Mercedes-Benz C-Class 2014 Owner's Manual page 63

Occupant safety
60
Deployment of belt tensioners and air-
bags
Important safety notes
G WARNING
After the airbag deploys, the airbag parts are
hot. There is a risk of injury.
Do not touch the airbag parts. Have a
deployed airbag replaced at a qualified spe-
cialist workshop as soon as possible.
WARNING
G
Pyrotechnic seat belt tensioners that have
been deployed are no longer operational and
are unable to perform their intended protec-
tive function. This poses an increased risk of
injury or even fatal injury.
Therefore, have pyrotechnic belt tensioners
which have been triggered immediately
replaced at a qualified specialist workshop.
Mercedes-Benz recommends that you have
the vehicle towed to a qualified specialist
workshop after an accident. Take this into
account, particularly if a seat belt tensioner
was triggered or an airbag was deployed.
An electric motor is used by PRE-SAFE
trigger the tightening of the seat belt in haz-
ardous situations. This procedure is reversi-
ble.
If the belt tensioners are triggered or an air-
bag is deployed, you will hear a bang, and a
small amount of powder may also be
released. The 6 restraint system warning
lamp lights up.
Only in rare cases will the bang affect your
hearing. In general, the powder released is
not hazardous to health but may cause short-
term breathing difficulties to persons suffer-
ing from asthma or other pulmonary condi-
tions. Provided it is safe to do so, you should
leave the vehicle immediately or open the
window in order to prevent breathing difficul-
ties.
Operation
During the first stage of a collision, the
restraint system control unit evaluates impor-
tant physical data relating to vehicle deceler-
ation or acceleration, such as:
duration
R
direction
R
intensity
R
Based on the evaluation of this data, the
restraint system control unit triggers the seat
belt tensioners in the event of a head-on or
rear collision.
A seat belt tensioner can only be triggered if:
the ignition is switched on
R
the components of the restraint system are
R
operational; see "Restraint system warning
lamp" ( page 45)
Y
the belt tongue has engaged in the belt
R
buckle of the respective front seat
The seat belt tensioners in the rear compart-
ment are triggered independently of the lock
status of the seat belts.
If the restraint system control unit detects a
high severity of an accident, in certain head-
on collisions, additional components of the
®
to
restraint system are deployed independently
of each another:
front airbags and driver's kneebag
R
windowbag, if the system determines that
R
deployment can offer additional protection
to that provided by the seat belt
On vehicles with the automatic front-
passenger front airbag deactivation system:
depending on the person in the front-
passenger seat, the front-passenger front air-
bag is either disabled or enabled. The front-
passenger front airbag can only be deployed
in an accident if the PASSENGER AIR BAG ON
indicator lamp is lit. Observe the information
on the PASSENGER AIR BAG indicator lamps
( page 46).
Y
Your vehicle has two-stage front airbags. In
the first deployment stage, the front airbag is
filled with propellant gas to reduce the risk of