Final answer:
Infants should not be placed in the front seat of a vehicle with passenger airbags, even with a rear-facing child restraint system, due to the risk of injury from airbags deploying. For safety, infants must be in a properly installed car seat in the back seat of the vehicle.
Step-by-step explanation:
No, infants should not be placed in the front seat of a vehicle with passenger airbags, even if the child restraint system is rear facing. Airbags are designed to deploy upon impact with great force, which is meant to protect adults in a collision but can be extremely dangerous and even fatal for an infant in a rear-facing child seat. The back of the safety seat can be very close to the dashboard or the airbag itself, posing a significant risk to infants.
For optimal protection, infants and young children should always be placed in a properly installed, age and size-appropriate car seat in the back seat of the vehicle. This location minimizes the risks of injury in the event of an accident because it is the farthest from the frontal impact point and the deployed airbags. Following this guideline is crucial for their safety.