Toyota 1997 Corolla Owner's Manual page 40

The SRS airbag is not designed to in-
flate if the vehicle is subjected to a side
or rear impact, if it rolls over, or if it is
involved in a low−speed frontal colli-
sion.
36
The airbag sensor assembly consists of a
safing sensor and airbag sensor.
In a severe frontal impact, sensors detect
deceleration and the system triggers the
airbag inflators. Then a chemical reaction
in the inflators momentarily fills the air-
bags with non−toxic nitrogen gas to help
restrain the forward motion of the occu-
pants.
When the airbags inflate, they produce a
fairly loud noise and release some smoke
along with the nitrogen gas. This is not
harmful and does not indicate a fire. Be
sure to wash off any residue as soon as
possible to prevent minor skin irritation.
Deployment of the airbags happen in a
fraction of a second, so the airbags must
inflate with considerable force. While the
system is designed to reduce serious inju-
ries, it may also cause minor burns or
abrasions and swellings.
The steering wheel hub may be hot for
several minutes, but the airbag itself will
not be hot. The airbag is designed to in-
flate only once.
CAUTION
!
The SRS airbag system is designed
only as a supplement to the primary
protection of the driver side seat
belt system. The driver is particular-
ly susceptible to death or serious
injury if he/she does not wear his/
her seat belt; when sudden braking
or a collision occurs, he/she may be
thrown forward into the deploying
SRS airbag. To obtain maximum
protection in an accident, the driver
and all passengers in the vehicle
should always wear their seat belts
when driving. For instructions and
precautions concerning the seat
belt system, see "Seat belts" in this
chapter.