Accident statistics show that children are safer if they are restrained in the rear rather than the front seat. General Motors recommends that child restraints be secured in a rear seat including an infant riding in a rear-facing infant seat, a child riding in a forward-facing child seat and an older child riding in a booster seat. Never put a child in a rear-facing child restraint in the right front passenger seat unless your vehicle has an airbag off switch and the airbag off light shows off. Never put a rear-facing child restraint in the right front passenger seat unless the airbag is off. Here is why:
Caution: A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be seriously injured or killed if the right front passenger's frontal airbag inflates. This is because the back of the rear-facing child restraint would be very close to the inflating airbag. Be sure to turn off the airbag before using a rear-facing child restraint in the right front seat position.
Even though the airbag off switch is designed to turn off the right front passenger's frontal airbag, no system is fail-safe, and no one can guarantee that an airbag will not deploy under some unusual circumstance, even though it is turned off. We recommend that rear-facing child restraints be transported in vehicles with a rear seat that will accommodate a rear-facing child restraint, whenever possible. If you need to secure a forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat, always move the right front passenger seat as far back as it will go. It is better to secure the child restraint in a rear seat.Do not use child restraints in the center front seat position. The restraints will not work properly.
If you need to secure a rear-facing child restraint in the right front passenger's position, the right front passenger's frontal airbag must be off. See Securing a Child Restraint in the Right Front Seat Position (Models with an Airbag Off Switch) and Securing a Child Restraint Designed for the LATCH System (Regular/Extended Cab -- No Rear Seats) in the Index, and Airbag Off Switch for more on this including important safety information.
Wherever you install it, be sure to secure the child restraint properly.
Keep in mind that an unsecured child restraint can move around in a collision or sudden stop and injure people in the vehicle. Be sure to properly secure any child restraint in your vehicle -- even when no child is in it.
