Front Air Bags - Alfa Romeo 159 Owner's Handbook Manual

FRONT AIR BAGS

The car is fitted with front multistage air
bags ("Smart bags") for the driver and
the passenger and with knees air bag
for the driver and for the passenger (for
versions/markets, where provided).
"SMART BAG" SYSTEM
(FRONT MULTISTAGE AIR
BAGS)
The front air bags (driver and passen-
ger) and knees air bags (driver and pas-
senger) have been designed to protect
the occupants in the event of head-on
crashes of medium-high severity, by plac-
ing cushions between the occupant and
the steering wheel or dashboard.
In case of crash, an electronic control
unit, when required, triggers the infla-
tion of the cushions that inflate, as a pro-
tection, between the body of the front
occupants and the structure that could
cause injuries. Immediately after, the
cushions deflate.
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The front air bags (driver and passen-
ger) and knees air bags (driver and pas-
senger) are not a replacement of but
complementary to the use of belts,
which should always be worn, as spec-
ified by law in Europe and most non Eu-
ropean countries.
In case of crash, a person not wearing
the seat belt moves forward and may
come into contact with the cushion while
it is still inflating. Under this circum-
stance the protection offered by the air
bag is reduced.
Front air bags may not be activated in
the following situations:
❒ front collisions against highly de-
formable objects not affecting the car
front surface (e.g. bumper collision
against guard rail, etc.);
❒ in case of wedging under other ve-
hicles or protective barriers (for ex-
ample under a truck or guard rail);
❒ the air bag is not triggered as it offers
no additional protection compared with
the seat belts, consequently it would
be pointless. Therefore, failure to come
into action in the above circumstance
does not mean that the system is not
working properly.
WARNING
Do not apply stickers
or other objects to the
steering wheel or to the air
bag cover on the passenger's
side or on the side roof lining.
Never put objects (e.g. mobile
phones) on the dashboard on
passenger side since they
could interfere with proper
passenger air bag inflation and
also cause serious injury.