Ford Escape (2018 year). Manual — part 4

Recommendations for Safety Restraints for Children

Recommended restraint

type

Child size, height, weight, or age

Child

Use a child safety seat

(sometimes called an

infant carrier, convertible

seat, or toddler seat).

Children weighing 40 lb (18 kg) or less

(generally age four or younger).

Infants or

toddlers

Use a belt-positioning

booster seat.

Children who have outgrown or no longer

properly fit in a child safety seat (gener-

ally children who are less than 4 ft. 9 in.

(1.45 m) tall, are greater than age four

and less than age 12, and between 40 lb

(18 kg) and 80 lb (36 kg) and upward to

100 lb (45 kg) if recommended by your

child restraint manufacturer).

Small children

Use a vehicle safety belt

having the lap belt snug

and low across the hips,

shoulder belt centered

across the shoulder and

chest, and seatback

upright.

Children who have outgrown or no longer

properly fit in a belt-positioning booster

seat (generally children who are at least

4 ft. 9 in. (1.45 m) tall or greater than

80 lb (36 kg) or 100 lb (45 kg) if recom-

mended by child restraint manufacturer).

Larger children

•

You are required by law to properly use
safety seats for infants and toddlers in
the United States and Canada.

•

Many states and provinces require that
small children use approved booster
seats until they reach age eight, a
height of 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 meters)
tall, or 80 lb (36 kg). Check your local
and state or provincial laws for specific
requirements about the safety of
children in your vehicle.

•

When possible, always properly
restrain children 12 years of age and
under in a rear seating position of your
vehicle. Accident statistics suggest that
children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating positions
than in a front seating position. See
Front Passenger Sensing System
(page 40).

INSTALLING CHILD
RESTRAINTS

Child Seats

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Use a child safety seat (sometimes called
an infant carrier, convertible seat, or
toddler seat) for infants, toddlers, or
children weighing 40 pounds (18
kilograms) or less (generally age four or
younger).

Using Lap and Shoulder Belts

WARNINGS

Airbags can kill or injure a child in a
child seat. Never place a rear-facing
child seat in front of an active airbag.

If you must use a forward-facing child seat
in the front seat, move the seat upon which
the child seat is installed all the way back.

Airbags can kill or injure a child in a
child seat. Children 12 and under
should be properly restrained in the

rear seat whenever possible.

Depending on where you secure a
child restraint, and depending on the
child restraint design, you may block

access to certain safety belt buckle
assemblies and LATCH lower anchors,
rendering those features potentially
unusable. To avoid risk of injury, occupants
should only use seating positions where
they are able to be properly restrained.

When installing a child safety seat with
combination lap and shoulder belts:
•

Use the correct safety belt buckle for
that seating position.

•

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 the vehicle seat upon which the
child seat will be installed in the upright
position.

•

Put the safety belt in the automatic
locking mode. See Step 5. This vehicle
does not require the use of a locking
clip.

Perform the following steps when
installing the child seat with combination
lap and shoulder belts:

Note: Although the child seat illustrated is
a forward facing child seat, the steps are
the same for installing a rear facing child
seat.

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1.

Position the child safety seat in a seat
with a combination lap and shoulder
belt.

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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.

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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.

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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.

Note: The automatic locking mode is
available on the front passenger and rear
seats.

6. Allow the belt to retract to remove

slack. The belt will click as it retracts
to indicate it is in the automatic locking
mode.

7.

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 5 and 6.

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8. Remove remaining slack from the belt.

Force the seat down with extra weight,
for example, by pressing down or
kneeling on the child restraint while
pulling up on the shoulder belt in order
to force slack from the belt. This is
necessary to remove the remaining
slack that will exist once the extra
weight of the child is added to the child
restraint. It also helps to achieve the
proper snugness of the child seat to
your vehicle. Sometimes, a slight lean
toward the buckle will additionally help
to remove remaining slack from the
belt.

9. Attach the tether strap (if the child seat

is equipped).

E142534

10.

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 and
back. There should be no more than
1 inch (2.5 centimeters) of movement
for proper installation.

We recommend checking with a NHTSA
Certified Child Passenger Safety
Technician to make certain the child
restraint is properly installed. In Canada,
check with Transport Canada for referral
to a Child Car Seat Clinic.

Using Lower Anchors and Tethers
for CHildren (LATCH)

WARNINGS

Never attach two 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.

Depending on where you secure a
child restraint, and depending on the
child restraint design, you may block

access to certain safety belt buckle
assemblies or LATCH lower anchors,
rendering those features potentially
unusable. To avoid risk of injury, occupants
should only use seating positions where
they are able to be properly restrained.

The LATCH system is composed of three
vehicle anchor points: two lower anchors
located where seat back and seat cushion
meet (called the seat bight) and one top
tether anchor located behind that seating
position.

LATCH compatible child safety seats have
two rigid or webbing mounted
attachments that connect to the two lower
anchors at the LATCH equipped seating
positions in your vehicle. This type of
attachment method eliminates the need
to use safety belts to attach the child seat,
however the safety belt can still be used
to attach the child seat. For forward-facing
child seats, the top tether strap must also
be attached to the proper top tether
anchor, if a top tether strap has been
provided with your child seat.