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prevent proper deployment of the airbag.
Small objects can be thrown through the
veh icle if the airbag deploys and injure you
or your passenger
.
-
Make sure there are no cracks, deep scratch-
es or other damage in the area of the instru-
ment panel where the knee a irbags are lo-
cated.
-
If children are incorrect ly seated, their risk
of injury increases in a collision
¢
page 213, Child safety
.
Side
airbags
Description of
side
airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants
.
Fig. 167 Side a irbag
locati
on in the dr iver 's se at
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests
¢
fig.
167
facing the doors
.
They are identif ied by the word "AIRBAG"
.
The side airbags installed for the front seating
posi
t
ions have been designed
a
nd certified to
he lp reduce the risk of injury that can be caused
by ai rbags when they inflate, particularly when
the occupant
sit
t ing next to it is not seated prop-
e rly. The side airbag for the front passenger seat
can be used with properly insta lled child
re-
stra ints. Please be sure to read the important in-
formation and wa rnings whenever us ing a child
rest raint in a vehicle: Safety belts
¢
page 183,
Airbag system
¢
page 191,
Child safety
¢
page 213
.
The side airbag system basically
consists
of:
-
the e lectron ic cont rol mod ule and exte rna
l
side
impact sensors
Airb
a
g
sys
tem
-
the two side airbags located in the s ides of the
front backrests
-
the airbag warning light in the over head con
-
sole
.
The airbag system is mo nitored electro nical ly
t
o
make certain
t
ha
t
it is functioning properly at al
l
t imes. Each time you turn on the
ignit
ion
,
the air-
bag system indicator light
will
come on fo
r
a few
seconds (self diagnostics)
.
The side airbag system supplements
t he safety
belts and can help to reduce the risk of injury to
the driver 's and front passenger's upper torso
and head on the side of t he vehicle that is struck
in a side coll is ion. The a irbag dep loys in s ide im-
pacts and only when the vehicle acce leration reg-
istered by the control
unit
is high enough. If th is
rate is below the reference va lue programmed
in-
to the control unit, the side airbags will not be
t rigge red, even tho ugh the car may be badly
damaged as a res ult of the collision. It is not pos-
sible to define an airbag triggering range that
will cover every poss ible angle of impact, since
the circumstances will vary considerably between
one collis ion and anothe
r.
Impo rtant factors in-
clude, for example, the nature (hard or soft) of
the impacting object, the angle of impact, veh icle
speed, etc
.
¢
page 211, Important safety in-
structions on the side airbag system
.
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
belts work to help keep the dr iver or front pas-
senger in position in the event of a side collision
so that the side airbags can provide protect ion
.
The airbag system is
not
a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu-
pant restra int system in your vehicle. Always re-
member that the side airbag system can only
help to protect you if you are wear ing you
r
safety
belt a nd wear ing it properly
.
This
is a nothe
r
rea
-
son why you sho uld a lways wear your safety
belts, not just because the law requires you to do
so
¢
page 183, General notes.
It is important to remembe
r
that while the sup-
pleme nt
al
side airbag system is designed to
re-
du ce the likelihood of ser ious injuries
,
other inju-
ries, for example, swelling, bruis ing
,
friction
burns and minor abrasions can also be assoc iated
.,.
209
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