force on
your arms. The baby would be almost impossible
to hold.
I
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
1-32
ProCarManuals.com

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 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 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
rear-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.
1-33
ProCarManuals.com