I
A
CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and an air
bag, the bag may not inflate properly or it might
force the object into that person. The path
of
an
inflating air bag must be kept clear. Don’t put
anything between an occupant and an air bag,
and don’t attach
or
put anything on the
steering wheel hub or on or near any other
air bag covering.
When should an air
bag
inflate?
An air bag is designed to inflate
in
a moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crash. The air bag will inflate
only if the impact speed is above the system’s designed
“threshold level.’’ If your vehicle goes straight into a
wall that doesn’t move or deform, the threshold level is
about
9
to
15
mph
(
14
to
24
km/h).
The
threshold level
can vary, however, with specific vehicle design,
so
that
it can be somewhat above or below this range.
If
your
vehicle strikes something that will move or deform, such
as a parked car, the threshold level will be higher. The
air bag is not designed to inflate in rollovers, side
impacts or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because
of
the damage
to
a
vehicle or because of what the repair costs were.
Inflation
is
determined by the angle of the impact and
how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal or
near-frontal impacts.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In
an
impact
of
sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle
is
in a crash. The sensing
system triggers a release of gas from the inflator, which
inflates
the
air bag. The inflator, air bag and related
hardware are all part of the air bag modules inside the
steering wheel and
in
the instrument panel in front of the
right front passenger.
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