Driver's Knee Airbag - Skoda SUPERB - 05-2009 Manual

178 Airbag system
WARNING (continued)
•
Never place any objects on the surface of the front passenger airbag in
the dash panel.

Driver's knee airbag*

Description of the driver's knee airbags,
The knee airbag reduces the risk of injury to the legs.
The driver's knee airbag is located in the lower part of the dash panel below the
⇒ fig.
steering column 173. The fitting position is shown in a picture on the side
surface of the dash panel on the driver's side.
The driver's knee airbag is complementary to the three-point seat belt and offers
adequate protection to the knees of the driver. Please note that an airbag can
only offer you optimal protection in combination with a seat belt which is
fastened.
Apart from their normal protective function, a further task of the seat belt is to also
hold the driver in a correct seated position in the event of a frontal collision so as to
enable the knee airbag to offer the maximum protection.
You should therefore always fasten the seat belts, not only because this is required
by law, but also for safety reasons and for your own protection ⇒ page 168, "Why
seat belts?".
Function of the driver's knee airbags
The airbag system is designed in such a way that the driver's knee airbag is
deployed together with the belt tensioner in the event of a frontal collision of major
severity.
If an airbag is deployed, the airbag is filled with propellant gas. The airbags inflate
in fractions of a second and at a high speed in order to be able to offer that addi-
tional protection in the event of an accident.
A grey white, non harmful gas is released when airbag is inflated. This is perfectly
normal and is not an indication of a fire in the vehicle.
The forward movement of the body is cushioned when it makes contact with the
fully inflated airbag and the risk of injury to the legs of the driver is thus reduced.
Important safety information on the driver's knee airbag
Fig. 173 Driver's knee airbag
below the steering column
•
below the steering column must not be stuck onto, covered or modified in
any other way. These parts should only be cleaned with a dry cloth or a cloth
moistened with water. No objects must be attached to the cover of the
airbag module or be located within the immediate area.
•
Any work on the airbag system including installing and removing system
components because of other repair work (e.g. removing the steering
wheel) must only be carried out by a specialist garage.
•
WARNING
The surface of the airbag module in the lower part of the dash panel
No modifications of any kind may be made to parts of the airbag system.
Never carry out changes on the front bumper or on the body.