Pontiac 1996 Grand Am Owner's Manual page 31

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Don't put anything on, or attach anything to, the
steering wheel or instrument panel. Also, don't
put anything (such as pets or objects) between
any occupant and the steering wheel or
instrument panel. If something is between an
occupant and an air bag, it could-affect the
performance of the air bag
--
or worse, it could
cause injury.
When should an air bag inflate?
The air bag is designed to inflate in moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crashes. The air bag will inflate
only if the impact speed is above the system's designed
"threkhold level." If your vehicle goes straight into a
wall that doesn't move or deform, the threshold level is
about 9 to 16 mph (14 to 26
km/h).
The threshold level
can vary, however, with specific vehicle design, so that
it
can be somewhat above or below this range. If your
vehicle strikes something that will move or deform, such
as a parked car, the threshold level will be higher. The
air bag is not designed to inflate in rollovers, side
impacts,
or
rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because 6f what the repair costs were.
Inflation is determined by the angle ,of the impact and
the vehicle's deceleration. Vehicle damage is only one
indication of this.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In a
frontal
or near-frontal impact of sufficient
severity,
the air bag sensing system detects that
the
vehicle
is
suddenly stopping as a result of a crash. The sensing
system triggers a chemical reaction of the sodium azide
sealed in the inflator. The reaction produces nitrogen
gas, which inflates the a i r bag. The inflator, air bag and
related hardware are all part of the air bag modules
packed inside the steering wheel and in the instrument
panel in front of the right front passenger.