belt PONTIAC PONTIAC 1997 Owners Manual

The 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix 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 Pontiac.
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.
4- 1 Your Driving and the Road
Here you’ll find helpful information and tips about the road\
and how to drive under different conditions.
This section tells what to do
if you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire or ove\
rheated engine, etc.
5-1 Problems on the Road
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Service and Appearance Care
Here the manual tells you how to keep your Pontiac running pr\
operly and looking good.
Maintenance Schedule
This section tells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and \
what fluids and lubricants to use.
8- 1 Customer Assistance Information
This section tells you how to contact Pontiac for assistance and how to get service and owne\
r publications.
It also gives you information on “Reporting Safety Defects” on page
8-10.
Here’s an alphabetical listing of almost every subject in this manual. You can use it to quickly find
something you want to read.
9-1 Index
i
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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 AVOID
SPARKS
OR
FLAMES
SPARK OR ,\[I,
COULD FLAME
EXPLODE BATTERY
These symbols are important
for you and
your passengers
whenever your
vehicle is
driven:
n
FASTEN
SEAT
BELTS
q4
AIR BAG p
These symbols
have to do with
your lamps:
SIGNALS e
TURN
PARKING LAMPS
FOG LAMPS
$0
These symbols
are
on some of
your controls:
WINDSHIELD
WIPER
WINDSHIELD DEFROSTER
WINDOW
DEFOGGER
VENTILATING
~3
FAN
These symbols are used
on
warning and indicator lights:
COOLANT -
TEMP -
CHARGING BATTERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE
(0)
h
COOLANT
ENGINE OIL
w,
PRESSURE
ANTI-LOCK
(@)
BRAKES
Here are some
other symbols
you may see:
FUSE
P
LIGHTER m
HORN )cr
SPEAKER
b
FUEL la
V
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7 Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
Here you'll find information about the seats in your Pontiac a\
nd how to use your safety belts properly. You can also
learn about some things you should not do with air bags and safety belts.
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1-9
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Seats and Controls
Manual Seats
Power Seats
Reclining Front Seatbacks
Seatback Latches
Why Safety Belts Work
Questions Many People Ask About
Safety Belts
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
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Questions and Answers About Air Bags
Rear Safety Belt 'Comfort Guides
How to Use Child Restraints
How to Use the Built-In Child Restraint
Important Information
for Buckling Children
in Child Restraints
Child Restraint Top Straps
How to Obtain a Safety Belt Extender
Checking Your Restraint Systems
Replacing Parts After a Crash
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But don’t have a seatback reclined if your vehicle
is moving.
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 because it
wonst be against your body. Instead, it will be in
front
of you. In a crash you could go into it,
receiving neck or other injuries.
The lap belt canst
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.
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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.
c
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.
’ 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.
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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
25 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.
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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.
Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
Q; 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.
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If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
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.
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 Pontiae, 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.
I. 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.
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.
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4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
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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5. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle
end
of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder belt. 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
foxes.
The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop or crash, or
if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.
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