What Will You See After an
Airbag In ates?
After a frontal airbag in ates, it quickly de ates, so
quickly that some people may not even realize the airbag
in ated. Roof-mounted side impact airbags de ate more
slowly and may still be at least partially in ated minutes
after the vehicle comes to rest. Some components of the
airbag module may be hot for a short time. These
components include the steering wheel hub for the
driver’s frontal airbag and the instrument panel for the
right front passenger’s frontal airbag. For vehicles with
roof-mounted side impact airbags, the ceiling of your
vehicle near the side windows, and the vehicle metal near
the rear windows and tailgate may be warm. The parts of
the airbag that come into contact with you may be warm,
but not too hot to touch. There will be some smoke and
dust coming from the vents in the de ated airbags. Airbag
in ation does not prevent the driver from seeing out of the
windshield or being able to steer the vehicle, nor does it
stop people from leaving the vehicle.
{CAUTION:
When an airbag in ates, there is dust in the
air. This dust could cause breathing problems
for people with a history of asthma or other
breathing trouble. To avoid this, everyone in
the vehicle should get out as soon as it is safe
to do so. If you have breathing problems but
cannot get out of the vehicle after an airbag
in ates, then get fresh air by opening a
window or a door. If you experience breathing
problems following an airbag deployment, you
should seek medical attention.
In many crashes severe enough to in ate an airbag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also occur from
the right front passenger airbag.
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