Get Seating and Safety Restraints -> SAFETY SEATS FOR CHILDREN Guide for Ford Explorer SUV Third Generation (2002-2005)

Seating and Safety Restraints

The shoulder belt should cross the chest, resting snugly on the center of

the shoulder. The lap belt should rest low and snug across the hips,

never up high across the stomach.

If the booster seat slides on the vehicle seat, placing a rubberized mesh

sold as shelf or carpet liner under the booster seat may improve this

condition.

The importance of shoulder belts

Using a booster without a shoulder belt increases the risk of a child’s

head hitting a hard surface in a collision. For this reason, you should

never use a booster seat with a lap belt only. It is best to use a booster

seat with lap/shoulder belts in the back seat- the safest place for children

to ride.

Follow all instructions provided by the manufacturer of the

booster seat.

Never put the shoulder belt under a child’s arm or behind the

back because it eliminates the protection for the upper part of

the body and may increase the risk of injury or death in a collision.

Never use pillows, books, or towels to boost a child. They can

slide around and increase the likelihood of injury or death in a

collision.

SAFETY SEATS FOR CHILDREN

Child and infant or child safety seats

Use a safety seat that is recommended for the size and weight of the

child. Carefully follow all of the manufacturer’s instructions with the

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safety seat you put in your vehicle. If you do not install and use the

safety seat properly, the child may be injured in a sudden stop or

collision.

When installing a child safety seat:

• Review and follow the information

presented in the Air bag

supplemental restraint system

(SRS) section in this chapter.

• Use the correct safety belt buckle

for that seating position (the

buckle closest to the direction the

tongue is coming from).

• Insert the belt tongue into the

proper buckle until you hear a

snap and feel it latch. Make sure the tongue is securely fastened in the

buckle.

• Keep the buckle release button pointing up and away from the safety

seat, with the tongue between the child seat and the release button,

to prevent accidental unbuckling.

• Place seat back in upright position.

• Put the safety belt in the automatic locking mode. Refer to Automatic

locking mode (passenger side front and outboard rear seating

positions) (if equipped) section in this chapter.

Ford recommends the use of a child safety seat having a top tether

strap. Install the child safety seat in a seating position with a tether

anchor. For more information on top tether straps, refer to Attaching

child safety seats with tether straps in this chapter.

Carefully follow all of the manufacturer’s instructions included

with the safety seat you put in your vehicle. If you do not install

and use the safety seat properly, the child may be injured in a sudden

stop or collision.

Rear-facing child seats or infant carriers should never be placed

in the front seats.

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Installing child safety seats with combination lap and shoulder

belts

Air bags can kill or injure a child in a child seat. NEVER place a

rear-facing child seat in front of an active air bag. If you must

use a forward-facing child seat in the front seat, move the seat all the

way back.

Children 12 and under should be properly restrained in the rear

seat whenever possible.

1. Position the child safety seat in a

seat with a combination lap and

shoulder belt.

2. Pull down on the shoulder belt

and then grasp the shoulder belt

and lap belt together.

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3. While holding the shoulder and

lap belt portions together, route the

tongue through the child seat

according to the child seat

manufacturer’s instructions. Be sure

the belt webbing is not twisted.

4. Insert the belt tongue into the

proper buckle (the buckle closest to

the direction the tongue is coming

from) for that seating position until

you hear a snap and feel the latch

engage. Make sure the tongue is

latched securely by pulling on it.

5. To put the retractor in the

automatic locking mode, grasp the

shoulder portion of the belt and pull

downward until all of the belt is

pulled out and a click is heard.

6. Allow the belt to retract. The belt will click as it retracts to indicate it

is in the automatic locking mode.

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7. Pull the lap belt portion across

the child seat toward the buckle and

pull up on the shoulder belt while

pushing down with your knee on the

child seat.

8. Allow the safety belt to retract to

remove any slack in the belt.

9. Before placing the child in the

seat, forcibly move the seat forward

and back to make sure the seat is

securely held in place. To check

this, grab the seat at the belt path

and attempt to move it side to side

and forward. There should be no

more than one inch of movement for

proper installation.

10. Try to pull the belt out of the retractor to make sure the retractor is

in the automatic locking mode (you should not be able to pull more belt

out). If the retractor is not locked, unbuckle the belt and repeat steps

two through nine.

Check to make sure the child seat is properly secured before each use.

Attaching child safety seats with tether straps

Most new forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap which

goes over the back of the seat and hooks to an anchoring point. Tether

straps are available as an accessory for many older safety seats. Contact

the manufacturer of your child seat for information about ordering a

tether strap.

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The rear seats of your vehicle are equipped with built-in tether strap

anchors located behind the seats as shown below.

The tether strap anchors in your vehicle are in the following positions

(shown from top view):

• 5 passenger vehicle

• 7 passenger vehicle

Attach the tether strap only to the appropriate tether anchor as

shown. The tether strap may not work properly if attached

somewhere other than the correct tether anchor.

1. Position the child safety seat on the rear seat cushion.

2. Route the tether strap under the head restraint and between the head

restraint posts.

3. Locate the correct anchor for the selected rear seating position.

When placing a child safety seat in the 2nd row center seating position

of the 5 passenger vehicle, the tether straps may be attached to either of

the tether anchors located at the rear of the cargo area.

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• Behind 2nd row seat

• At the rear of the cargo area

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4. Clip the tether strap to the

anchor.

If the tether strap is clipped incorrectly, the child safety seat

may not be retained properly in the event of a collision.

5. Refer to the Installing child safety seats in combination lap and

shoulder belt seating positions section of this chapter for further

instructions to secure the child safety seat.

6. Tighten the child safety seat tether strap according to the

manufacturer’s instructions.

If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child

being injured in a collision greatly increases.

Attaching safety seats with LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for

Children) attachments for child seat anchors

Some child safety seats have two rigid or webbing mounted attachments

that connect to two anchors at certain seating positions in your vehicle.

This type of child seat eliminates the need to use seat belts to attach the

child seat. For forward-facing child seats, the tether strap must also be

attached to the proper tether anchor. See Attaching safety seats with

tether straps in this chapter.

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Your vehicle has LATCH anchors for child seat installation at the seating

positions marked with the child seat symbol:

Never attach two LATCH child safety seats to the same anchor.

In a crash, one anchor may not be strong enough to hold two

child safety seat attachments and may break, causing serious injury or

death.

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The lower anchors for child seat

installation are located at the rear

section of the second row seat

between the cushion and seat back.

The LATCH anchors are below the

locator symbols on the seat back.

Follow the child seat manufacturer’s

instructions to properly install a

child seat with LATCH attachments.

Two plastic LATCH guides can be

obtained at no charge from any

Ford or Lincoln-Mercury dealer.

They snap onto the LATCH lower

anchors in the seat to help attach a

child seat with rigid attachments.

The guides hold the seat trim away

to expose the anchor and make it

easier to attach some child seats.

Attach LATCH lower attachments of the child seat only to the

anchors shown.

If you install a child seat with rigid LATCH attachments, do not tighten

the tether strap enough to lift the child seat off the vehicle seat cushion

when the child is seated in it. Keep the tether strap just snug without

lifting the front of the child seat. Keeping the child seat just touching the

vehicle seat gives the best protection in a severe crash.

Each time you use the safety seat, check that the seat is properly

attached to the lower anchors and tether anchor. Try to move the child

seat from side to side. Also try to tug the seat forward. Check to see if

the anchors hold the seat in place.

If the safety seat is not anchored properly, the risk of a child

being injured in a crash greatly increases.

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Seating and Safety Restraints -> SAFETY SEATS FOR CHILDREN for Your Ford Explorer SUV Third Generation (2002-2005)

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