Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs. and
80 lbs. (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/1 .45 meters) tall.
Fig. 186 Rear seat : child prope rly restrained i n a boos-
te r seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit
most children until they are at least 4
ft. 9 in.
(57 inches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about
80 lbs. (36 kg). Booster sea t s raise these chil-
dren up so that the safety belt will pass prop-
erly over the stronger parts of their bodies
and the safety belt can help protect them in a
crash.
.,. Do not use the conve rtib le locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt t o re-
strain a child on a booster seat .
.. Always position the shou lder portion of the
safety belt midway over the child's shoulder.
If you must transport an older child in a
booster seat on the front passenger seat,
you can use the safety belt he ight adjust-
ment to help adjust the shoulder portion
properly .
.. Always make sure t ha t the shoulder port ion
of the safety belt neve r rests aga inst or
across the child's neck .
.. Always make sure that the child can proper-
ly wear the lap portion of the belt low across
the thighs or pelvis and
never over the
stomac h or abdomen.
Children up to about 40 lbs. (18 kg) are best
protected in child safety seats designed for
their age and weight. Experts say that the
skeletal structure, particularly the pelvis, of
these children is not fully developed, and they
Child S a f ety 189
must not use the vehicle safety belts without
a suitab le child restraint.
Children who a re at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in-
ches/1.45 mete rs) tall can gene ral ly use the
vehicle 's three point lap and shoulder belts .
Never use the lap belt portion of the vehicle's
safety belt alone to restra in any ch ild, regard-
less of how big the chi ld is. Always remember
that children do not have the pronounced pel-
vic structure required for the prope r funct io n
of lap belt portion of the vehicle's three point
lap and shou lder belts . The child's safety ab-
solutely requires that a lap belt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as
poss ible around the pelvis. Never let the lap
belt portion of t he safety belt pass over the
child's stomach or abdomen.
It is usually best to put these chi ldren in ap-
propr iate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicable safety standards.
Booster seats raise the sea ting pos it ion of the
child and repos it io n bo t h the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass
ac ross the child's body in the right places. The
routing of the belt over the child's body is very
important for the child's protection, whether
or not a booster seat is used. Children age 12
and under must always ride in the rear seat .
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink
of an eye and with considerable force. In order
to do its job, the a irbag needs room to inflate
so that it will be there to protect the occupant
as the occupant moves forward into the a ir-
bag.
A veh icle occupant who is out of position and
too close to the airbag gets in the way of an
inflating airbag . When an occupant is too
close, he or s he will be st ruck violently and
will receive serious or possibly even fatal in-
jury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that all veh icle occupants, espec ial-
ly any children, who must be in the front seat
because of exceptiona l circumstances, be
properly restr a ined and as fa r away from the
airbag as possible. By keeping room be tween ..,.
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