2009 Buick Lucerne Owners Manual

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2009 Buick Lucerne Owner Manual M Seats and Restraint System ............................. 1-1 Head Restraints ......................................... 1-2 Front Seats ............................................... 1-4 Rear Seats .............................................. 1-13 Safety Belts ............................................. 1-14 Child Restraints ....................................... 1-35 Airbag System ......................................... 1-62 Restraint System Check ............................ 1-78 Features and Controls ..................................... 2-1 Keys ........................................................ 2-3 Doors and Locks ...................................... 2-10 Windows ................................................. 2-15 Theft-Deterrent Systems ............................ 2-17 Starting and Operating Your Vehicle ........... 2-20 Mirrors .................................................... 2-34 Object Detection Systems .......................... 2-38 OnStar® System ...................................... 2-46 Universal Home Remote System ................ 2-49 Storage Areas ......................................... 2-56 Instrument Panel ............................................. 3-1 .......................... 3-4 ...................................... 3-22 ........ 3-34 .................. 3-51 ....................................... 3-80 Instrument Panel Overview Climate Controls Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators Driver Information Center (DIC) Audio System(s) Your Driving, the Road, and the Vehicle Towing Driving Your Vehicle ....................................... 4-1 ....... 4-2 ................................................... 4-23 Service and Appearance Care .......................... 5-1 Service ..................................................... 5-3 Fuel ......................................................... 5-5 Checking Things Under the Hood ............... 5-12 Headlamp Aiming ..................................... 5-49 Bulb Replacement .................................... 5-52 Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement ......... 5-55 Tires ...................................................... 5-57 Appearance Care ..................................... 5-89 Vehicle Identiﬁcation ................................. 5-97 Electrical System ...................................... 5-98 Capacities and Speciﬁcations ................... 5-106 Maintenance Schedule ..................................... 6-1 ................................ 6-2 Customer Assistance Information .................... 7-1 ........... 7-2 ........................... 7-15 ........... 7-17 Index ................................................................ 1 Customer Assistance and Information Reporting Safety Defects Vehicle Data Recording and Privacy Maintenance Schedule GENERAL MOTORS, GM, the GM Emblem, BUICK, the BUICK Emblem, and the name LUCERNE are registered trademarks of General Motors Corporation. This manual includes the latest information at the time it was printed. GM reserves the right to make changes after that time without further notice. For vehicles ﬁrst sold in Canada, substitute the name “General Motors of Canada Limited” for Buick Motor Division wherever it appears in this manual. This manual describes features that may or may not be on your speciﬁc vehicle. Read this manual from beginning to end to learn about the vehicle’s features and controls. Pictures, symbols, and words work together to explain vehicle operation. Keep this manual in the vehicle for quick reference. Canadian Owners A French language copy of this manual can be obtained from your dealer/retailer or from: Helm, Incorporated P.O. Box 07130 Detroit, MI 48207 1-800-551-4123 www.helminc.com Propriétaires Canadiens On peut obtenir un exemplaire de ce guide en français auprès de concessionnaire ou à l’adresse suivante: Helm, Incorporated P.O. Box 07130 Detroit, MI 48207 1-800-551-4123 www.helminc.com Index To quickly locate information about the vehicle, use the index in the back of the manual. It is an alphabetical list of what is in the manual and the page number where it can be found. Litho in U.S.A. Part No. 15888659 B Second Printing ©2008 General Motors Corporation. All Rights Reserved. ii Safety Warnings and Symbols A circle with a slash through it is a safety symbol which means “Do Not,” “Do not do this,” or “Do not let this happen.” A box with the word CAUTION is used to tell about things that could hurt you or others if you were to ignore the warning. { CAUTION: These mean there is something that could hurt you or other people. A notice tells about something that can damage the vehicle. Notice: These mean there is something that could damage your vehicle. Many times, this damage would not be covered by the vehicle’s warranty, and it could be costly. The notice tells what to do to help avoid the damage. There are also warning labels on the vehicle which use the same words, CAUTION or Notice. Vehicle Symbols The vehicle has components and labels that use symbols instead of text. Symbols are shown along with the text describing the operation or information relating to a speciﬁc component, control, message, gage, or indicator. M : This symbol is shown when you need to see your owner manual for additional instructions or information. Cautions tell what the hazard is and what to do to avoid or reduce the hazard. Read these cautions. * : This symbol is shown when you need to see a service manual for additional instructions or information. iii Vehicle Symbol Chart Here are some additional symbols that may be found on the vehicle and what they mean. For more information on the symbol, refer to the index. 9 : Airbag Readiness Light # : Air Conditioning ! : Antilock Brake System (ABS) g : Audio Steering Wheel Controls or OnStar® $ : Brake System Warning Light " : Charging System I : Cruise Control B : Engine Coolant Temperature O : Exterior Lamps # : Fog Lamps . : Fuel Gage + : Fuses i : Headlamp High/Low-Beam Changer j : LATCH System Child Restraints * : Malfunction Indicator Lamp : : Oil Pressure } : Power / : Remote Vehicle Start > : Safety Belt Reminders 7 : Tire Pressure Monitor F : Traction Control M : Windshield Washer Fluid iv Section 1 Seats and Restraint System Head Restraints ...............................................1-2 Front Seats ......................................................1-4 Manual Seats ................................................1-4 Power Seats ..................................................1-5 Power Lumbar ...............................................1-6 Heated Seats .................................................1-7 Heated and Cooled Seats ................................1-8 Memory Seat and Mirrors ................................1-9 Reclining Seatbacks ......................................1-10 Center Seat .................................................1-13 Rear Seats .....................................................1-13 Rear Seat Pass-Through Door ........................1-13 Safety Belts ...................................................1-14 Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone ................1-14 How to Wear Safety Belts Properly .................1-19 Lap-Shoulder Belt .........................................1-28 Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy ..................1-33 Lap Belt ......................................................1-34 Safety Belt Extender .....................................1-35 Child Restraints .............................................1-35 Older Children ..............................................1-35 Infants and Young Children ............................1-39 Child Restraint Systems .................................1-43 Where to Put the Restraint .............................1-46 Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) ..................................................1-48 Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear Seat Position ....................................1-55 Securing a Child Restraint in the Center Front Seat Position ..........................1-58 Securing a Child Restraint in the Right Front Seat Position ............................1-58 Airbag System ...............................................1-62 Where Are the Airbags? ................................1-64 When Should an Airbag Inﬂate? .....................1-67 What Makes an Airbag Inﬂate? .......................1-69 How Does an Airbag Restrain? .......................1-69 What Will You See After an Airbag Inﬂates? .....1-70 Passenger Sensing System ............................1-71 Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle ...........1-76 Adding Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle ....................................................1-77 Restraint System Check ..................................1-78 Checking the Restraint Systems ......................1-78 Replacing Restraint System Parts After a Crash ............................................1-79 1-1 Head Restraints The vehicle’s front seats have adjustable head restraints in the outboard seating positions. { CAUTION: With head restraints that are not installed and adjusted properly, there is a greater chance that occupants will suffer a neck/spinal injury in a crash. Do not drive until the head restraints for all occupants are installed and adjusted properly. 1-2 Adjust the head restraint so that the top of the restraint is at the same height as the top of the occupant’s head. This position reduces the chance of a neck injury in a crash. Push down on the head restraint after the button is released to make sure that it is locked in place. The head restraints are not designed to be removed. Pull the head restraint up to raise it. To lower the head restraint, press the button, located on the top of the seatback, and push the restraint down. 1-3 Front Seats Manual Seats { CAUTION: If the vehicle has a manual seat, it can be moved forward or rearward. 1. Lift the bar to unlock the seat. 2. Slide the seat to the desired position and release the bar. You can lose control of the vehicle if you try to adjust a manual driver’s seat while the vehicle is moving. The sudden movement could startle and confuse you, or make you push a pedal when you do not want to. Adjust the driver’s seat only when the vehicle is not moving. Try to move the seat with your body to be sure the seat is locked in place. 1-4 Power Seats (cid:129) Raise or lower the rear part of the seat cushion by moving the rear of the control up or down. (cid:129) Raise or lower the entire seat by moving the entire control up or down. On vehicles with power reclining seatbacks, see “Power Reclining Seatbacks” under Reclining Seatbacks on page 1-10. To adjust a power seat, do any of the following: (cid:129) Move the seat forward or rearward by sliding the control forward or rearward. (cid:129) Raise or lower the front part of the seat cushion by moving the front of the control up or down. 1-5 Power Lumbar For vehicles with a two-way lumbar control, press the control top or bottom to increase or decrease support in the lower seatback. On vehicles with a four-way lumbar control, press the control forward or rearward to increase or decrease support in the lower seatback. Press the top or bottom of the control to raise or lower the support in the seatback. The lumbar support may need to be re-adjusted when changing the seating position. On vehicles with power lumbar, the control is located on the outboard side of the front seats. 1-6 Heated Seats Your vehicle may have heated front seats. To operate the heated seats, the ignition must be on. The buttons are located on the front doors. Driver’s Side Buttons shown J (Heated Seat Cushion and Seatback): Press this button to turn on the heated seat cushion and seatback. I (Heated Seatback): Press this button to turn on the heated seatback. Press the button to turn on the desired feature. A light on that button will display to show which feature is on. There are three temperature settings for each feature. A column of three lights next to the buttons will display which setting the feature is in: high, medium or low. Three lights indicate the highest setting, two lights indicate medium and one light indicates the lowest setting. When you press a button, the feature will turn on at the highest setting. Each time you press the button, the feature will decrease one temperature setting. To turn the feature off, keep pressing the button until the display lights turn off. If your vehicle has remote vehicle start and is started using the remote keyless entry transmitter, the front heated seats will be turned on to the high setting if it is cold outside. See “Remote Vehicle Start” under Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System Operation on page 2-5. When the key is inserted into the ignition and the ignition is turned on, the heated seat feature will turn off. To turn the heated seat feature back on, press the desired button. 1-7 Heated and Cooled Seats The front seats may have the heated and cooled seat feature. To heat or cool the seats, the ignition must be on. The buttons are located on the front doors. Driver’s Side Buttons shown J (Heated Seat Cushion and Seatback): Press this button to heat the seat cushion and seatback. I (Heated Seatback): Press this button to heat the seatback. H (Cooled Seat Cushion and Seatback): Press this button to cool the seat cushion and seatback. 1-8 Press each button to turn on the desired feature. A light on that button will display indicating which feature is on. There are three temperature settings for each feature. A column of three lights next to the buttons will display which setting the feature is in: high, medium or low. Three lights indicate the highest setting, two lights indicate medium and one light indicates the lowest setting. When you press a button, the feature will turn on at the highest setting. Each time you press the button, the feature will decrease one temperature setting. To turn the feature off, keep pressing the button until the display lights turn off. If your vehicle has remote vehicle start and is started using the remote keyless entry transmitter, the front heated seats will be turned on to the high setting if it is cold outside. See “Remote Vehicle Start” under Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System Operation on page 2-5. When the key is inserted into the ignition and the ignition is turned on, the heated seat feature will turn off. To turn the heated seat feature back on, press the desired button. Memory Seat and Mirrors On vehicles with the memory feature the buttons are located on the driver’s door. 1: Saves the seating position for driver 1. 2: Saves the seating position for driver 2. B : Recalls the easy exit position. For more programming information, see DIC Vehicle Customization on page 3-70. To save your positions in memory: 1. Adjust the driver’s seat, including the seatback recliner and lumbar, and both outside mirrors to your preferred position. 2. Press and hold button 1 until two beeps sound to let you know that the position has been stored. 3. Repeat the procedure for a second driver using button 2. The vehicle must be in (P) Park to recall your memory positions. Press and release either button to recall the stored setting. Each time a memory button is pressed, a single beep sounds. If you use the remote keyless entry transmitter to enter your vehicle and the remote recall memory feature is on, automatic seat and mirror movement occurs. To stop recall movement of the memory feature, press one of the power seat controls, memory buttons, or power mirror buttons. If something has blocked the driver’s seat while recalling a memory position, the driver’s seat recall may stop working. If this happens, press the control for the area that is not recalling for two seconds, after the obstruction is removed. Try recalling the memory position again by pressing the appropriate memory button. If the memory position is still not recalling, see your dealer/retailer for service. Easy Exit Seat B : With the vehicle in (P) Park, press to recall the exit position. You will hear a single beep and the driver’s seat moves back. 1-9 Reclining Seatbacks Manual Reclining Seatbacks { CAUTION: You can lose control of the vehicle if you try to adjust a manual driver’s seat while the vehicle is moving. The sudden movement could startle and confuse you, or make you push a pedal when you do not want to. Adjust the driver’s seat only when the vehicle is not moving. { CAUTION: If either seatback is not locked, it could move forward in a sudden stop or crash. That could cause injury to the person sitting there. Always push and pull on the seatbacks to be sure they are locked. 1-10 If the seats have manual reclining seatbacks, the lever used to operate them is located on the outboard side of the seats. Passenger’s Seat shown To recline the seatback, do the following: 1. Lift the recline lever. 2. Move the seatback to the desired position, then release the lever to lock the seatback in place. 3. Push and pull on the seatback to make sure it is locked. To return the seatback to an upright position, do the following: 1. Lift the lever fully without applying pressure to the seatback and the seatback will return to the upright position. 2. Push and pull on the seatback to make sure it is locked. Power Reclining Seatbacks Driver’s Seat with Power Seat Control, Power Recline, and Power Lumbar shown If the seats have power reclining seatbacks, the controls used to operate them are located on the outboard side of the seats. Tilt the top of the control rearward to recline the seatback. Tilt the top of the control forward to raise the seatback. 1-11 (cid:129) (cid:129) { CAUTION: Sitting in a reclined position when your vehicle is in motion can be dangerous. Even if you buckle up, your safety belts cannot do their job when you are reclined like this. The shoulder belt cannot do its job. In a crash, you could go into it, receiving neck or other injuries. The lap belt cannot 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. Do not have the seatback reclined if your vehicle is moving. 1-12 Center Seat Rear Seats Rear Seat Pass-Through Door Your vehicle has a pass-through door that provides access to the trunk from the rear seats. See “Rear Seat Pass-Through Door” under Trunk on page 2-13. The vehicle may have a front center seat. This seat can be converted to a storage area by lowering the seatback. See Center Flex Storage Unit on page 2-56. 1-13 { 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. This vehicle has indicators as a reminder to buckle the safety belts. See Safety Belt Reminders on page 3-37 for additional information. Safety Belts Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone This section of the manual describes how to use safety belts properly. It also describes some things not to do with safety belts. { CAUTION: Do not let anyone ride where a safety belt cannot be worn properly. In a crash, if you or your passenger(s) are not wearing safety belts, the injuries can be much worse. You can hit things inside the vehicle harder or be ejected from the vehicle. You and your passenger(s) 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 passenger(s) are restrained properly too. 1-14 Why Safety Belts Work When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as it goes. In most states and in all Canadian provinces, the law requires wearing safety belts. Here is why: You never know if you will be in a crash. If you do have a crash, you do not know if it will be a serious one. A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be so serious that even buckled up, a person would not survive. But most crashes are in between. In many of them, people who buckle up can survive and sometimes walk away. Without safety belts, they could have been badly hurt or killed. After more than 40 years of safety belts in vehicles, the facts are clear. In most crashes buckling up does matter... a lot! Take the simplest vehicle. Suppose it is just a seat on wheels. 1-15 Put someone on it. Get it up to speed. Then stop the vehicle. The rider does not stop. 1-16 The person keeps going until stopped by something. In a real vehicle, it could be the windshield... or the instrument panel... 1-17 Questions and Answers About Safety Belts Q: Will I be trapped in the vehicle after a crash if I am wearing a safety belt? A: You could be — whether you are wearing a safety belt or not. But your chance of being conscious during and after an accident, so you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if you are belted. And you can unbuckle a safety belt, even if you are upside down. Q: If my vehicle has airbags, why should I have to wear safety belts? A: Airbags are supplemental systems only; so they work with safety belts — not instead of them. Whether or not an airbag is provided, all occupants still have to buckle up to get the most protection. That is true not only in frontal collisions, but especially in side and other collisions. 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 is why safety belts make such good sense. 1-18 Q: If I am 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 are in a crash — even one that is not your fault — you and your passenger(s) can be hurt. Being a good driver does not 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. How to Wear Safety Belts Properly This section 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 infants. If a child will be riding in the vehicle, see Older Children on page 1-35 or Infants and Young Children on page 1-39. Follow those rules for everyone’s protection. It is very important for all occupants to buckle up. Statistics show that unbelted people are hurt more often in crashes than those who are wearing safety belts. Occupants who are not buckled up can be thrown out of the vehicle in a crash. And they can strike others in the vehicle who are wearing safety belts. First, before you or your passenger(s) wear a safety belt, there is important information you should know. 1-19 If you slid under it, the belt would apply force on 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 shoulder belt locks if there is a sudden stop or crash. Sit up straight and always keep your feet on the ﬂoor in front of you. 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 would be less likely to slide under the lap belt. 1-20 Q: What is wrong with this? { 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 shoulder belt should ﬁt snugly against your body. A: The shoulder belt is too loose. It will not give as much protection this way. 1-21 Q: What is wrong with this? { CAUTION: You can be seriously hurt if your lap belt is too loose. In a crash, you could slide under the lap belt and apply force on your abdomen. This could cause serious or even fatal injuries. The lap belt should be worn low and snug on the hips, just touching the thighs. A: The lap belt is too loose. It will not give nearly as much protection this way. 1-22 Q: What is wrong with this? { CAUTION: You can be seriously injured if your belt is buckled in the wrong place like this. In a crash, the belt would go up over your abdomen. The belt forces would be there, not on the pelvic bones. This could cause serious internal injuries. Always buckle your belt into the buckle nearest you. A: The belt is buckled in the wrong buckle. 1-23 { CAUTION: You can be seriously injured if your belt goes over an armrest like this. The belt would be much too high. In a crash, you can slide under the belt. The belt force would then be applied on the abdomen, not on the pelvic bones, and that could cause serious or fatal injuries. Be sure the belt goes under the armrests. Q: What is wrong with this? A: The belt is over an armrest. 1-24 Q: What is wrong with this? { CAUTION: You can be seriously injured if you wear the shoulder belt under your arm. In a crash, your body would move too far forward, which would increase the chance of head and neck injury. Also, the belt would apply too much force to the ribs, which are not as strong as shoulder bones. You could also severely injure internal organs like your liver or spleen. The shoulder belt should go over the shoulder and across the chest. A: The shoulder belt is worn under the arm. It should be worn over the shoulder at all times. 1-25 { CAUTION: You can be seriously injured by not wearing the lap-shoulder belt properly. In a crash, you would not be restrained by the shoulder belt. Your body could move too far forward increasing the chance of head and neck injury. You might also slide under the lap belt. The belt force would then be applied right on the abdomen. That could cause serious or fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go over the shoulder and across the chest. Q: What is wrong with this? A: The belt is behind the body. 1-26 Q: What is wrong with this? { CAUTION: You can be seriously injured by a twisted belt. In a crash, you would not have the full width of the belt to spread impact forces. If a belt is twisted, make it straight so it can work properly, or ask your dealer/retailer to ﬁx it. A: The belt is twisted across the body. 1-27 Lap-Shoulder Belt All seating positions in the vehicle have a lap-shoulder except for the center front passenger position (if equipped), which has a lap belt. See Lap Belt on page 1-34 for more information. The following instructions explain how to wear a lap-shoulder belt properly. 1. Adjust the seat, if the seat is adjustable, so you can sit up straight. To see how, see “Seats” in the Index. 2. 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. If the shoulder portion of a passenger belt is pulled out all the way, the child restraint locking feature may be engaged. If this happens, just let the belt go back all the way and start again. Engaging the child restraint locking feature in the right front seating position may affect the passenger sensing system. See Passenger Sensing System on page 1-71 for more information. 1-28 3. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. If the latch plate will not go fully into the buckle, check if the correct buckle is being used. Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure. If the belt is not long enough, see Safety Belt Extender on page 1-35. Position the release button on the buckle so that the safety belt could be quickly unbuckled if necessary. 4. If equipped with a shoulder belt height adjuster, move it to the height that is right for you. See “Shoulder Belt Height Adjustment” later in this section for instructions on use and important safety information. 5. To make the lap part tight, pull up on the shoulder belt. It may be necessary to pull stitching on the safety belt through the latch plate to fully tighten the lap belt on smaller occupants. To unlatch the belt, push the button on the buckle. The belt should return to its stowed position. Slide the latch plate up the safety belt webbing when the safety belt is not in use. The latch plate should rest on the stitching near the guide loop on the side wall. Before a door is closed, be sure the safety belt is out of the way. If a door is slammed against a safety belt, damage can occur to both the belt and the vehicle. 1-29 Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster The vehicle has a shoulder belt height adjuster for the driver and right front passenger seating positions. Adjust the height so that the shoulder portion of the belt is centered on the shoulder. The belt should be away from the face and neck, but not falling off the shoulder. Improper shoulder belt height adjustment could reduce the effectiveness of the safety belt in a crash. Press the release button (A) and move the height adjuster to the desired position. The adjuster can be moved up by pushing up on the shoulder belt guide. After the adjuster is set to the desired position, try to move it down without pressing the release button to make sure it has locked into position. Safety Belt Pretensioners This vehicle has safety belt pretensioners for front outboard occupants. Although the safety belt pretensioners cannot be seen, they are part of the safety belt assembly. They can help tighten the safety belts during the early stages of a moderate to severe frontal or near frontal crash if the threshold conditions for pretensioner activation are met. And, if your vehicle has side impact airbags, safety belt pretensioners can help tighten the safety belts in a side crash. Pretensioners work only once. If the pretensioners activate in a crash, they will need to be replaced, and probably other new parts for the vehicle’s safety belt system. See Replacing Restraint System Parts After a Crash on page 1-79. Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides Rear shoulder belt comfort guides may provide added safety belt comfort for older children who have outgrown booster seats and for some adults. When installed on a shoulder belt, the comfort guide positions the shoulder belt away from the neck and head. 1-30 There is one guide for each outside passenger position in the rear seat. Here is how to install a comfort guide to the safety belt: 1. Remove the guide from its storage pocket on the rear side of the seatback. 2. Place the guide over the belt, and insert the two edges of the belt into the slots of the guide. 1-31 { CAUTION: A safety belt that is not properly worn may not provide the protection needed in a crash. The person wearing the belt could be seriously injured. 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. 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. 1-32 Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy Safety belts work for everyone, including pregnant women. Like all occupants, they are more likely to be seriously injured if they do not wear safety belts. 4. Buckle, position, and release the safety belt as described earlier in this section. Make sure that the shoulder belt crosses the shoulder. To remove and store the comfort guide, squeeze the belt edges together so that the safety belt can be removed from the guide. Slide the guide into its storage pocket on the side of the seatback. A pregnant woman should wear a lap-shoulder belt, and the lap portion should be worn as low as possible, below the rounding, throughout the pregnancy. The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the mother. When a safety belt is worn properly, it is more likely that the fetus will not be hurt in a crash. For pregnant women, as for anyone, the key to making safety belts effective is wearing them properly. 1-33 Lap Belt This part is only for the lap belt. To learn how to wear a lap-shoulder belt, see Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 1-28. You vehicle may have a center seating position. When you sit in the center front seating position, you have a lap safety belt, which has no retractor. To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as shown until the belt is snug. If the belt is not long enough, see Safety Belt Extender on page 1-35. Make sure the release button on the buckle is positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly if necessary. If you ﬁnd that the latch plate will not go fully into the buckle, see if you are using the correct buckle. Be sure that the latch plate clicks when inserted into the buckle. To make the belt longer, tilt the latch plate and pull it along the belt. Buckle, position and release it the same way as the lap part of a lap-shoulder belt. 1-34 Child Restraints Older Children Safety Belt Extender If the vehicle’s safety belt will fasten around you, you should use it. But if a safety belt is not long enough, your dealer/retailer will order you an extender. When you go in to order it, take the heaviest coat you will wear, so the extender will be long enough for you. To help avoid personal injury, do not let someone else use it, and use it only for the seat it is made to ﬁt. The extender has been designed for adults. Never use it for securing child seats. To wear it, attach it to the regular safety belt. For more information, see the instruction sheet that comes with the extender. Older children who have outgrown booster seats should wear the vehicle’s safety belts. 1-35 The manufacturer’s instructions that come with the booster seat, state the weight and height limitations for that booster. Use a booster seat with a lap-shoulder belt until the child passes the below ﬁt test: (cid:129) Sit all the way back on the seat. Do the knees bend at the seat edge? If yes, continue. If no, return to the booster seat. (cid:129) Buckle the lap-shoulder belt. Does the shoulder belt rest on the shoulder? If yes, continue. If no, try using the rear safety belt comfort guide. See “Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides” under Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 1-28 for more information. If the shoulder belt still does not rest on the shoulder, then return to the booster seat. (cid:129) Does the lap belt ﬁt low and snug on the hips, touching the thighs? If yes, continue. If no, return to the booster seat. (cid:129) Can proper safety belt ﬁt be maintained for length of trip? If yes, continue. If no, return to the booster seat. If you have the choice, a child should sit in a position with a lap-shoulder belt and get the additional restraint a shoulder belt can provide. Q: What is the proper way to wear safety belts? A: 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 ﬁt snugly below the hips, just touching the top of the thighs. This applies belt force to the child’s pelvic bones in a crash. It should never be worn over the abdomen, which could cause severe or even fatal internal injuries in a crash. Also see “Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides” under Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 1-28. According to accident statistics, children and infants 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. 1-36 { CAUTION: Never do this. Never allow two children to wear the same safety belt. The safety belt can not properly spread the impact forces. In a crash, the two children can be crushed together and seriously injured. A safety belt must be used by only one person at a time. 1-37 { CAUTION: Never do this. Never allow a child to wear the safety belt with the shoulder belt behind their back. A child can be seriously injured by not wearing the lap-shoulder belt properly. In a crash, the child would not be restrained by the shoulder belt. The child could move too far forward increasing the chance of head and neck injury. The child might also slide under the lap belt. The belt force would then be applied right on the abdomen. That could cause serious or fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go over the shoulder and across the chest. 1-38 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. 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. Every time infants and young children ride in vehicles, they should have the protection provided by appropriate child restraints. Children who are not restrained properly can strike other people, or can be thrown out of the vehicle. 1-39 { CAUTION: Never do this. Never hold an infant or a child while riding in a vehicle. Due to crash forces, an infant or a child will become so heavy it is not possible to hold it during a crash. For example, in a crash at only 25 mph (40 km/h), a 12 lb (5.5 kg) infant will suddenly become a 240 lb (110 kg) force on a person’s arms. An infant should be secured in an appropriate restraint. 1-40 { CAUTION: Never do this. Children who are up against, or very close to, any airbag when it inﬂates can be seriously injured or killed. Never put a rear-facing child restraint in the right front seat. Secure a rear-facing child restraint in a rear seat. It is also better to secure a forward-facing child restraint in a rear seat. If you must secure a forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat, always move the front passenger seat as far back as it will go. 1-41 { CAUTION: To reduce the risk of neck and head injury during a crash, infants need complete support. This is because an infant’s neck is not fully developed and its head weighs so much compared with the rest of its body. In a crash, an infant in a rear-facing child restraint 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 should always be secured in rear-facing child restraints. 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. 1-42 { CAUTION: 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. To reduce the risk of serious or fatal injuries during a crash, young children should always be secured in appropriate child restraints. Child Restraint Systems A rear-facing infant seat (A) provides restraint with the seating surface against the back of the infant. The harness system holds the infant in place and, in a crash, acts to keep the infant positioned in the restraint. A forward-facing child seat (B) provides restraint for the child’s body with the harness. 1-43 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. Secure the child restraint properly in the vehicle using the vehicle’s safety belt or LATCH system, following the instructions that came with that child restraint and 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, or by the LATCH system. See Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) on page 1-48 for more information. A child can be endangered in a crash if the child restraint is not properly secured in the vehicle. A booster seat (C-D) is a child restraint designed to improve the ﬁt of the vehicle’s safety belt system. A booster seat can also help a child to see out the window. 1-44 When securing an add-on child restraint, refer to the instructions that come with the restraint which may be on the restraint itself or in a booklet, or both, and to this manual. The child restraint instructions are important, so if they are not available, obtain a replacement copy from the manufacturer. 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 the vehicle — even when no child is in it. Securing the Child Within the Child Restraint { CAUTION: A child can be seriously injured or killed in a crash if the child is not properly secured in the child restraint. Secure the child properly following the instructions that came with that child restraint. 1-45 Where to Put the Restraint According to accident statistics, children and infants are safer when properly restrained in a child restraint system or infant restraint system secured in a rear seating position. We recommend that children and child restraints be secured in a rear seat, including: an infant or a child riding in a rear-facing child restraint; a child riding in a forward-facing child seat; an older child riding in a booster seat; and children, who are large enough, using safety belts. A label on your sun visor says, “Never put a rear-facing child seat in the front.” This is because the risk to the rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys. { CAUTION: A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag inﬂates. This is because the back of the rear-facing child restraint would be very close to the inﬂating airbag. A child in a forward-facing child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag inﬂates and the passenger seat is in a forward position. Even if the passenger sensing system has turned off the right front passenger frontal airbag, no system is fail-safe. No one can guarantee that an airbag will not deploy under some unusual circumstance, even though it is turned off. CAUTION: (Continued) 1-46 CAUTION: (Continued) { CAUTION: Secure rear-facing child restraints in a rear seat, even if the airbag is off. If you secure a forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat, always move the front passenger seat as far back as it will go. It is better to secure the child restraint in a rear seat. See Passenger Sensing System on page 1-71 for additional information. A child in a child restraint in the center front seat can be badly injured or killed by the frontal airbags if they inﬂate. Never secure a child restraint in the center front seat. It is always better to secure a child restraint in a rear seat. Do not use child restraints in the center front seat position. When securing a child restraint in a rear seating position, study the instructions that came with your child restraint to make sure it is compatible with this vehicle. Wherever a child restraint is installed, be sure to secure the child 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. 1-47 Lower Anchors Lower anchors (A) are metal bars built into the vehicle. There are two lower anchors for each LATCH seating position that will accommodate a child restraint with lower attachments (B). Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) The LATCH system holds a child restraint during driving or in a crash. This system is designed to make installation of a child restraint easier. The LATCH system uses anchors in the vehicle and attachments on the child restraint that are made for use with the LATCH system. Make sure that a LATCH-compatible child restraint is properly installed using the anchors, or use the vehicle’s safety belts to secure the restraint, following the instructions that came with that restraint, and also the instructions in this manual. When installing a child restraint with a top tether, you must also use either the lower anchors or the safety belts to properly secure the child restraint. A child restraint must never be installed using only the top tether and anchor. In order to use the LATCH system in your vehicle, you need a child restraint that has LATCH attachments. The child restraint manufacturer will provide you with instructions on how to use the child restraint and its attachments. The following explains how to attach a child restraint with these attachments in your vehicle. Not all vehicle seating positions or child restraints have lower anchors and attachments or top tether anchors and attachments. 1-48 Top Tether Anchor Your child restraint may have a single tether (A) or a dual tether (C). Either will have a single attachment (B) to secure the top tether to the anchor. Some child restraints that have a top tether are designed for use with or without the top tether being attached. Others require the top tether always to be attached. In Canada, the law requires that forward-facing child restraints have a top tether, and that the tether be attached. Be sure to read and follow the instructions for your child restraint. If the child restraint does not have a top tether, one can be obtained, in kit form, for many child restraints. Ask the child restraint manufacturer whether or not a kit is available. A top tether (A, C) anchors the top of the child restraint to the vehicle. A top tether anchor is built into the vehicle. The top tether attachment (B) on the child restraint connects to the top tether anchor in the vehicle in order to reduce the forward movement and rotation of the child restraint during driving or in a crash. 1-49 Lower Anchor and Top Tether Anchor Locations i (Top Tether Anchor): Seating positions with top tether anchors. j (Lower Anchor): Seating positions with two lower anchors. Rear Seat To assist you in locating the lower anchors, each seating position with lower anchors has two labels, near the crease between the seatback and the seat cushion. To assist you in locating the top tether anchors, the top tether anchor symbol is located on the cover. 1-50 The top tether anchors are located under the covers on the rear seatback ﬁller panel. Flip open the cover to access the anchors. Be sure to use an anchor located on the same side of the vehicle as the seating position where the child restraint will be placed. Do not secure a child restraint in a position without a top tether anchor if a national or local law requires that the top tether be attached, or if the instructions that come with the child restraint say that the top tether must be attached. Accident statistics show that children are safer if they are restrained in the rear rather than the front seat. See Where to Put the Restraint on page 1-46 for additional information. 1-51 Securing a Child Restraint Designed for the LATCH System { CAUTION: { CAUTION: If a LATCH-type child restraint is not attached to anchors, the child restraint will not be able to protect the child correctly. In a crash, the child could be seriously injured or killed. Install a LATCH-type child restraint properly using the anchors, or use the vehicle’s safety belts to secure the restraint, following the instructions that came with the child restraint and the instructions in this manual. Do not attach more than one child restraint to a single anchor. Attaching more than one child restraint to a single anchor could cause the anchor or attachment to come loose or even break during a crash. A child or others could be injured. To reduce the risk of serious or fatal injuries during a crash, attach only one child restraint per anchor. { CAUTION: Children can be seriously injured or strangled if a shoulder belt is wrapped around their neck and the safety belt continues to tighten. Buckle any unused safety belts behind the child restraint so children cannot reach them. Pull the shoulder belt all the way out of the retractor to set the lock, if your vehicle has one, after the child restraint has been installed. 1-52 Notice: Do not let the LATCH attachments rub against the vehicle’s safety belts. This may damage these parts. If necessary, move buckled safety belts to avoid rubbing the LATCH attachments. Do not fold the empty rear seat with a safety belt buckled. This could damage the safety belt or the seat. Unbuckle and return the safety belt to its stowed position, before folding the seat. 1. Attach and tighten the lower attachments to the lower anchors. If the child restraint does not have lower attachments or the desired seating position does not have lower anchors, secure the child restraint with the top tether and the safety belts. Refer to your child restraint manufacturer instructions and the instructions in this manual. 1.1. Find the lower anchors for the desired seating position. 1.2. Put the child restraint on the seat. 1.3. Attach and tighten the lower attachments on the child restraint to the lower anchors. 2. If the child restraint manufacturer recommends that the top tether be attached, attach and tighten the top tether to the top tether anchor, if equipped. Refer to the child restraint instructions and the following steps: 2.1. Find the top tether anchor. 2.2. Flip open the top tether anchor cover to expose the anchor. 2.3. Route, attach and tighten the top tether according to your child restraint instructions and the following instructions: If the position you are using does not have a headrest or head restraint and you are using a single tether, route the tether over the seatback. 1-53 If the position you are using has a ﬁxed headrest or head restraint and you are using a dual tether, route the tether around the headrest or head restraint. 3. Push and pull the child restraint in different directions to be sure it is secure. If the position you are using does not have a headrest or head restraint and you are using a dual tether, route the tether over the seatback. If the position you are using has a ﬁxed headrest or head restraint and you are using a single tether, route the tether over the headrest or head restraint. 1-54 Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear Seat Position When securing a child restraint in a rear seating position, study the instructions that came with the child restraint to make sure it is compatible with this vehicle. If the child restraint has the LATCH system, see Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) on page 1-48 for how and where to install the child restraint using LATCH. If a child restraint is secured in the vehicle using a safety belt and it uses a top tether, see Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) on page 1-48 for top tether anchor locations. Do not secure a child seat in a position without a top tether anchor if a national or local law requires that the top tether be anchored, or if the instructions that come with the child restraint say that the top strap must be anchored. In Canada, the law requires that forward-facing child restraints have a top tether, and that the tether be attached. If the child restraint does not have the LATCH system, you will be using the safety belt to secure the child restraint in this position. Be sure to follow the instructions that came with the child restraint. Secure the child in the child restraint when and as the instructions say. If more than one child restraint needs to be installed in the rear seat, be sure to read Where to Put the Restraint on page 1-46. 1. Put the child restraint on the seat. 2. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder portions of the vehicle’s safety belt through or around the restraint. The child restraint instructions will show you how. 1-55 3. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. Position the release button on the buckle so that the safety belt could be quickly unbuckled if necessary. 4. Pull the rest of the shoulder belt all the way out of the retractor to set the lock. 1-56 5. To tighten the belt, push down on the child restraint, pull the shoulder portion of the belt to tighten the lap portion of the belt and feed the shoulder belt back into the retractor. When installing a forward-facing child restraint, it may be helpful to use your knee to push down on the child restraint as you tighten the belt. 6. If the child restraint has a top tether, follow the child restraint manufacturer’s instructions regarding the use of the top tether. See Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) on page 1-48 for more information. 7. Push and pull the child restraint in different directions to be sure it is secure. To remove the child restraint, unbuckle the vehicle safety belt and let it return to the stowed position. If the top tether is attached to a top tether anchor, disconnect it. 1-57 Securing a Child Restraint in the Center Front Seat Position { CAUTION: A child in a child restraint in the center front seat can be badly injured or killed by the frontal airbags if they inﬂate. Never secure a child restraint in the center front seat. It is always better to secure a child restraint in a rear seat. Do not use child restraints in the center front seat position. Securing a Child Restraint in the Right Front Seat Position This vehicle has airbags. A rear seat is a safer place to secure a forward-facing child restraint. See Where to Put the Restraint on page 1-46. In addition, the vehicle has a passenger sensing system which is designed to turn off the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag under certain conditions. See Passenger Sensing System on page 1-71 and Passenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 3-39 for more information, including important safety information. A label on the sun visor says, “Never put a rear-facing child seat in the front.” This is because the risk to the rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys. 1-58 { CAUTION: A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag inﬂates. This is because the back of the rear-facing child restraint would be very close to the inﬂating airbag. A child in a forward-facing child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag inﬂates and the passenger seat is in a forward position. Even if the passenger sensing system has turned off the right front passenger frontal airbag, no system is fail-safe. No one can guarantee that an airbag will not deploy under some unusual circumstance, even though it is turned off. CAUTION: (Continued) CAUTION: (Continued) Secure rear-facing child restraints in a rear seat, even if the airbag is off. If you secure a forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat, always move the front passenger seat as far back as it will go. It is better to secure the child restraint in a rear seat. See Passenger Sensing System on page 1-71 for additional information. If the child restraint has the LATCH system, see Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) on page 1-48 for how and where to install the child restraint using LATCH. If a child restraint is secured using a safety belt and it uses a top tether, see Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) on page 1-48 for top tether anchor locations. Do not secure a child seat in a position without a top tether anchor if a national or local law requires that the top tether be anchored, or if the instructions that come with the child restraint say that the top strap must be anchored. 1-59 In Canada, the law requires that forward-facing child restraints have a top tether, and that the tether be attached. You will be using the lap-shoulder belt to secure the child restraint in this position. Follow the instructions that came with the child restraint. 1. Move the seat as far back as it will go before securing the forward-facing child restraint. When the passenger sensing system has turned off the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag, the off indicator on the passenger airbag status indicator should light and stay lit when you start the vehicle. See Passenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 3-39. 2. Put the child restraint on the seat. 3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder portions of the vehicle’s safety belt through or around the restraint. The child restraint instructions will show you how. 1-60 4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. Position the release button on the buckle so that the safety belt could be quickly unbuckled if necessary. 5. Pull the rest of the shoulder belt all the way out of the retractor to set the lock. 6. To tighten the belt, push down on the child restraint, pull the shoulder portion of the belt to tighten the lap portion of the belt and feed the shoulder belt back into the retractor. When installing a forward-facing child restraint, it may be helpful to use your knee to push down on the child restraint as you tighten the belt. 7. Push and pull the child restraint in different directions to be sure it is secure. If the airbags are off, the off indicator in the passenger airbag status indicator will come on and stay on when the vehicle is started. 1-61 If a child restraint has been installed and the on indicator is lit, see “If the On Indicator is Lit for a Child Restraint” under Passenger Sensing System on page 1-71 for more information. To remove the child restraint, unbuckle the vehicle safety belt and let it return to the stowed position. Airbag System The vehicle has the following airbags: (cid:129) A frontal airbag for the driver. (cid:129) A frontal airbag for the right front passenger. (cid:129) A seat-mounted side impact airbag for the driver. (cid:129) A seat-mounted side impact airbag for the right front passenger. (cid:129) A roof-rail airbag for the driver and the passenger seated directly behind the driver. (cid:129) A roof-rail airbag for the right front passenger and the passenger seated directly behind the right front passenger. All of the airbags in your vehicle will have the word AIRBAG embossed in the trim or on an attached label near the deployment opening. For frontal airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear on the middle part of the steering wheel for the driver and on the instrument panel for the right front passenger. With seat-mounted side impact airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear on the side of the seatback closest to the door. With roof-rail airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear along the headliner or trim. Airbags are designed to supplement the protection provided by safety belts. Even though today’s airbags are also designed to help reduce the risk of injury from the force of an inﬂating bag, all airbags must inﬂate very quickly to do their job. 1-62 Here are the most important things to know about the airbag system: { CAUTION: { CAUTION: You can be severely injured or killed in a crash if you are not wearing your safety belt — even if you have airbags. Airbags are designed to work with safety belts, but do not replace them. Also, airbags are not designed to deploy in every crash. In some crashes safety belts are your only restraint. See When Should an Airbag Inﬂate? on page 1-67. Wearing your safety belt during a crash helps reduce your chance of hitting things inside the vehicle or being ejected from it. Airbags are “supplemental restraints” to the safety belts. Everyone in your vehicle should wear a safety belt properly — whether or not there is an airbag for that person. Airbags inﬂate with great force, faster than the blink of an eye. Anyone who is up against, or very close to, any airbag when it inﬂates can be seriously injured or killed. Do not sit unnecessarily close to the airbag, as you would be if you were sitting on the edge of your seat or leaning forward. Safety belts help keep you in position before and during a crash. Always wear your safety belt, even with airbags. The driver should sit as far back as possible while still maintaining control of the vehicle. Occupants should not lean on or sleep against the door or side windows in seating positions with seat-mounted side impact airbags and/or roof-rail airbags. 1-63 The system checks the airbag electrical system for malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical problem. See Airbag Readiness Light on page 3-38 for more information. Where Are the Airbags? { CAUTION: Children who are up against, or very close to, any airbag when it inﬂates 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. Always secure children properly in your vehicle. To read how, see Older Children on page 1-35 or Infants and Young Children on page 1-39. There is an airbag readiness light on the instrument panel cluster, which shows the airbag symbol. 1-64 The driver frontal airbag is in the middle of the steering wheel. The right front passenger frontal airbag is in the instrument panel on the passenger side. Driver Side shown, Passenger Side similar The seat-mounted side impact airbags for the driver and right front passenger are in the side of the seatbacks closest to the door. 1-65 { CAUTION: If something is between an occupant and an airbag, the airbag might not inﬂate properly or it might force the object into that person causing severe injury or even death. The path of an inﬂating airbag must be kept clear. Do not put anything between an occupant and an airbag, and do not attach or put anything on the steering wheel hub or on or near any other airbag covering. Do not use seat accessories that block the inﬂation path of a seat-mounted side impact airbag. Never secure anything to the roof of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags by routing a rope or tie down through any door or window opening. If you do, the path of an inﬂating roof-rail airbag will be blocked. Driver Side shown, Passenger Side similar The roof-rail airbags for the driver, right front passenger, and second row outboard passengers are in the ceiling above the side windows. 1-66 When Should an Airbag Inﬂate? Frontal airbags are designed to inﬂate in moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal crashes to help reduce the potential for severe injuries mainly to the driver’s or right front passenger’s head and chest. However, they are only designed to inﬂate if the impact exceeds a predetermined deployment threshold. Deployment thresholds are used to predict how severe a crash is likely to be in time for the airbags to inﬂate and help restrain the occupants. Whether your frontal airbags will or should deploy is not based on how fast your vehicle is traveling. It depends largely on what you hit, the direction of the impact, and how quickly your vehicle slows down. Frontal airbags may inﬂate at different crash speeds. For example: If the vehicle hits a stationary object, the airbags could inﬂate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle hits a moving object. If the vehicle hits an object that deforms, the airbags could inﬂate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle hits an object that does not deform. If the vehicle hits a narrow object (like a pole), the airbags could inﬂate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle hits a wide object (like a wall). If the vehicle goes into an object at an angle, the airbags could inﬂate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle goes straight into the object. Thresholds can also vary with speciﬁc vehicle design. Frontal airbags are not intended to inﬂate during vehicle rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts. Your vehicle has a seat position sensor which enables the sensing system to monitor the position of the right front passenger’s seat. The passenger seat position sensor and passenger safety belt buckle switch provide information that is used to determine if the airbags should deploy at a reduced level or at full deployment. In addition, your vehicle has a dual-stage driver airbag. Dual-stage airbags adjust the restraint according to crash severity. Your vehicle has electronic frontal sensors, which help the sensing system distinguish between a moderate frontal impact and a more severe frontal impact. For moderate frontal impacts, dual-stage airbags inﬂate at a level less than full deployment. For more severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs. 1-67 (cid:129) (cid:129) (cid:129) (cid:129) Your vehicle also has a dual-depth passenger airbag that adjusts the restraint according to crash severity, seat location, and safety belt status using electronic frontal sensor(s) and other special sensors which enable the sensing system to monitor the position of the front passenger seat. The passenger airbag inﬂates to a reduced depth when the passenger seat is in a forward position. For more rearward front seating positions, the passenger airbag may inﬂate to an increased depth (a full deployment), based on safety belt status and the crash severity measured early in the event. (Always wear your safety belt, even with frontal airbags.) Your vehicle has seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags. See Airbag System on page 1-62. Seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags are intended to inﬂate in moderate to severe side crashes. Seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags will inﬂate if the crash severity is above the system’s designed threshold level. The threshold level can vary with speciﬁc vehicle design. Seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags are not intended to inﬂate in frontal impacts, near-frontal impacts, rollovers, or rear impacts. A seat-mounted side impact airbag is intended to deploy on the side of the vehicle that is struck. Both roof-rail airbags will deploy when either side of the vehicle is struck. In any particular crash, no one can say whether an airbag should have inﬂated simply because of the damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were. For frontal airbags, inﬂation is determined by what the vehicle hits, the angle of the impact, and how quickly the vehicle slows down. For seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags, deployment is determined by the location and severity of the side impact. 1-68 What Makes an Airbag Inﬂate? In a deployment event, the sensing system sends an electrical signal triggering a release of gas from the inﬂator. Gas from the inﬂator ﬁlls the airbag causing the bag to break out of the cover and deploy. The inﬂator, the airbag, and related hardware are all part of the airbag module. Frontal airbag modules are located inside the steering wheel and instrument panel. For vehicles with seat-mounted side impact airbags, there are airbag modules in the side of the front seatbacks closest to the door. For vehicles with roof-rail airbags, there are airbag modules in the ceiling of the vehicle, near the side windows that have occupant seating positions. How Does an Airbag Restrain? In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions, even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside of the vehicle. Airbags supplement the protection provided by safety belts. Frontal airbags distribute the force of the impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper body, stopping the occupant more gradually. Seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags distribute the force of the impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper body. But airbags would not help in many types of collisions, primarily because the occupant’s motion is not toward those airbags. See When Should an Airbag Inﬂate? on page 1-67 for more information. Airbags should never be regarded as anything more than a supplement to safety belts. 1-69 What Will You See After an Airbag Inﬂates? After the frontal airbags and seat-mounted side impact airbags inﬂate, they quickly deﬂate, so quickly that some people may not even realize an airbag inﬂated. Roof-rail airbags may still be at least partially inﬂated for some time after they deploy. Some components of the airbag module may be hot for several minutes. For location of the airbag modules, see What Makes an Airbag Inﬂate? on page 1-69. The parts of the airbag that come into contact with you may be warm, but not too hot to touch. There may be some smoke and dust coming from the vents in the deﬂated airbags. Airbag inﬂation does not prevent the driver from seeing out of the windshield or being able to steer the vehicle, nor does it prevent people from leaving the vehicle. { CAUTION: When an airbag inﬂates, there may be dust in the air. This dust could cause breathing problems for people with a history of asthma or other breathing trouble. To avoid this, everyone in the vehicle should get out as soon as it is safe to do so. If you have breathing problems but cannot get out of the vehicle after an airbag inﬂates, then get fresh air by opening a window or a door. If you experience breathing problems following an airbag deployment, you should seek medical attention. The vehicle has a feature that may automatically unlock the doors, turn the interior lamps on, and turn the hazard warning ﬂashers on when the airbags inﬂate. You can lock the doors, turn the interior lamps off, and turn the hazard warning ﬂashers off by using the controls for those features. 1-70 In many crashes severe enough to inﬂate the airbag, windshields are broken by vehicle deformation. Additional windshield breakage may also occur from the right front passenger airbag. (cid:129) Airbags are designed to inﬂate only once. After an airbag inﬂates, you will need some new parts for the airbag system. If you do not get them, the airbag system will not be there to help protect you in another crash. A new system will include airbag modules and possibly other parts. The service manual for your vehicle covers the need to replace other parts. The vehicle has a crash sensing and diagnostic module which records information after a crash. See Vehicle Data Recording and Privacy on page 7-17 and Event Data Recorders on page 7-17. Let only qualiﬁed technicians work on the airbag systems. Improper service can mean that an airbag system will not work properly. See your dealer/retailer for service. Passenger Sensing System The vehicle has a passenger sensing system for the right front passenger position. The passenger airbag status indicator will be visible on the overhead console when the vehicle is started. United States Canada The words ON and OFF, or the symbol for on and off, are visible during the system check. If you are using remote start, if equipped, to start the vehicle from a distance, you may not see the system check. When the system check is complete, either the word ON or OFF, or the symbol for on or off, will be visible. See Passenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 3-39. 1-71 (cid:129) (cid:129) The passenger sensing system turns off the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag under certain conditions. The driver airbags and the roof-rail airbags are not affected by the passenger sensing system. The passenger sensing system works with sensors that are part of the right front passenger seat. The sensors are designed to detect the presence of a properly-seated occupant and determine if the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag should be enabled (may inﬂate) or not. According to accident statistics, children are safer when properly secured in a rear seat in the correct child restraint for their weight and size. We recommend that children be secured in a rear seat, including: an infant or a child riding in a rear-facing child restraint; a child riding in a forward-facing child seat; an older child riding in a booster seat; and children, who are large enough, using safety belts. A label on the sun visor says, “Never put a rear-facing child seat in the front.” This is because the risk to the rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys. 1-72 { CAUTION: A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag inﬂates. This is because the back of the rear-facing child restraint would be very close to the inﬂating airbag. A child in a forward-facing child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag inﬂates and the passenger seat is in a forward position. Even if the passenger sensing system has turned off the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag (if equipped), no system is fail-safe. No one can guarantee that an airbag will not deploy under some unusual circumstance, even though the airbag(s) are off. Secure rear-facing child restraints in a rear seat, even if the airbag(s) are off. If you secure a forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat, always move the front passenger seat as far back as it will go. It is better to secure the child restraint in a rear seat. The passenger sensing system is designed to turn off the right front passenger airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag if: The right front passenger seat is unoccupied. The system determines that an infant is present in a rear-facing infant seat. The system determines that a small child is present in a child restraint. The system determines that a small child is present in a booster seat. (cid:129) A right front passenger takes his/her weight off of the seat for a period of time. The right front passenger seat is occupied by a smaller person, such as a child who has outgrown child restraints. (cid:129) Or, if there is a critical problem with the airbag system or the passenger sensing system. When the passenger sensing system has turned off the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag, the off indicator will light and stay lit to remind you that the airbags are off. See Passenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 3-39. The passenger sensing system is designed to turn on (may inﬂate) the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag anytime the system senses that a person of adult size is sitting properly in the right front passenger seat. When the passenger sensing system has allowed the airbags to be enabled, the on indicator will light and stay lit to remind you that the airbags are active. For some children who have outgrown child restraints and for very small adults, the passenger sensing system may or may not turn off the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag, depending upon the person’s seating posture and body build. Everyone in the vehicle who has outgrown child restraints should wear a safety belt properly — whether or not there is an airbag for that person. { CAUTION: If the airbag readiness light ever comes on and stays on, it means that something may be wrong with the airbag system. To help avoid injury to yourself or others, have the vehicle serviced right away. See Airbag Readiness Light on page 3-38 for more information, including important safety information. 1-73 (cid:129) (cid:129) (cid:129) (cid:129) (cid:129) If the On Indicator is Lit for a Child Restraint If a child restraint has been installed and the on indicator is lit: 1. Turn the vehicle off. 2. Remove the child restraint from the vehicle. 3. Remove any additional items from the seat such as blankets, cushions, seat covers, seat heaters, or seat massagers. 4. Reinstall the child restraint following the directions provided by the child restraint manufacturer and refer to Securing a Child Restraint in the Right Front Seat Position on page 1-58. 5. If, after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting the vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, turn the vehicle off. Then slightly recline the vehicle seatback and adjust the seat cushion, if adjustable, to make sure that the vehicle seatback is not pushing the child restraint into the seat cushion. Also make sure the child restraint is not trapped under the vehicle head restraint. If this happens, adjust the head restraint. See Head Restraints on page 1-2. 6. Restart the vehicle. If the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in the child restraint in a rear seat position in the vehicle, and check with your dealer/retailer. 1-74 If the Off Indicator is Lit for an Adult-Size Occupant If this happens, use the following steps to allow the system to detect that person and enable the right front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side impact airbag: 1. Turn the vehicle off. 2. Remove any additional material from the seat, such as blankets, cushions, seat covers, seat heaters, or seat massagers. 3. Place the seatback in the fully upright position. 4. Have the person sit upright in the seat, centered on the seat cushion, with legs comfortably extended. 5. Restart the vehicle and have the person remain in this position for two to three minutes after the on indicator is lit. If a person of adult-size is sitting in the right front passenger seat, but the off indicator is lit, it could be because that person is not sitting properly in the seat. 1-75 Additional Factors Affecting System Operation Safety belts help keep the passenger in position on the seat during vehicle maneuvers and braking, which helps the passenger sensing system maintain the passenger airbag status. See “Safety Belts” and “Child Restraints” in the Index for additional information about the importance of proper restraint use. A thick layer of additional material, such as a blanket or cushion, or aftermarket equipment such as seat covers, seat heaters, and seat massagers can affect how well the passenger sensing system operates. We recommend that you not use seat covers or other aftermarket equipment except when approved by GM for your speciﬁc vehicle. See Adding Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle on page 1-77 for more information about modiﬁcations that can affect how the system operates. { CAUTION: Stowing of articles under the passenger seat or between the passenger seat cushion and seatback may interfere with the proper operation of the passenger sensing system. 1-76 Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle Airbags affect how the vehicle should be serviced. There are parts of the airbag system in several places around the vehicle. Your dealer/retailer and the service manual have information about servicing the vehicle and the airbag system. To purchase a service manual, see Service Publications Ordering Information on page 7-16. { CAUTION: For up to 10 seconds after the ignition is turned off and the battery is disconnected, an airbag can still inﬂate during improper service. You can be injured if you are close to an airbag when it inﬂates. Avoid yellow connectors. They are probably part of the airbag system. Be sure to follow proper service procedures, and make sure the person performing work for you is qualiﬁed to do so. Adding Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle Q: Is there anything I might add to or change about the vehicle that could keep the airbags from working properly? A: Yes. If you add things that change your vehicle’s frame, bumper system, height, front end or side sheet metal, they may keep the airbag system from working properly. Changing or moving any parts of the front seats, safety belts, the airbag sensing and diagnostic module, steering wheel, instrument panel, roof-rail airbag modules, ceiling headliner or pillar garnish trim, overhead console, front sensors, side impact sensors, or airbag wiring can affect the operation of the airbag system.

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2009 Buick Lucerne Owners Manual