2002 SUBARU IMPREZA Owners Manual

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-42
SRS frontal airbag
WARNING
NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING
CHILD SEAT IN THE FRONT SEAT. DOING SO
RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO THE
CHILD BY PLACING THE CHILD ’S HEAD TOO
CLOSE TO THE SRS AIRBAG.
HS0042
WARNING
Never allow a child to stand up, or to kneel on the front passenger ’s seat, or never hold a
child on your lap or in your arms. The SRS air-bag deploys with considerable force and can injure or even kill the child.
HG1014BA

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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HG1013BA
WARNING
The SRS airbag deploys with considerable speed and force. Occupants who are out of proper position when the SRS airbag deploys
could suffer very serious injuries. Becausethe SRS airbag needs enough space for de-ployment, the driver should always sit uprightand well back in the seat as far from the steer-ing wheel as practical while still maintaining full vehicle control and the front passenger should move the seat as far back as possibleand sit upright and well back in the seat. It is also important to wear your seatbelt to
help avoid injuries that can result when the SRS airbag contacts an occupant not in prop-er position such as one thrown toward thefront of the car during pre-accident braking.HG1001BA
The driver
’s SRS frontal airbag is stowed in the cen-
ter portion of the steering wheel. The passenger ’s
SRS frontal airbag is stowed near the top of the
dashboard under an “SRS AIRBAG ” mark.

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
1-44
WARNING
Do not put any objects over the steering wheel pad and dashboard. If the SRS frontal
airbag deploys, those objects could interferewith its proper operation and could be pro-
pelled inside the vehicle and cause injury.
HS0244
WARNING
Do not attach accessories to the windshield, or fit an extra-wide mirror over the rear view
mirror. If the SRS airbag deploys, those ob-jects could become projectiles that could seri- ously injure vehicle occupants.
HS0245
In a moderate to severe frontal collision, the driver’s
and front passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags deploy
and supplement the seatbelts by reducing the im- pact on the driver ’s and front passenger ’s head and
chest.

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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Operation
The SRS airbag can function only when the ignition switch is in the “ON” position.
If the front sub sensors inside the both front fenders
and the impact sensors in the airbag control module
detect a certain predetermined amount of force dur-
ing a frontal collision, the control module sends sig-
nals to the frontal airbag modules instructing them to
inflate the SRS frontal airbags. Then both airbag
modules produce gas, which instantly inflates driv-er’ s and passenger ’s SRS frontal airbags. After the
deployment, the SRS airbags immediately start to
deflate so that the driver ’s vision is not obstructed.
The time required from detecting impact to the de-
flating SRS airbag after deployment is shorter thanthe blink of an eye. The front passenger
’s SRS frontal airbag deploys to-
gether with driver ’s SRS frontal airbag even when no
one occupies the front passenger ’s seat.
Although it is highly unlikely that the SRS airbagwould activate in a non-accident situation, should it
occur, the SRS airbag will deflate quickly, not ob-
scuring vision and will not interfere with the driver ’s
ability to maintain control of the vehicle.

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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HS2001BB

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When the SRS airbag deploys, a sudden, fairly loud
inflation noise will be heard and some smoke will be
released. These occurrences are normal result of
the deployment. This smoke does not indicate a firein the vehicle.
CAUTION
Do not touch the SRS airbag system compo-
nents around the steering wheel and dash-board with bare hands right after deployment.
Doing so can cause burns because the com-ponents can be very hot as a result of deploy- ment.
The SRS frontal airbag is designed to deploy in the
event of an accident involving a moderate to severe
frontal collision. It is basically not designed to
deploy in lesser frontal impacts because the neces-
sary protection can be achieved by the seatbelt
alone. Also, it is basically not designed to deploy in
side or rear impacts or in roll-over accidents be-
cause deployment of the SRS frontal airbag wouldnot help the occupant in those situations. The SRS
airbag is designed to function on a one-time-only basis.
SRS airbag deployment depends on the level of force experienced in the passenger compartment
during a collision. That level differs from one type of
collision to another, and it may have no bearing onthe visible damage done to the vehicle itself.
n When will the SRS frontal airbag most likelydeploy?
HG1017BA
A head-on collision against a thick concrete wall at a
vehicle speed of 12 to 19 mph (20 to 30 km/h) acti-
vates the SRS frontal airbag. The SRS frontal airbag
will also be activated when the vehicle is exposed to
a frontal impact similar in fashion and magnitude tothe above-mentioned collision.

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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nAt what other times might the SRS frontal air- bag deploy?
HG1018BA
The SRS frontal airbag may be activated when the
vehicle sustains a hard impact in the undercarriage
area from the road surface (such as when the ve-
hicle plunges into a deep ditch, is severely bumped
or knocked hard against an obstacle on the roadsuch as a curb).

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nWhen is the SRS frontal airbag unlikely to deploy?
HG1035BA
There are many types of collisions which might not
necessarily require SRS frontal airbag deployment.
If the vehicle strikes an object, such as a telephonepole or sign pole, or if it slides under a truck ’s load
bed, or if it sustains an oblique offset frontal impact,
the SRS frontal airbag may not deploy depending on
the level of accident forces involved.