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172
Airbag
system
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants .
Fig. 182
Side airbag locat ion in the driver's seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests
c::>
fig. 182 and the rear
backrest* facing the doors. They are identified
by the word "AIRBAG".
The side airbag system basically consists of:
- the electronic control module and external
side impact sensors
- the two airbags located in the sides of the
front backrests and the two airbags* located
in the rear backrest
- the airbag warning light in the instrument
cluster.
The airbag system is monitored electronically
to make certain that it is functioning properly
at all times. Each time you turn on the igni-
tion, the airbag system indicator light will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) .
The side airbag system supplements
the safe-
ty belts and can help to reduce the risk of in-
jury to the driver's and front passenger's up-
per torso on the side of the vehicle that is
struck in a side collision. The airbag deploys
only in side impacts and only when the vehicle
acceleration registered by the control unit is
high enough. If this rate is below the refer-
ence value programmed into the control unit,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re-
sult of the collision. It is not possible to de-
fine an airbag triggering range that will cover
every possible angle of impact, since the cir-
cumstances will vary considerably between
one collision and another. Important factors
include, for example, the nature (hard or soft)
of the impacting object, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed, etc.
c::>
page 173, Important
safety instructions on the side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function, safe-
ty belts work to help keep the driver or front
passenger in position in the event of a side
collision so that the side airbags can provide
protection .
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt . Rather, it is part of the overall oc-
cupant restraint system in your vehicle. Al-
ways remember that the side airbag system
can only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wearing it properly. This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re-
quires you to do so c::> page 148, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supplemental
side airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of serious injuries,
other injuries, for example, swelling, bruising,
and minor abrasions can also be associated
with deployed side airbags. Remember too,
side airbags will deploy only once and only in
certain kinds of accidents - your safety belts
are always there to offer protection .
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessarily an indi-
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa-
tion. In some collisions, both front and side
airbags may inflate. Remember too, that air-
bags will deploy only once and only in certain
kinds of collisions -your safety belts are al-
ways there to offer protection in those acci-
dents in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed .
The side airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignition is turned off
- in side collisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
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