2002 SUBARU IMPREZA Owners Manual

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-50
nWhen will the SRS frontal airbag not deploy?
HG1036BA
The SRS frontal airbag is basically not designed to
deploy if the vehicle is struck from side or from
behind, or if it rolls onto its side or roof, or if it is in-
volved in a low-speed frontal collision.
In an accident where the vehicle is impacted more
than once, the SRS frontal airbag deploys only once.
HG1026BB
1) First impact 2) Second impact
Example: In the case of a double collision, first with
another vehicle, then against a concrete wall in im-
mediate succession, the SRS frontal airbag is acti-vated on the first impact but not on the second.

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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SRS side airbag (if equipped)
WARNING
The SRS side airbag is designed as only a
supplement to the primary protection pro- vided by the seatbelt. It does not do away with the need to fasten seatbelts. It is also impor- tant to wear your seatbelt to help avoid inju-
ries that can result when an occupant is not
seated in a proper upright position. Do not sit or lean unnecessarily close to ei-
ther front door. The SRS side airbag is stored
in both front seat seatbacks next to the door, and it provides protection by deploying rapid-ly (faster than the blink of an eye) in the event
of a side impact collision. However, the force
of SRS side airbag deployment may cause in-juries if your head or other body parts are too
close to the SRS side airbag.
HS0349
WARNING
Do not rest your arm on either front door or its internal trim. It could be injured in the event of SRS side airbag deployment.

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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HS0351
WARNING
Never allow a child to kneel on the front pas-
senger’s seat facing the side window or to
wrap his/her arms around the front seatback.In the event of an accident, the force of theSRS side airbag deployment could injure thechild seriously because his/her head or armsor other body parts are too close to the SRSside airbag. Since your vehicle is also equipped with a passenger ’s SRS frontal air-
bag, children aged 12 and under should be
placed in the rear seat anyway and should beproperly restrained at all times.
HB0354
HB0355

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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WARNING
Do not attach accessories to the door trim or near either SRS side airbags and do not placeobjects near the SRS side airbags. In the
event of the SRS side airbag deployment, they could be propelled dangerously toward the
vehicle’s occupants and cause injuries.
HS0353
WARNING
Do not put any kind of cover or clothes or oth- er objects over either front seatback and donot attach labels or stickers to the front seat
surface on or near the SRS side airbag. They could prevent proper deployment of the SRS side airbag, reducing protection available tothe front seat ’s occupant.
HS0347
The SRS side airbag is stored in the door side of
each front seatback, which bears an “SRS AIRBAG ”
label.
In a moderate to severe side impact collision, the SRS side airbag on the impacted side of the vehicle

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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deploys between the occupant and the door panel
and supplements the seatbelt by reducing the im-pact on the occupant’s chest.
Operation
The SRS side airbag can function only when the
ignition switch is in the “ON” position.
The driver ’s and front passenger ’s SRS side airbags
deploy independently of each other since each has
its own impact sensor. Also, the SRS side airbag de-
ploys independently of the frontal airbags in the steering wheel and instrument panel.
An impact sensor is incorporated into each of the
vehicle’ s center pillars. If either sensor detects a
certain predetermined amount of force during a side
impact collision, the control module sends a signal to the side airbag module on the impacted side of the vehicle, instructing it to inflate the SRS side air-
bag. Then the side airbag module produces gas,which instantly inflates the SRS side airbag. After
the deployment, the SRS side airbag immediately
starts to deflate. The time required from detecting
impact to deflating of the SRS side airbag after de-
ployment is shorter than the blink of an eye.

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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HB0359
A) SRS side airbag deploys as soon as a
collision occurs.
B) After deployment, SRS side airbag
starts to deflate immediately. The SRS side airbag deploys even when no one oc- cupies the seat on the side on which an impact isapplied.
When the SRS side airbag deploys, a sudden, fairly
loud inflation noise will be heard and some smoke
will be released. These occurrences are normal re-
sult of the deployment. This smoke does not indi-
cate a fire in the vehicle.
CAUTION
Do not touch the SRS side airbag system components around the front seatback with
bare hands right after deployment. Doing so
can cause burns because the componentscan be very hot as a result of deployment.
The SRS side airbag is designed to deploy in the
event of an accident involving a moderate to severe side impact collision. It is basically not designed to deploy in lesser side impact. Also, it is basically not
designed to deploy in frontal or rear impacts be-cause SRS side airbag deployment would not helpthe occupant in those situations.
Each SRS side airbag is designed to function on a
one-time-only basis.
SRS side airbag deployment depends on the level

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of force experienced in the passenger compartment
during a side impact collision. That level differs from
one type of collision to another, and it may have no
bearing on the visible damage done to the vehicleitself.n When will the SRS side airbag most likely deploy?
HB0313
A severe side impact near the front seat activates the SRS side airbag. n
When is the SRS side airbag unlikely todeploy?
There are many types of collisions which might not
necessarily require SRS side airbag deployment. Inthe event of accidents like those illustrated, the SRSside airbag may not deploy depending on the level
of accident forces involved.

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HG1021BB
1) The vehicle is involved in an
oblique side-on impact.
2) The vehicle is involved in a side-on
impact in an area outside the pas- senger compartment.
3) The vehicle strikes a telephone
pole or similar object.
4) The vehicle is involved in a side-on
impact from a motorcycle.
5) The vehicle rolls onto its side or
roof.