Oldsmobile Aurora (2001 year). Manual - part 3

1-31

1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.

Don’t let it get twisted.

The shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt across
you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt go back
slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt across you
more slowly.

2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.

If the belt stops before it reaches the buckle, tilt the
latch plate and keep pulling until you can buckle it.

Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.

If the belt is not long enough, see “Safety Belt
Extender” at the end of this section. Make sure the
release button on the buckle is positioned so you
would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly if
you ever had to.

1-32

3. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle

end of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder part.

The lap part of the belt should be worn low and snug on
the hips, just touching the thighs. In a crash, this applies
force to the strong pelvic bones. And you’d be less likely
to slide under the lap belt. If you slid under it, the belt
would apply force at your abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go
over the shoulder and across the chest. These parts of the
body are best able to take belt restraining forces.

1-33

The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop or a crash,
or if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.

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 against your body.

To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle.

1-34

Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for
Children and Small Adults

Rear shoulder belt comfort guides will provide added
safety belt comfort for older children who have
outgrown booster seats and for small adults. When
installed on a shoulder belt, the comfort guide better
positions the belt away from the neck and head.

There is one guide for each outside passenger position in
the rear seat. To provide added safety belt comfort for
children who have outgrown child restraints and for
smaller adults, the comfort guides may be installed on
the shoulder belts. Here’s how to install a comfort guide
and use the safety belt:

1. Remove the guide from its storage pocket on the side

of the seatback.

1-35

2. Slide the guide under and past the belt. The elastic

cord must be under the belt. Then, place the guide
over the belt, and insert the two edges of the belt into
the slots of the guide.

3. Be sure that the belt is not twisted and it lies flat. 

The elastic cord must be under the belt and the guide
on top.

1-36

4. Buckle, position and release the safety belt as

described in “Rear Seat Passenger Positions” earlier
in this section. Make sure that the shoulder belt
crosses the shoulder.

To remove and store the comfort guides, squeeze the
belt edges together so that you can take them out from
the guides. Slide the guide into its storage pocket on the
side of the seatback.

Center Passenger Position

1-37

Lap Belt

When you sit in the center seating position, you will
have either a lap

-

only belt or a lap

-

shoulder belt. 

If the center rear seat position has a lap

-

only belt with

no retractor, this part will tell you how to use the lap 
belt properly. If the center rear seat position has a
lap

-

shoulder belt with a retractor, see the part of 

this manual called “Rear Seat Passenger Positions
Lap

-

Shoulder Belt” for instructions on how to 

properly wear the lap

-

shoulder belt.

To make the lap belt longer, tilt the latch plate and 
pull it along the belt.

1-38

To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as shown until
the belt is snug.

Buckle, position and release it the same way as the lap
part of a lap

-

shoulder belt. If the belt isn’t long enough,

see “Safety Belt Extender” at the end of this section.

Make sure the release button on the buckle is positioned
so you would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly
if you ever had to.

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.

Infants and Young Children

Every time infants and young children ride in vehicles,
they should have the protection provided by the
appropriate restraint. Young children should not use 
the vehicle’s safety belts, unless there is no other choice.

1-39

CAUTION:

People should never hold a baby in their arms
while riding in a vehicle. A baby doesn’t weigh
much 

--

 until a crash. During a crash a baby will

become so heavy it is not possible to hold it.

CAUTION: (Continued)

CAUTION: (Continued)

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.

1-40

CAUTION:

Children who are up against, or very close to, any
air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. Air bags plus lap

-

shoulder belts offer

outstanding protection for adults and older
children, but not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system nor its air
bag 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?

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.

1-41

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 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’s unprotected by any
bony structure. This alone could cause serious or
fatal injuries. Young children always should be
secured in appropriate child restraints.

1-42

Restraint Systems for Children

An infant car bed (A), a special bed made for use in a
motor vehicle, is an infant restraint system designed to
restrain or position a child on a continuous flat surface.
Make sure that the infant’s head rests toward the center
of the vehicle.

A rear

-

facing infant seat (B) 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.

1-43

A forward

-

facing child seat (C

-

E) provides restraint for

the child’s body with the harness and also sometimes
with surfaces such as T

-

shaped or shelf

-

like shields.

A booster seat (F

-

G) is a child restraint designed to

improve the fit of the vehicle’s safety belt system. Some
booster seats have a shoulder belt positioner, and some
high

-

back booster seats have a five

-

point harness. A

booster seat can also help a child to see out the window.

1-44

Q:

How do child restraints work?

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.

For many years, add

-

on child restraints have used

the adult belt system in the vehicle. To help reduce
the chance of injury, the child also has to be
secured within the restraint. The vehicle’s belt
system secures the add

-

on child restraint in the

vehicle, and the add

-

on child restraint’s harness

system holds the child in place within the restraint.

One system, the three

-

point harness, has straps that

come down over each of the infant’s shoulders and
buckle together at the crotch. The five

-

point

harness system has two shoulder straps, two hip
straps and a crotch strap. A shield may take the
place of hip straps. A T

-

shaped shield has shoulder

straps that are attached to a flat pad which rests low
against the child’s body. A shelf

-

 or armrest

-

type

shield has straps that are attached to a wide,
shelf

-

like shield that swings up or to the side.

When choosing a 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
find these instructions on the restraint itself or in a
booklet, or both. These restraints use the belt system in
your vehicle, but the child also has to be secured within
the restraint to help reduce the chance of personal injury.
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.

1-45

Where to Put the Restraint

Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear rather than the front seat.
General Motors, therefore, recommends that child
restraints be secured in the rear seat including an infant
riding in a rear

-

facing infant seat, a child riding in a

forward

-

facing child seat and an older child riding in a

booster seat. Never put a rear

-

facing child restraint in

the front passenger seat. Here’s why:

CAUTION:

A child in a rear

-

facing child restraint can be

seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s air bag inflates. This is because the
back of the rear

-

facing child restraint would be

very close to the inflating air bag. Always secure
a rear

-

facing child restraint in a rear seat.

You may secure a forward

-

facing child restraint

in the right front seat, but before you do, always
move the front passenger seat as far back as it
will go. It’s better to secure the child restraint in
a rear seat.

Wherever you install it, 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.

Top Strap

Some child restraints have a top strap, or “top tether.” 
It can help restrain the child restraint during a collision.
For it to work, a top strap must be properly anchored 
to the vehicle.

If the child restraint does not have a top strap, one can
be obtained, in kit form, for many child restraints. 
Ask the child restraint manufacturer whether or not a kit
is available.

1-46

In Canada, the law requires that forward

-

facing child

restraints have a top strap, and that the strap be
anchored. In the United States, some child restraints also
have a top strap. If your child restraint has a top strap, it
should be anchored.

Your vehicle has top strap anchors already installed for
the rear seating positions. You’ll find them behind the
rear seat on the filler panel.

In order to get to a bracket, you’ll have to open the 
trim cover.