Airbag system
Why is it so important to wear a seat
belt and to sit correctly?
For the inflating airbags to achieve the best
protection, the seat belt must always be worn
properly and the correct sitting position must
be assumed.
The airbag system is not a substitute for seat
belts, but it is an integral part of the vehicle's
overall passive safety system. Please bear in
mind that the airbag system can only work ef-
fectively when the vehicle occupants are wear-
ing their seat belts correctly and have adjus-
ted the headrests properly. Therefore, it is most
important to properly wear the seat belts at
all times, not only because this is required by
law in most countries, but also for your safety
›››page46, Seat belts.
The airbag inflates in a matter of seconds, so if
you are not properly seated when the airbag is
triggered, you may sustain fatal injuries. There-
fore, it is essential that all vehicle occupants as-
sume a correct sitting position while travelling.
Sharp braking before an accident may cause a
passenger not wearing a seat belt to be thrown
forward into the area of the deploying airbag.
In this case, the inflating airbag may inflict criti-
cal or fatal injuries on the occupant. This also
applies to children.
Always maintain the greatest possible distance
between yourself and the front airbag. This
way, the front airbags can completely deploy
when triggered, providing their maximum pro-
tection.
The most important factors for triggering the
airbag are the type of accident, the angle of
impact and the vehicle speed.
Whether or not the airbags are activated de-
pends primarily on the vehicle deceleration
rate resulting from the collision and detected
by the control unit. If the vehicle deceleration
occurring during the collision and measured by
the control unit remains below the specified
reference values, the front, side and/or curtain
airbags will not be triggered. Take into account
that the visible damage in a vehicle involved
in an accident, no matter how serious, is not
a factor that determines whether or not the air-
bags are activated.
WARNING
Wearing the seat belt incorrectly or assum-
ing an incorrect sitting position can lead to
critical or fatal injuries
●
All vehicle occupants, including children,
who are not properly strapped in can sus-
tain critical or fatal injuries if the airbag is
triggered. Children up to 12 years old should
always travel on the rear seat. Never trans-
port children in the vehicle if they are not
restrained or the restraint system is not ap-
propriate for their age, size or weight.
●
To reduce the risk of injury from an
inflating
airbag, always wear the seat belt properly
›››page46.
Description of the airbag system
The airbag system oers additional protection
for the occupants in combination with the seat
belts.
The airbag system comprises the following
modules (as per vehicle equipment):
●
Electronic control unit
●
Front airbags for driver and passenger
●
Knee airbag for the driver
●
Side airbags
●
Central airbag for the driver
●
Head airbag
●
Airbag control lamp on the instrument
panel ›››page56
●
Key-operated switch for front passenger air-
bag
●
Control lamp for disabled/enabled status of
the front passenger airbag.
The airbag system operation is monitored elec-
tronically. The airbag control lamp will illumi-
nate for a few seconds every time the ignition is
switched on (self-diagnosis).