2004 Honda Civic Owner's Manual - Page 33

Protecting Children General Guidelines Children who ride in back are less likely to be injured by striking interior vehicle parts during a collision or hard braking. Also, children cannot be injured by an inflating airbag when they ride in the back. The Passenger's Front Airbag Can Pose Serious Risks Front airbags have been designed to help protect adults in a moderate to severe frontal collision. To do this the passenger's front airbag is quite large and it can inflate with enough force to cause very serious injuries. Infants Never put a rear-facing child seat in the front seat of a vehicle equipped with a passenger's front airbag. If Infants and small children must be restrained in an approved child seat that is properly secured to the vehicle (see pages 34 35 ). Larger children must be restrained with a lap/shoulder belt and ride on a booster until the seat belt fits them properly (see pages 43 46 ). Small Children Placing a forward-facing child seat in the front seat of a vehicle equipped with passenger's front airbag can be hazardous. If the vehicle seat is too far forward, or the child's head is thrown forward during a collision, an inflating front airbag can strike the child with enough force to kill or very seriously injure a small child. Larger Children Children who have outgrown child seats are also at risk of being injured or killed by an inflating passenger's front airbag. Whenever possible, All Children Should Sit in the Back Seat According to accident statistics, children of all ages and sizes are safer when they are restrained in the back seat. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Transport Canada recommend that all children age 12 and under be properly restrained in the back seat. the airbag inflates, it can hit the back of the child seat with enough force to kill or very seriously injure an infant. larger children should sit in the back seat, in a booster seat if needed, and be properly restrained with a seat belt (see page 43 for important information about protecting larger children). 30 Driver and Passenger Safety