2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Owner Manual - Page 58

58 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING YOUR VEHICLE LATCH - Child Seat Anchorage System (Lower Anchors and Tether for CH ildren) Your vehicle's rear seat is equipped with the child restraint anchorage system called LATCH. The LATCH system provides for the installation of the child restraint without using the vehicle's seat belts, instead securing the child restraint using lower anchorages and upper tether straps from the child restraint to the vehicle structure. LATCH-compatible child restraint systems are now available. However, because the lower anchorages are to be introduced over a period of years, child restraint systems having attachments for those anchorages will continue to also have features for installation using the vehicle's seat belts. Child restraints having tether straps and hooks for connection to the top tether anchorages have been available for some time. For some older child restraints, many child restraint manufacturers offer add-on tether strap kits or retro-fit kits. You are urged to take advantage of all the available attachments provided with your child restraint in any vehicle. All three rear seating positions have lower anchorages that are capable of accommodating LATCH-compatible child seats having flexible, webbing-mounted lower attachments. Child seats with fixed lower attachments must be installed in the outboard positions only. Regardless of the specific type of lower attachment, NEVER install LATCH-compatible child seats such that two seats share a common lower anchorage. If you are installing LATCH-compatible child restraints in adjacent rear seating positions, you can use the LATCH anchors or the vehicle's seat belt for the outboard position, but you must use the vehicle's seat belt at the center position. If your child restraints are not LATCHcompatible, you can only install the child restraints using the vehicle's seat belts. Please refer to the next section for typical installation instructions.