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including rollovers, rear impacts, and side impacts,
primarily because an occupant's motion is not toward
the air bag. Side impact air bags would not help you in
many types of collisions, including frontal or near
frontal collisions, rollovers, and rear impacts, primarily
because an occupant's motion is not toward those air
bags. Air bags should never be regarded
as anything
more than a supplement to safety belts, and then only in
moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions
for
the driver's and right front passenger's frontal air bags,
and only in moderate to severe side collisions for the
driver's and right front passenger's side impact air bags.
What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After an air bag inflates, it quickly deflates, so quickly
that some people may not even realize the air bag
inflated. Some components of the air bag module
--
the
steering wheel hub for the driver's air bag, the
instrument panel for the right front passenger's bag, the
door for the driver and right front passenger's side
impact air bags
--
will be hot for a short time. The parts
of the bag that come into contact with you may be
warm, but not too hot to touch. There will be some
smoke and dust coming from the vents in the deflated
air bags. Air bag inflation doesn't prevent the driver
from seeing or being able to steer the vehicle, nor does it
stop people from leaving the vehicle.
When an air bag inflates, there is dust in the air.
This dust could cause breathing problems for
people with a history of asthma or other
breathing trouble, To avoid this, everyone in the
vehicle should get out as soon as it is safe to do so.
If you have breathing problems but can't get out
of the vehicle after an air bag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or a door.
Your vehicle has a feature that will automatically unlock
the doors and turn the interior lamps on when the frontal
air bags inflate (if battery power is available).
You can
lock the doors again and turn the interior lamps off by
using the door lock and interior lamp controls.
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