Hyundai Elantra 2024 Owner's Manual page 60

Seats & safety system
How does the airbag system
operate?
The SRSCM (Supplemental Restraint
System Control Module) continually
monitors all SRS components while the
ignition switch is ON to determine if a
crash impact is severe enough to require
airbag deployment or pretensioner seat
belt deployment.
During a moderate to severe frontal
collision, sensors detect the vehicle's
rapid deceleration. If the rate of
deceleration is high enough, the SRSCM
inflates the front airbags with the force
needed.
The front airbags help protect the driver
and front passenger by responding to
frontal impacts in which seat belts alone
cannot provide adequate restraint. When
needed, the side airbags help provide
protection in the event of a side impact or
rollover by supporting the side upper
body area.
• Airbags are activated (able to inflate if
necessary) only when the ignition
switch is in the ON or START position,
and it may be activated within 3
minutes after the engine is turned off.
• Airbags inflate in the event of certain
frontal or side collisions to help protect
the occupants from serious physical
injury.
• There is no single speed at which the
airbags will inflate. Generally, airbags
are designed to inflate based upon the
severity of a collision and its direction.
Airbag deployment also depends on a
number of other factors including
vehicle speed, angles of impact and the
density and stiffness of the vehicles or
objects which your vehicle impacts
during a collision. The determining
factors are not limited to those
mentioned above.
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• The front airbags completely inflate
and deflate in an instant. It is virtually
impossible for you to see the airbags
inflate during an accident. It is much
more likely that you simply see the
deflated airbags hanging out of their
storage compartments after the
collision.
• In addition to inflating in serious side
collisions, vehicles equipped with a
rollover sensor, side and/or curtain
airbags inflate if the sensing system
detects a rollover.
When a rollover is detected, curtain
airbags remain inflated longer to help
provide protection from ejection,
especially when used in conjunction
with the seat belts, (if equipped with a
rollover sensor).
• To help provide protection, the airbags
must inflate rapidly. The speed of
airbag inflation is a consequence of
extremely short time in which the
airbag inflates between the occupant
and the vehicle structures before the
occupant impacts those structures.
This speed of inflation reduces the risk
of serious or life-threatening injuries
and is thus a necessary part of airbag
design.
However, the rapid airbag inflation may
also cause injuries that include facial
abrasions, bruises, and broken bones
because the inflation speed also causes
the airbags to expand with great force.
• There are even circumstances under
which contact with the airbag may
cause fatal injuries, especially when the
occupant is positioned excessively
close to the airbag.
You can take steps to reduce the risk of
being injured by an inflating airbag. The
greatest risk is sitting too close to the
airbag. An airbag needs about 10 in. (25
cm) of space to inflate. NHTSA
recommends that drivers allow at least 10
in. (25 cm) between the center of the
steering wheel and the chest.