How
does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. Air bags supplement
the
protection
provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute the force
of
the
impact more evenly over
the
occupant’s upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually. But air bags would
not help
you
in many types of collisions, including
rollovers, rear impacts and side impacts, primarily
because an occupant’s motion is
not
toward those air
bags. Air bags should never be regarded as anything
more than a supplement to safety belts, and then
only
in
moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions.
What
will
you see after an air bag inflates?
After an air bag inflates,
it
quickly deflates,
so
quickly that
some people may not even realize the air bag inflated.
Some components of
the
air
bag module
--
the steering
wheel hub for the driver’s air
bag,
or the instrument panel
for the right front passenger’s bag
--
will be hot for a short
time. The parts of the bag that come into contact with
you
may be warm, but not
too
hot
to
touch. There will be
some smoke and dust coming from vents in the deflated
air bags. Air bag inflation doesn’t prevent the driver from
seeing or from being able to steer the vehicle, nor does
it
stop people from leaving the vehicle.
?:
When an air bag inflates, there is dust in the air.
This dust could cause breathing problems for
people with a history of asthma or other
breathing trouble.
To
avoid this, everyone in the
vehicle should get out as soon as it is safe to do
so.
If you have breathing problems but can’t get out
of
the vehicle after an air bag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or door.
0
a
Air bags are designed to inflate only once. After they
inflate, you’ll need some new parts for your air bag
system. If
you
don’t get them, the air bag system
won’t be there
to
help protect you
in
another crash.
A new system will include air bag modules and
possibly other parts. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need
to
replace other parts.
Your vehicle is equipped with a diagnostic module,
which records information about
the
air bag system.
The module records information about the readiness
of
the system, when the sensors are activated and
driver’s safety belt usage at deployment.
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