Mercedes-Benz 420 SEL 1986 Owner's Manual page 40

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Driver Airbag
The airbag (1) is located in the steer­
ing wheel hub and, in conjunction
with wearing the seat belts with
emergency tensioning retractors (2),
provides increased protection for the
driver.
38
The operational readiness of the sup­
plemental restraint system (airbag) is
verified by the indicator lamp "SRS"
(3) in the instrument cluster. With the
key in steering lock position 1 or 2,
the indicator lamp comes on for about
10 seconds then goes out. If it
doesn't come on, doesn't go out,
flickers on and off, or comes on while
driving, the system is malfunctioning.
This will not cause the supplemental
restraint system to be activated. How­
ever, we strongly recommend that
you visit an authorized MERCEDES-
BENZ dealer immediately to have the
system checked; otherwise the "SRS"
may not be activated in a severe fron­
tal accident.
The airbag is designed to activate
only in severe frontal impacts within
the shaded area shown in the illustra­
tion on page 37. Only during these
types of impacts will it provide its
supplemental protection. The driver
should always wear the seat belt,
otherwise it is not possible for the air­
bag to provide its intended protection.
In cases of less severe frontal im­
pacts, roll-overs, side or rear colli­
sions, or other accidents without se­
vere frontal forces, the airbag will not
be activated. The driver and other
passengers will then be protected by
the fastened seat belts.