BACK SEAT BEST PLACE FOR CHILD SAFETY.

Byline: Frank Davies Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire

Whenever a trip to Grandma's house is announced, Vicki Miller of Miami Beach knows how her four kids will react: ``It's a race to see who says it first - `I've got the front seat!' ''

Her two cars have passenger-side air bags, and she has heard the safety warnings about keeping children in the back seat, but when you have four kids - ages 8 to 13 - there is another reality.

``Sitting in the back is like a punishment, so I let them all have a turn in front - sitting far back in the seat,'' she said. ``With four kids, you have to choose your battles.''

When it comes to car safety, the Battle of the Back Seat is about to begin in earnest. Health and safety organizations, along with Chrysler Corp., are launching early this year a nationwide campaign through schools and day-care centers to persuade young children that ``the back seat is where it's at.''

Schools have had some success in campaigns against smoking, drugs and guns - but staying out of the front seat may be a tough sell.

``The back is where it's at, all right - it's where my two daughters sometimes really go at it,'' said Angela Hoppe, a Coral Gables, Fla., parent who has other reasons for letting one sit up front.

``It's one chance during the day I know I can really talk with them, so they alternate in the front seat: Amelia (age 8) on odd days, Ellen (6) on even days,'' says Hoppe, who drives in a car with no passenger-side air bag.

With or without an air bag, the front seat is more dangerous in an accident.

``Statistics show the safest place in a collision is the back seat,'' said Michelle Tinson, a safety manager for Chrysler. ``But we know for many kids, it will take some convincing.''

But it's the publicity over air bag deaths that has grabbed the attention of many parents. Since 1993, air bags, which explode at up to 200 miles per hour, have killed 28 children.

Amy Rabin of Miami Beach, with two kids and a car with dual air bags, says her 6-year-old son Sandy ``always wants to sit in the front, so it's a real battle. I try to paint a graphic picture of what could happen: `The air bag could kill you.' ''

At Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines' day-care center, the issue was not a big one - until one little boy showed up with bruises after an accident in which a bag deployed. ``His car seat was just destroyed,'' said the center's director, Gladys Montes.

In Washington and Detroit, debates rage about air bags, which have also saved many lives. Manufacturers, worried about their liability, send out letters and plan to distribute stickers: Don't put children under 13 in the front seat. New models may have bags that can be easily turned off, though safety experts disagree on this idea.

Chrysler's safety materials - booklets, posters, videos, teacher's guides - are backed by the American Academy of Pediatrics and should reach school systems by the end of January. The message: ``I Know My ABCs - Always Buckle Children in the Back Seat.''

The impact of a school safety campaign cannot be underestimated. Many parents admit that it's their kids who stress no smoking, recycling and use of seat belts.

``If I forget my seat belt, my oldest boy is yelling at me as I back out of the driveway,'' said Claire Georgatos of Coral Gables.

If you must put a child in the front seat of a car with air bags:

Put the largest child in the front passenger seat; never put an infant in a rear-facing safety seat.

Make sure children are properly buckled. Don't allow them to put the shoulder belt behind them or under their arm.

Move the seat as far back from the dashboard (and air bag) as possible.