Knowing Your Vehicle Belts
20
Review your vehicle owner’s manual for vehicle seat belt use with child
restraints. This is your best source for information concerning your
vehicle.
Not all vehicle belts will work with this child restraint. This child re-
straint must be tightly locked in place at all times. You must determine
if your vehicle’s belts are compatible with this child restraint.
Vehicle Belts
• Automatic/Passive vehicle seat belts
You
MUST
have a lap belt to install any child
restraint. An automatic (passive) shoulder belt may
or may not have a separate lap belt.
• Do not use with inflatable seat belts
You may need to move the child restraint to another seating location or
use LATCH belts only.
•
Vehicle belts in center of the door or side panel
You must move the child restraint to another seating location.
•
Vehicle belts that are in front of the seat
bight
You may need to move the child restraint to another
seating location.
•
ELR (Emergency Locking Retractor) vehicle belts
These belts only lock in a sudden stop or crash, and do not properly
secure a child restraint alone.
To determine if you have this type of belt
, gently pull the belt all the
way out of the retractor (spool), let it return several inches, then pull
on it again. If it moves freely, it is an ELR belt. If it is
locked and will not allow any more belt to come out,
it is a switchable retractor.
If you have an ELR lap and shoulder belt, review the
“Vehicle Latch Plate” section on page 20 to see if
you need a locking clip.
WARNING:
ELR lap-only belts MUST NOT be used with this
child restraint.
19
• Switchable Retractor
These belts switch from ELR to ALR (Automatic Locking Retractor). You
MUST
have the vehicle belts in the locking mode to use them.
With a switchable retractor, pull the shoulder belt all the way out to
switch the retractor into the ALR mode before tightening.
Feed the slack back into the retractor while tightening.
• ALR (Automatic Locking Retractor)
These belts lock after pulling the webbing out and letting the belt go
back into the retractor an inch or two.
With an ALR belt, pull the belt all the way out before threading through
the child restraint.
Vehicle Latch Plates
• Check Latch Plates
Grasp the tongue portion of the latch
plate (the part that goes inside the
buckle) and pull straight out, in line
with the lap belt.
If the latch plate does not slide up
and down the vehicle belt, you have
a locking latch plate. You should not
need to use a locking clip.
Check your vehicle owner’s manual to determine the best way to lock
a child restraint in place and wether the latch plate or retractor will
accomplish this. If the latch plate slides up and down on the belt, and
you have an ELR retractor, you
MUST
use a locking clip to install the
child restraint. See pages 31-32.
You may not need to use the locking clip with a switchable or ALR
retractor.
Locking Latch
Plate
Sliding Latch
Plate
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