What Makes An Airbag Inflate; How Does An Airbag Restrain; What Will You See After An Airbag; Inflates - Cadillac ATS 2017 Owner's Manual

76 SEATS AND RESTRAINTS
Roof-rail airbags are designed to
inflate in moderate to severe side
crashes, depending on the location of
the impact. In addition, these roof-rail
airbags are designed to inflate during
a rollover or in a severe frontal
impact. Roof-rail airbags are not
designed to inflate in rear impacts.
Both roof-rail airbags will inflate when
either side of the vehicle is struck or if
the sensing system predicts that the
vehicle is about to roll over on its
side, or in a severe frontal impact.
In any particular crash, no one can
say whether an airbag should have
inflated simply because of the vehicle
damage or repair costs.
What Makes an Airbag
Inflate?
In a deployment event, the sensing
system sends an electrical signal
triggering a release of gas from the
inflator. Gas from the inflator fills the
airbag causing the bag to break out of
the cover. The inflator, the airbag, and
related hardware are all part of the
airbag module.
For airbag locations, see Where Are the
Airbags? 0 73.
How Does an Airbag
Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near
frontal collisions, even belted
occupants can contact the steering
wheel or the instrument panel. In
moderate to severe side collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the
inside of the vehicle.
Airbags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts by
distributing the force of the impact
more evenly over the occupant's body.
Rollover capable roof-rail airbags are
designed to help contain the head and
chest of occupants in the outboard
seating positions in the first and
second rows. The rollover capable
roof-rail airbags are designed to help
reduce the risk of full or partial
ejection in rollover events, although
no system can prevent all such
ejections.
But airbags would not help in many
types of collisions, primarily because
the occupant's motion is not toward
those airbags. See When Should an
Airbag Inflate? 0 75.
Airbags should never be regarded as
anything more than a supplement to
safety belts.
What Will You See after an
Airbag Inflates?
After the frontal, knee, and
seat-mounted side impact airbags
inflate, they quickly deflate, so quickly
that some people may not even realize
an airbag inflated. Roof-rail airbags
may still be at least partially inflated
for some time after they inflate. Some
components of the airbag module may
be hot for several minutes. For
location of the airbags, see Where Are
the Airbags? 0 73.
The parts of the airbag that come into
contact with you may be warm, but
not too hot to touch. There may be
some smoke and dust coming from
the vents in the deflated airbags.
Airbag inflation does not prevent the
driver from seeing out of the