Toyota Yaris: Child Restraint / Child-Restraint Precautions

Toyota strongly urges the use of child-restraint systems for children small enough to use them.

You are required by law to use a child-restraint system for children in the U.S. and Canada.

Check your local and state or provincial laws for specific requirements regarding the safety of children riding in your vehicle.

Whatever child-restraint system you consider, please pick the appropriate one for the age and size of the child, obey the law and follow the instructions that come with the individual child-restraint system.

A child who has outgrown child-restraint systems should sit in the rear and use seat belts, both lap and shoulder. If the shoulder belt crosses the neck or face, move the child closer to the center of the vehicle in the outboard seats, and towards the buckle on the right if the child is seated on the center seat.

Statistics confirm that the rear seat is the best place for all children up to 12 years of age, and more so with a supplemental restraint system (air bags).

A rear-facing child-restraint system should NEVER be used on the front seat with the air bag system activated. The front passenger’s seat is also the least preferred seat for other child-restraint systems.

To reduce the chance of injuries caused by deployment of the front passenger air bag, the front passenger occupant classification sensor works as a part of the supplemental restraint system. This system deactivates the front passenger front and side air bags and also the front passenger seat belt pretensioner system when the front passenger air bag deactivation indicator light illuminates.

When an infant or small child sits on the front passenger seat, the system shuts off the front passenger front and side air bags and seat belt pretensioner system, so make sure the front passenger air bag deactivation indicator light illuminates.

Even if the front passenger air bag is shut off, Toyota strongly recommends that children be properly restrained and child-restraint systems of all kinds are properly secured on the rear seats which are the best place for children.

For more details, refer to “Front passenger occupant classification sensor”.

Your Toyota is equipped with LATCH lower anchors for attachment of specially designed LATCH child-restraint systems on the rear seats. When using these anchors to secure a child-restraint system, refer to “Using LATCH Lower Anchor”.

WARNING

Use the correct size child-restraint system

For effective protection in vehicle accidents and sudden stops, a child must be properly restrained using a seat belt or child-restraint system depending on age and size. If not, the child could be seriously injured or even killed in an accident.

Follow the manufacturer’s instructions and always keep the childrestraint system buckled down

An unsecured child-restraint system is dangerous. In a sudden stop or a collision it could move causing serious injury or death to the child or other occupants. Make sure any child-restraint system is properly secured in place according to the child-restraint system manufacturer’s instructions. When not in use, remove it from the vehicle or fasten it with a seat belt, or attach it to BOTH LATCH lower anchors for LATCH child-restraint systems and the corresponding tether anchor.

Always secure a child in a proper child-restraint system

Holding a child in your arms while the vehicle is moving is extremely dangerous. No matter how strong the person may be, he or she cannot hold onto a child in a sudden stop or collision and it could result in serious injury or death to the child or other occupants. Even in a moderate accident, the child may be exposed to air bag forces that could result in serious injury or death to the child, or the child may be slammed into an adult, causing injury to both child and adult.

Never use a rear-facing child-restraint system in the front seat with an air bag that could deploy

Rear-facing child-restraint systems on the front seat are particularly dangerous even though you may feel assured that a front passenger air bag will not deploy based on the fact that the front passenger air bag deactivation indicator light illuminates. The child-restraint system can be hit by a deploying air bag and moved violently backward resulting in serious injury or death to the child.

Vehicles with a front passenger air bag have a warning label attached as shown below.

The warning label reminds you not to put a rear-facing child-restraint system on the front passenger seat at any time.

Do not install a front-facing child-restraint system on the front passenger seat unless it is unavoidable

In a collision, the force of a deploying air bag could cause serious injury or death to the child. If installing a front-facing child-restraint system on the front passenger seat is unavoidable, move the front passenger seat as far back as possible.

Seating a child in a child-restraint system on the front passenger seat is dangerous under certain conditions

Your vehicle is equipped with front passenger occupant classification sensor. Even with the front passenger occupant classification sensor, if you must use the front passenger seat to seat a child, using a child-restraint system on the front passenger seat under the following conditions increases the danger of the front passenger air bag deploying and could result in serious injury or death to the child.

• The front passenger air bag deactivation indicator light does not illuminate when seating a child in the child-restraint system.
• Luggage or other items are placed on the seat with the child in the childrestraint system.
• A rear passenger or luggage pushing or pulling down on the front passenger seatback.
• Luggage or other items are placed on the seatback or hung on the head restraint.
• The seat is washed.
• Liquids are spilled on the seat.
• The front passenger seat is moved backward, pushing into luggage or other items placed behind it.
• The front passenger seatback contacts the rear seat.
• Luggage or other items are placed between the front passenger seat and driver seat.
• An electric device is put on the front passenger’s seat.
• An additional electrical device, such as a seat warmer is installed to the surface of the front passenger seat.

The designated positions with seat belts on the rear seats are the safest places for children. Always use seat belts and child restraints.

Do not allow a child or anyone to lean over or against the side window of a vehicle with side and curtain air bags

It is dangerous to allow anyone to lean over or against the side window, the area of the front passenger seat, the front and rear window pillars and the roof edge along both sides from which the side and curtain air bags deploy, even if a child-restraint system is used. The impact of inflation from a side or curtain air bag could cause serious injury or death to an out of position child. Furthermore, leaning over or against the front door could block the side and curtain air bags and eliminate the advantages of supplemental protection. With the front air bag and the additional side air bag that comes out of the front seat, the rear seat is always a better location for children. Take special care not to allow a child to lean over or against the side window, even if the child is seated in a child-restraint system.

Never use one seat belt on more than one person at a time

Using one seat belt for more than one person at a time is dangerous. A seat belt used in this way cannot spread the impact forces properly and the two passengers could be crushed together and seriously injured or even killed. Never use one belt for more than one person at a time and always operate the vehicle with each occupant properly restrained.

To prevent burns

A seat belt or child-restraint system can become very hot in a closed vehicle during warm weather. To avoid burning yourself or a child, check them before you or your child touches them.