Warnings on interaction between air bags and rear-facing child restraints

Laboratory crash test data indicate that children can be seriously injured if they are placed in a rear-facing restraint in the front seat of a vehicle equipped with a passenger-side air bag. An illustration accompanying this article shows how these injuries could occur. Because infants must ride in a rear-facing child restraint until about 1 year of age, vehicles with passenger-side air bags and without back seats are not suitable for rear-facing child restraints. People should consider this factor when purchasing a family car.