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ow 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
a i r
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.
s dust could cause breathing probliems
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
$0
do so.
If you have breathing problems but can't get out
of the vehicle after an air bag inflates, then get
fresh a h by
OpeniIlg a
WhdoW
Or
door*
Your vehicle has a feature that will automatically unlock
the doors and turn the interior lamps on when the air
bags inflate (if battery power is available). You can lock
the doors again and turn the interior lamps off by using
the door lock and interior lamp controls.
In many crashes severe enough
to
inflate an air bag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also
QCCUI-
from
the right front passenger air bag.
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