children SATURN SKY 2007 Owners Manual

Front Seats..................................................... 8
Manual Seats................................................ 8
Driver Seat Height Adjuster........................... 9
Reclining Seatbacks.................................... 10
Seatback Latches........................................ 12
Safety Belts.................................................. 12
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone........... 12
Questions and Answers About
Safety Belts............................................. 17
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly............. 18
Driver Position............................................. 18
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy.............. 26
Passenger Position...................................... 27
Safety Belt Pretensioners............................ 27
Safety Belt Extender................................... 27
Child Restraints............................................ 28
Older Children............................................. 28
Infants and Young Children......................... 30
Child Restraint Systems.............................. 34Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH).................................... 38
Securing a Child Restraint in the
Passenger Seat Position.......................... 38
Airbag System.............................................. 43
Where Are the Airbags?.............................. 45
When Should an Airbag Inate?.................. 47
What Makes an Airbag Inate?................... 48
How Does an Airbag Restrain?................... 48
What Will You See After an
Airbag Inates?........................................ 48
Passenger Sensing System......................... 50
Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle...... 54
Adding Equipment to Your
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle.......................... 55
Restraint System Check............................... 56
Checking the Restraint Systems.................. 56
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash........................................... 57
Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
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How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
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
Older Children on page 28orInfants and Young
Children on page 30. Follow those rules for
everyone’s protection.
First, you will want to know which restraint
systems your vehicle has.
We will start with the driver position.
Driver Position
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here is how
to wear it properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat so you can sit up straight.
To see how, see “Seats” in the Index.3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across
you. Do not let it get twisted.
The lap-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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Child Restraints
Older Children
Older children who have outgrown booster seats
should wear the vehicle’s safety belts.
Q:What is the proper way to wear safety belts?
A:If possible, an older child should wear a
lap-shoulder belt and get the additional
restraint a shoulder belt can provide. The
shoulder belt should not cross the face
or neck. The lap belt should t snugly below
the hips, just touching the top of the thighs.
It should never be worn over the abdomen,
which could cause severe or even fatal internal
injuries in a crash.
According to accident statistics, children are safer
when properly restrained in the rear seating
positions than in the front seating positions.
In a crash, children who are not buckled up can
strike other people who are buckled up, or can be
thrown out of the vehicle. Older children need
to use safety belts properly.
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{CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here two children are wearing the same
belt. The belt can not properly spread the
impact forces. In a crash, the two children
can be crushed together and seriously
injured. A belt must be used by only
one person at a time.
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.
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{CAUTION:
Never do this.
Here a child is sitting in a seat that has a
lap-shoulder belt, but the shoulder part is
behind the child. If the child wears the belt
in this way, in a crash the child might slide
under the belt. The belt’s force would then
be applied right on the child’s abdomen.
That could cause serious or fatal injuries.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.
Infants and Young Children
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! This
includes infants and all other children. Neither the
distance traveled nor the age and size of the
traveler changes the need, for everyone, to use
safety restraints. 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.
{CAUTION:
Children can be seriously injured or
strangled if a shoulder belt is wrapped
around their neck and the safety belt
continues to tighten. Never leave children
unattended in a vehicle and never allow
children to play with the safety belts.
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Every time infants and young children ride in
vehicles, they should have the protection provided
by appropriate restraints. Young children should
not use the vehicle’s adult safety belts alone,
unless there is no other choice. Instead, they
need to use a child restraint.
{CAUTION:
People should never hold a baby in their
arms while riding in a vehicle. A baby
does not weigh much — until a crash.
During a crash a baby will become so
heavy it is not possible to hold it. For
example, in a crash at only 25 mph
(40 km/h), a 12 lb (5.5 kg) baby will
suddenly become a 240 lb (110 kg) force
on a person’s arms. A baby should be
secured in an appropriate restraint.
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{CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very
close to, any airbag when it inates can
be seriously injured or killed. Airbags
plus lap-shoulder belts offer protection
for adults and older children, but
not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system
nor its airbag system is designed for
them. Young children and infants need
the protection that a child restraint
system can provide.
Q:What are the different types of add-on
child restraints?
A:Add-on child restraints, which are purchased
by the vehicle’s owner, are available in
four basic types. Selection of a particular
restraint should take into consideration
not only the child’s weight, height, and age
but also whether or not the restraint will
be compatible with the motor vehicle in which
it will be used.
For most basic types of child restraints, there
are many different models available. When
purchasing a child restraint, be sure it is
designed to be used in a motor vehicle. If it is,
the restraint will have a label saying that it
meets federal motor vehicle safety standards.
The restraint manufacturer’s instructions
that come with the restraint state the weight
and height limitations for a particular child
restraint. In addition, there are many kinds
of restraints available for children with
special needs.
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{CAUTION:
Newborn infants need complete support,
including support for the head and neck.
This is necessary because a newborn
infant’s neck is weak and its head weighs
so much compared with the rest of its
body. In a crash, an infant in a rear-facing
seat settles into the restraint, so the
crash forces can be distributed across
the strongest part of an infant’s body,
the back and shoulders. Infants always
should be secured in appropriate infant
restraints.
{CAUTION:
The body structure of a young child is
quite unlike that of an adult or older child,
for whom the safety belts are designed.
A young child’s hip bones are still so
small that the vehicle’s regular safety belt
may not remain low on the hip bones, as
it should. Instead, it may settle up around
the child’s abdomen. In a crash, the belt
would apply force on a body area that is
unprotected by any bony structure. This
alone could cause serious or fatal injuries.
Young children always should be secured
in appropriate child restraints.
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Q:How Should I Use a Child Restraint?
A:A child restraint system is any device designed
for use in a motor vehicle to restrain, seat,
or position children. A built-in child restraint
system is a permanent part of the motor
vehicle. An add-on child restraint system is a
portable one, which is purchased by the
vehicle’s owner. To help reduce injuries, an
add-on child restraint must be secured in
the vehicle. With built-in or add-on child
restraints, the child has to be secured within
the child restraint.
When choosing an add-on child restraint, 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 nd these
instructions on the restraint itself or in a
booklet, or both.
Securing an Add-on Child Restraint
in the Vehicle
{CAUTION:
A child can be seriously injured or killed
in a crash if the child restraint is not
properly secured in the vehicle. Make sure
the child restraint is properly installed in
the vehicle using the vehicle’s safety belt,
following the instructions that came with
that restraint, and also the instructions in
this manual.
To help reduce the chance of injury, the child
restraint must be secured in the vehicle. Child
restraint systems must be secured in vehicle seats
by lap belts or the lap belt portion of a lap-shoulder
belt. A child can be endangered in a crash if the
child restraint is not properly secured in the
vehicle.
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Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH)
Some child restraints have a LATCH system.
As part of the LATCH system, your child restraint
may have lower attachments and/or a top
tether. The LATCH system can help hold the
child restraint in place during driving or in a crash.
Some vehicles have lower and/or top tether
anchors designed to secure a child restraint with
lower attachments and/or a top tether.
Some child restraints with a top tether are
designed to be used whether the top tether is
anchored or not. Other child restraints require that
the top tether be anchored. A national or local
law may require that the top tether be anchored.
In Canada, the law requires that forward-facing
child restraints have a top tether, and that
the tether be attached.
Your vehicle does not have lower anchors or
top tether anchors to secure a child restraint
with the LATCH system. If a national or local
law requires that your top tether be anchored, do
not use a child restraint in this vehicle because
a top tether cannot be properly anchored.You must use the safety belts to secure your child
restraint in this vehicle, unless a national or
local law requires that the top tether be anchored.
Refer to your child restraint instructions and
instructions in this manual for securing a child
restraint using the vehicle’s safety belts.
Securing a Child Restraint in the
Passenger Seat Position
Your vehicle has a passenger’s airbag. In addition,
your vehicle has the passenger sensing system.
The passenger sensing system is designed to
turn off the passenger’s frontal airbag when
an infant in a rear-facing infant seat or a small
child in a forward-facing child restraint or booster
seat is detected. SeePassenger Sensing
System on page 50andPassenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 131for more information on
this including important safety information.
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