NASCAR Drivers Tout Safety Messages
Chevrolet, NHTSA, NASCAR & National SAFE KIDS Campaign Collaborate

Washington, DC (Feb. 10, 2005) – A coalition of government, business, advocacy and sport today announced new television spots promoting the use of safety belts and the proper use of child safety seats.

The Chevrolet Division of General Motors is working with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the National SAFE KIDS Campaign to air advertisements and public service announcements featuring NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Burton.

“The first message from Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is to get people to buckle up, every time, on every trip,” said Chevrolet General Marketing Manager Brent Dewar. “The second, from Jeff Burton, is for parents, caregivers and grandparents to make sure child safety seats are secured properly.”

The Earnhardt spot will run beginning today and continue through the Daytona 500 on February 20. Chevy will also air the ad around important race weekends as well as peak holiday traffic periods, such as Memorial Day-Buckle Up America Week, Fourth of July, and Labor Day weekends.

Chevy chose Earnhart to deliver the buckle up message because NASCAR has the highest growth rate among any sport for 12- to 17-year olds. NASCAR is the No. 2 televised sport among teenagers, second only to the NFL.

The buckle-up spot featuring Earnhardt targets the young, particularly male audience. NHTSA Administrator Dr. Jeffrey W. Runge, says it’s an important group to reach.

“Wearing a safety belt is as important for race fans as it is for drivers,” said Runge. “Drivers understand what happens to your body in a crash at high speeds or lower speeds."

"That’s why they buckle up on every trip in every vehicle before the wheels roll. I am grateful to Dale, Jr. for his commitment to the safety of his fans, and to Chevrolet for its work in improving vehicle safety on and off the track,” Runge said.

The public service announcement from Burton helps kick off National Child Passenger Safety Week, February 13 through 19. Throughout February, more than 200 Chevrolet dealerships will host free child safety seat checkup events and dealer education and community awareness workshops with the expert help of local SAFE KIDS coalitions across the country.

“As a trauma surgeon, I see the devastation resulting from motor vehicle crashes where children are not properly restrained,” said Martin R. Eichelberger, M.D., president and CEO of the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and director of Emergency Trauma and Burn Services at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

“Once they reach the emergency room, it’s often too late. Since 1996, SAFE KIDS in partnership with GM has focused on prevention as the best way to save children’s lives, by holding more than 15,000 car seat checkup events and properly installing nearly 600,000 child safety seats nationwide,” Eichelberger said.

Chevrolet also announced plans to enhance the safety information on its website (www.chevy.com/safety), including specific web tools to help customers identify how many child safety seats can be accommodated by specific models, as well as comprehensive web modules identifying hardware LATCH points on individual carlines.

The messages of safety belt use and child passenger safety are key elements in General Motors’ comprehensive approach to safety before, during and after a crash. GM recently announced a commitment to make the OnStar safety and security system and electronic stability control standard on all retail vehicles sold in the United States and Canada, except for some commercial vehicles.

Chevrolet is a division of General Motors (NYSE: GM). As the world’s largest automaker, GM has been the global industry sales leader since 1931. Founded in 1908, GM today employs about 324,000 people around the world. It has manufacturing operations in 32 countries and its vehicles are sold in 200 countries . In 2004, GM sold nearly 9 million cars and trucks globally, up 4 percent and the second-highest total in the company’s history. GM’s global headquarters are at the GM Renaissance Center in Detroit.

The National SAFE KIDS Campaign is the first and only national nonprofit organization dedicat ed solely to the prevention of unintentional childhood injury — the number one killer of children ages 14 and under. More than 300 state and local SAFE KIDS coalitions in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico make up the Campaign. SAFE KIDS BUCKLE UP Ò is a national program developed by the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and sponsored by Chevrolet and General Motors to educate parents and caregivers about the importance of properly restraining children on every ride.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. became the first, third-generation NASCAR champion when he won the 1998 Busch Series title. After a second Busch crown in 1999, he moved full-time into the Budweiser No. 8 Chevrolet following in the considerably large footsteps of his legendary father, Dale Earnhardt, a seven-time Winston Cup champion, and grandfather Ralph Earnhardt, who were both selected among NASCAR's 50 Greatest drivers into racing.

2005 marks Jeff Burton’s 13th season in the NASCAR Cup Series with 367 starts, 17 wins, two poles, 91 top-five and 150 top-10 finishes.