Many forward-facing child safety seats include a tether strap which extends from the back of the child safety seat and hooks to an anchoring point called the top tether anchor. 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, or to obtain a longer tether strap if the tether strap on your safety seat does not reach the appropriate top tether anchor in the vehicle.

The rear seating positions of your vehicle are equipped with built-in tether strap anchors located behind the seats on the roof panel in the cargo area.

The tether strap anchors in your vehicle are in the following positions (shown from top view):

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.

Once the child safety seat has been installed, using either the safety belt or the lower anchors of the LATCH system, you can attach the top tether strap.

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.

Perform the following steps to install a child safety seat with tether anchors:

1. Route the child safety seat tether strap over the back of the seat.

For vehicles with adjustable head restraints, remove the head restraint first, place under the front seat for storage, and then route the tether strap over the top of the seatback.

2. Locate the correct anchor for the selected seating position.

There are three tether anchors located on the headliner at the rear of the vehicle.

3. Clip the tether strap to the anchor as shown.

The arrow in the above graphic points toward the front of the vehicle.

If the tether strap is clipped incorrectly, the child safety seat may not be retained properly in the event of a collision.

4. 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.

If your child restraint system is equipped with a tether strap, and the child restraint manufacturer recommends its use, Ford also recommends its use.