Table of Contents
Advertisement
Child
Safety
Important
things
to
know
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision.
The physical principles of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash apply also to chi ldren
~
page 141, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts?.
But unlike adult s and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not
fu lly developed . In many respects children are
at greater risk of serious injury in crashes than
adults.
Because children's bodies are not fu lly devel-
oped, they require restraint systems especial-
ly designed for their size, weight, and body
structure. Many countries and all states of the
United States and provinces of Canada have
laws requ iring the use of approved child re-
straint systems for infants and small children.
In a fronta l crash at a speed of 20 -35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infa nt w ill be more than 20 t imes the
weight of the child . This means the weight of
the child would suddenly be more than
260 pounds (120 kg). Under these conditions,
on ly an appropr iat e chi ld restraint properly
used can reduce the risk of serious injury.
Child restra ints, li ke adult safety belts, must
be used properly to be effective. Used improp -
erly, they can increase the risk of serious in-
jury in an accident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacture r's
instr uctions in order to be sure the seat is
right fo r your child's size ~
page 179, Impor-
tant safety instructions for using child safety
seats.
Please be sure to read and heed all of
the impo rtant informat ion and WARNINGS
about child safety, Advanced Airbags, and the
installation of child rest raints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad-
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they
wo rk when infants and children in child re-
Child Sa f et y
17 5
stra ints are on the front passenger seat. Be-
cause of the large amount of important infor-
mation, we cannot repeat it all here. We urge
you to read the detailed information in th is
owner's manua l about airbags and the Ad-
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very important information about transport-
ing children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure t o heed the WARNI NGS - t hey
are ext remely importa nt f or your safety and
the safety of you r passengers, especially in-
f ants and small chi ldren .
.A,
WARNING
- Accident statistics have shown that chil -
dren are generally safer in the rear seat
area than in the front seating position.
Always restrain any child age 12 and un-
der in the rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially chil-
dren must be restrai ned properly when-
ever riding in a vehicle . An unrest rained
or improperly restrained chi ld could be
inj ured by str iki ng the interio r or by be-
ing ejected from the vehicle during a
sudden maneuver or impact . An un re-
strained or improper ly restrai ned child is
also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- A suitable chi ld restraint properly instal -
led and used at one of the rear seat ing
positions provides the highest degree of
protection for infants and small children
in most accident situations.
A
WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even
with Advanced Airbags can be seriously in-
ju red or even killed when an air bag in-
fla t es. A child in a rearwar d-fac ing child
safety seat installed on t he front passen-
ger seat will be seriously injure d and can
be killed if the front airbag inflates .
- The infla t ing air bag will hit t he child
safety seat or infan t carrie r wi t h great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, or door .
•
•
Advertisement
Table of Contents
