2022 Ford Maverick Child Safety Precautions

Full 2022 Ford Maverick Owners Manual.

When installing a child restraint with seatbelts:

• Place the vehicle seat in the upright position before you install the child restraint.
• Use the correct seatbelt buckle for that seating position.
• Insert the belt tongue into the buckle. Make sure the tongue is securely fastened in the buckle.
• Keep the buckle release button pointing up and away from the child restraint, with the tongue between the child restraint and the release button, to prevent accidental unbuckling.
• Put the seatbelt in the automatic locking mode.

CHILD SAFETY PRECAUTIONS



WARNING:  Always make sure your child is secured properly in a device that is appropriate for their height, age and weight. Child safety restraints must be bought separately from your vehicle. Failure to follow these instructions and guidelines may result in an increased risk of serious injury or death to your child. WARNING:  All children are shaped differently. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and other safety organizations, base their recommendations for child restraints on probable child height, age and weight thresholds, or on the minimum requirements of the law. We recommend that you check with a NHTSA Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician (CPST) to make sure that you properly install the child restraint in your vehicle and that you consult your pediatrician to make sure you have a child restraint appropriate for your child. To locate a child restraint fitting station and CPST, contact NHTSA toll free at 1-888-327-4236 or go to www.nhtsa.dot.gov. In Canada, contact Transport Canada toll free at 1-800-333-0371 or go to www.tc.gc.ca to find a Child Car Seat Clinic in your area. Failure to properly restrain children in child restraints made especially for their height, age and weight, may result in an increased risk of serious injury or death to your child. WARNING:  On hot days, the temperature inside the vehicle can rise very quickly. Exposure of people or animals to these high temperatures for even a short time can cause death or serious heat related injuries, including brain damage. Small children are particularly at risk. WARNING:  Do not place a rearward facing child restraint in front of an active airbag. Failure to follow this instruction could result in personal injury or death. WARNING:  Properly secure children 12 years old and under in a rear seating position whenever possible. If you are unable to properly secure all children in a rear seating position, properly secure the largest child on the front seat. If you must use a forward facing child restraint on the front seat, move the seat as far back as possible. Failure to follow these instructions could result in personal injury or death. WARNING:  Always carefully follow the instructions and warnings provided by the manufacturer of any child restraint to determine if the restraint device is appropriate for your child’s size, height, weight, or age. Follow the child restraint manufacturer’s instructions and warnings provided for installation and use in conjunction with the instructions and warnings provided by your vehicle manufacturer. A safety seat that is improperly installed or utilized, is inappropriate for your child’s height, age, or weight or does not properly fit the child may increase the risk of serious injury or death. WARNING:  Do not allow a passenger to hold a child on their lap when your vehicle is moving. Failure to follow this instruction could result in personal injury or death in the event of a sudden stop or crash. WARNING:  Do not use pillows, books or towels to boost your child’s height. Failure to follow this instruction could result in personal injury or death. WARNING:  Properly secure child restraints or booster seats when they are not in use. They could become projectiles in a sudden stop or crash. Failure to follow this instruction could result in personal injury or death. WARNING:  Do not put the shoulder section of the seatbelt or allow the child to put the shoulder section of the seatbelt under their arm or behind their back. Failure to follow this instruction could reduce the effectiveness of the seatbelt and increase the risk of injury or death in a crash. WARNING:  Do not leave children or pets unattended in your vehicle. Failure to follow this instruction could result in personal injury or death.

WHAT ARE THE CHILD RESTRAINT ANCHOR POINTS

Anchor points allow you to quickly and safely install a child restraint.

LOCATING THE CHILD RESTRAINT LOWER ANCHOR POINTS

CHILD RESTRAINT POSITION INFORMATION

Install the child restraint tightly against the vehicle seat. It may be necessary to lift or remove the head restraint.Rear Facing Child Restraints

Combined Weight of Child and Child Restraint	LATCH (Lower Anchors Only)	Seatbelt Only
Up to 65 lb (29 kg)	X	X
Over 65 lb (29 kg)		X

Forward Facing Child Restraints

Combined Weight of Child and Child Restraint	LATCH (Lower Anchors and Top Tether Anchor)	Seatbelt and Top Tether Anchor	Seatbelt and LATCH (Lower Anchors and Top Tether Anchor)
Up to 65 lb (29 kg)	X	X	X
Over 65 lb (29 kg)		X	X

CHILD RESTRAINTS RECOMMENDATION



Child Size, Height, Weight, or Age	Recommended Restraint Type
Children weighing 40 lb (18 kg) or less (generally age four or younger).	Use a child restraint (sometimes called an infant carrier, convertible seat, or toddler seat).
Children who have outgrown or no longer properly fit in a child restraint (generally children who are less than 57 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).	Use a belt-positioning booster seat.
Children who have outgrown or no longer properly fit in a belt-positioning booster seat (generally children who are at least 57 in (1.45 m) tall or greater than 80 lb (36 kg) or 100 lb (45 kg) if recommended by child restraint manufacturer).	Use a vehicle seatbelt having the lap belt snug and low across the hips, shoulder belt centered across the shoulder and chest, and seat backrest upright.

You are required by law to properly use child restraints for infants and toddlers in the United States, Canada and Mexico.Many states and provinces require that small children use approved booster seats until they reach age eight, a height of 57 in (1.45 m) 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, 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.When installing a rear facing child restraint, adjust the vehicle seats to avoid interference between the child restraint and the vehicle seat in front of the child restraint.

USING SEATBELTS



WARNING:  Depending on where you secure a child restraint, and depending on the child restraint design, you may block access to certain seatbelt buckle assemblies and LATCH lower anchors, rendering those features potentially unusable. To avoid risk of injury, make sure occupants only use seating positions where they are able to be properly restrained.

Note:   Although the child restraint illustrated is a forward-facing child restraint, the steps are the same for installing a rear-facing child restraint.Perform the following steps when installing the child restraint with seatbelts:

1. Position the child restraint in a seat with a seatbelt.

After positioning the child restraint in the proper seating position, pull down on the shoulder belt and then grasp the shoulder belt and lap belt together behind the belt tongue.

While holding the shoulder and lap belt portions together, route the tongue through the child restraint according to the child restraint manufacturer’s instructions. Make sure that you did not twist the belt webbing.

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.

To put the retractor in the automatic locking mode, grasp the shoulder portion of the belt and pull downward until you pull all of the belt out.

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

Allow the belt to retract to remove slack. The belt clicks as it retracts to indicate it is in the automatic locking mode.

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 did not lock, unbuckle the belt and repeat Steps 5 and 6.

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 exists once you add the extra weight of the child to the child restraint. It also helps to achieve the proper snugness of the child restraint to your vehicle. Sometimes, a slight lean toward the buckle will provide extra help to remove remaining slack from the belt.

If the child restraint has a tether strap, attach it.

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 in (2.5 cm) of movement.

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.

BOOSTER SEATS

Use a belt-positioning booster seat for children who have outgrown or no longer properly fit in a child restraint and meet the following criteria.

• Generally children who are less than 57 in (1.45 m) tall.
• Are greater than age four (4) and less than age twelve (12).
• Are between 40 lb (18 kg) and 80 lb (36 kg) and upward to 100 lb (45 kg).

Many state and provincial laws require that children use approved booster seats until they reach age eight, a height of 57 in (1.45 m) tall, or 80 lb (36 kg).Booster seats should be used until you can answer yes to all of these questions when seated without a booster seat:

• Can the child sit all the way back against their vehicle seat backrest with knees bent comfortably at the edge of the seat cushion?
• Can the child sit without slouching?
• Does the lap belt rest low across the hips?
• Is the shoulder belt centered on the shoulder and chest?
• Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?

Always use booster seats in conjunction with your vehicle lap and shoulder belt.Types of Booster Seats

If your backless booster seat has a removable shield, remove the shield.If a vehicle seating position has a low seat backrest or no head restraint, a backless booster seat may place your child’s head, as measured at the tops of the ears, above the top of the seat. In this case, move the backless booster to another seating position with a higher seat backrest or head restraint and lap and shoulder belts, or consider using a high-back booster seat.

If, with a backless booster seat, you cannot find a seating position that adequately supports your child’s head, a high-back booster seat would be a better choice.Children and booster seats vary in size and shape. Choose a booster that keeps the lap belt low and snug across the hips, never up across the stomach, and lets you adjust the shoulder belt to cross the chest and rest snugly near the center of the shoulder.The following drawings compare the ideal fit to a shoulder belt uncomfortably close to the neck and a shoulder belt that could slip off the shoulder. The drawings also show how the lap belt should be low and snug across the child’s hips.

If the booster seat slides on the vehicle seat upon which it is being used, placing a rubberized mesh sold as shelf or carpet liner under the booster seat may improve this condition. Do not use any item thicker than this under the booster seat. Check with the booster seat manufacturer’s instructions.