Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Occupant Crash Protection

This rule extends until September 1, 2000, the time period during which vehicle manufacturers are permitted to offer manual cutoff switches for the passenger-side air bag for vehicles without rear seats or with rear seats that are too small to accommodate rear facing infant seats. Rear facing infant seats cannot be used safely in front of an air bag, and should ordinarily be placed in the back seat. The purpose of the option for manual cutoff switches is to ensure that the vehicle manufacturers have a means of accommodating their customers' need to carry rear facing infant seats in vehicles without rear seats or with rear seats that are too small for these devices. The agency is extending the time period for the option to ensure that manufacturers have adequate time to implement better, automatic solutions.