Mitsubishi Motors North America announces national booster seat awareness initiative with Kids Safety First and 10 Mitsubishi dealerships

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) today announced it is teaming up with 10 Mitsubishi dealerships across the country to kickoff of a nationwide child safety awareness initiative. Through its partnership with Kids Safety First, a national non-profit organization dedicated to promoting automotive child safety, MMNA aims to educate consumers about the importance of life-saving booster seats by working with local safety experts to demonstrate their proper usage. Mitsubishi and Kids Safety First will work with dealers nationwide to donate approximately 12,000 booster seats throughout the summer as part of the program.

The awareness campaign, which will focus on the importance of booster seat usage among children between the ages of 4 and 8, will launch on Saturday, June 30th at three Don Herring Mitsubishi locations in the Dallas, TX-area. Children within this age range are generally not big enough to fit properly into a vehicle's lap and shoulder belts, which are designed with adults in mind. Although many state laws only require children to be in a safety seat up to age 4, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommends children who weigh between 35 and 80 lbs should use a booster seat for safety purposes.

According to a 2002 study by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), children between the ages of 4 and 8 who ride in booster seats are 59 percent less likely to be injured in a car crash than children who are restrained only by a safety belt. However, only 21 percent of children between the ages of 5 and 8 rode in booster seats, according to the 2003 Motor Vehicle Occupant Safety Survey.

Members of each of the 10 communities where the events are taking place will be invited to their local Mitsubishi dealership to learn more about this important safety issue from experts that include local hospital staff and police officials. Parents who have children within this age range will receive the opportunity to take home a free booster seat. The events also will incorporate coloring contests and other children's activities, as well as free giveaways from Kids Safety First, such as coloring books, stickers, balloons and temporary tattoos.

MMNA and Kids Safety First will initially launch the program with 10 dealerships throughout the months of June and July and will explore future events with other dealerships in 2008.

"Mitsubishi Motors has no higher priority than the safety of our vehicles, our customers, and their families. Proper child safety restraints save lives. We are extremely proud to work with Kids Safety First to send this message," said Dan Kuhnert, Senior Vice President of Sales. "Statistics indicate a staggering lack of consumer awareness about booster seats. We hope that our combined efforts with Kids Safety First will help educate parents and save more lives."

Founded by Mitsubishi employees Jorgen Weterrings and PK Shrivastava in 2004, and backed by NHTSA, Kids Safety First is dedicated to producing effective and easy-to-understand child safety seat guidelines. The non-profit organization is committed to raising awareness about the importance of booster seats and educating parents about how these measures can prevent injuries and save children's lives by providing car seat safety materials to police departments, community organizations and companies across the country.

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc., (MMNA) is responsible for all manufacturing, finance, sales, marketing and research and development operations of the Mitsubishi Motors Corporation in the United States. Mitsubishi Motors sells coupes, convertibles, sedans, a mid-size pickup truck and sport utility vehicles through a network of approximately 500 dealers.

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