belt PONTIAC FIREBIRD 1998 Owners Manual

The 1998 Pontiac Firebird Owner’s Manual
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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 vehicle.
Comfort Controls and Audio Systems
This section tells you how to adjust the ventilation and comfo\
rt controls and how to operate your audio system.
Your Driving and the Road
Here you’ll find 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 overheated engine, etc.
6-1 Service and Appearance Care
Here the manual tells you how to keep your vehicle running properly and looking good.
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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 Pontiac for assistance and ho\
w to get service and owner publications.
It also gives you information on “Reporting Safety Defects”
on page 8-10.
9-1 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.
i

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
BURNS
SPARK
OR ,\I/,
COULD
FLAUE
EXPLODE BAllERY
These symbols are important
for you and
your passengers whenever your
vehicle
is
driven:
DOOR LOCK
UNLOCK
FASTEN SEAT
BELTS
e?
AIR BAG p
These symbols
have to do with
your lamps:
SIGNALS @ 9
TURN
PARKING
pf
LAMPS
RUNNING
' 0
DAYTIME * 0
LAMPS
FOG LAMPS
$0
These symbols
are on some of
your controls:
WIPER 9
WINDSHIELD
DEFROSTER
WINDOW
DEFOGGER
VENTILATING
'*
FAN '-d
These symbols are used on
warning and
indicator lights:
COOLANT
TEMP
-
CHARGING I-1
BATTERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE
(a)
COOLANT a
ENGINE OIL
PRESSURE
ANTI-LOCK
(@)
BRAKES
Here are some
other symbols
you may see:
FUSE
P
LIGHTER -
HORN )d.
SPEAKER
k
FUEL la
V

Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
Here you’ll find information about the seats in your Pontiac and how to use your safety belts proper\
ly. You can also
learn about some things you should not do with air bags and safety belts.
1-2 Seats and Seat Controls
1- 13 Here Are Questions Many People Ask About
1-14 How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
1-8 Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone
Safety
Belts -- and the Answers
1-14 Driver Position
1-21 Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
1-22 Right Front Passenger Position
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1-44 1-47
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Supplemental Restraint System (SRS)
Rear Seat Passengers
Children
Child Restraints
Larger Children
Safety Belt Extender
Checking Your Restraint Systems
Replacing Restraint System
Parts After
a Crash
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But don't have a seatback reclined if your vehicle
is moving.
I A CAUTION:
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. 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.
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.

Folding Rear Seatback
The rear seatback in your vehicle folds down to provide
more storage space.
To fold the seatback down:
1. Pull forward on both levers.
2. Fold the seatback down.
To raise the seatback:
1. Pull it up to the locked, upright position.
2. Be sure both latches hold the seatback in place. Have
them fixed
if they don’t.
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.
I A CAUTION:
A
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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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I A CAUTION:
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.
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
30 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.
Put someone on it.
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or the instrument panel . . . or the safety belts!
With safety belts, you slow down as the vehicle does.
You get more time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and
your strongest bones take the forces. That's why
safety belts make such good sense.
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Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upside down. And your chance of
being conscious during and after an accident,
so
you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if
you are belted.
&.’ If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be
in most of them in the future. But they are
supplemental systems only;
so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for sale has required the use
of
safety belts. Even if you’re in a vehicle that has air
bags, you still have
to buckle up to get the most
protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions, but especially in side and other collisions.
wear safety belts?
@ If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should I wear safety belts?
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.
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How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
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 vehicle, 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.
3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
On convertible models, the shoulder belt may lock if
you pull the belt across you very quickly. If this
happens, let the belt
go back slightly to unlock it.
Then
pull the belt across you more slowly.
4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
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