What Makes An Airbag Inflate - Chevrolet 2006 Corvette Owner's Manual

The frontal airbags (driver and passenger) are not
intended to inflate during vehicle rollovers, rear impacts,
or in many side impacts.
Your vehicle may or may not have side impact airbags.
See Airbag System on page 1-38 for more information.
Side impact airbags are intended to inflate in moderate
to severe side crashes. A side impact airbag will
inflate if the crash severity is above the system's
designed "threshold level." The threshold level can vary
with specific vehicle design. Side impact airbags are
not intended to inflate in frontal or near-frontal impacts,
rollovers or rear impacts. A side impact airbag is
intended to deploy on the side of the vehicle that
is struck.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an
airbag should have inflated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs
were. For frontal airbags, inflation is determined by
what the vehicle hits, the angle of the impact, and
how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal and
near-frontal impacts. For side impact airbags, inflation is
determined by the location and severity of the impact.
What Makes an Airbag Inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the airbag
sensing system detects that the vehicle is in a crash.
The sensing system triggers a release of gas from
the inflator, which inflates the airbag. The inflator,
the airbag and related hardware are all part of the airbag
modules. Frontal airbag modules are located inside
the steering wheel and instrument panel. For seating
positions with side impact airbags, there are also
airbag modules in the side of the seatbacks closest to
the door.
1-45