Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Occupant Crash Protection

This final rule allows manufacturers the option of installing a manual device that motorists could use to deactivate the front passenger-side air bag in vehicles in which infant restraints can be used in the front seat only. The affected vehicles are passenger cars and light trucks without rear seats and vehicles with rear seats that are too small to accommodate typical rear-facing infant restraints and convertible infant restraints used in the rear-facing mode (hereafter referred to as ``typical rear-facing infant restraints''). The deactivation device is needed because when rear-facing infant restraints are used in the front seats of dual air bag vehicles, they extend forward to a point near the dashboard where they can be struck by a deploying air bag. Testing has shown this to have the potential for serious injury to infants. The ability to deactivate the passenger air bag will allow parents to safely use rear-facing infant restraints in the front seat of these vehicles. The need for the deactivation device is steadily growing because manufacturers are beginning to install, and soon will be required to install, passenger-side air bags in all passenger cars and light trucks.