A Vehicle Owner's Manual Locator Guide is now available. This table tells which vehicle brands offer free online access to their manuals.

We look at what you can expect from these new rear-seat seat belt options, and how CPSTs’ advice to parents may need to be modified when they are present.

Question: Why do some vehicle manuals warn that nothing should press against the back of the front passenger seat or be placed under that seat? 

Short answer: Pressure on the seatback may cause a false reading by the sensors that regulate the passenger-side advanced air bag (AAB), possibly causing either the AAB to deploy when it is not needed or to be suppressed when it is needed.

At the Seattle Auto Show we imagined how families would fare installing multiple CRs in the MY 2010 models. In general, we found dual trends that are at odds for families: the seating space inside vehicles tends to be shrinking, while newer CR designs with higher weight limits tend to be taller and wider.

May 18, 2009: Testimony of Janette E. Fennell, Founder and President, KidsAndCars.org on the “Auto Safety: Existing Mandates and Emerging Issues” hearing before the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce