Although GM's side air bag testing and design comprehends the risk to child passenger safety, there is no question that the safer place for a child passenger is in the rear seat, properly secured. For example, a 3-year-old child should be in a rear seat, properly restrained in a forward-facing child seat; a 6-year-old should be in a rear seat, properly restrained in a belt- positioning booster seat.
GM experts will present a review of the company's field experience with side air bags at a public meeting of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers' technical working group on side air bag standards on Thursday, Oct. 25, in Washington, D.C.