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CAUTION: (Continued)
They are not designed to in ate in rollover,
rear crashes, or in many side crashes. And, for
some unrestrained occupants, airbags may
provide less protection in frontal crashes than
more forceful airbags have provided in the
past. Everyone in your vehicle should wear a
safety belt properly — whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
{CAUTION:
Airbags in ate with great force, faster than the
blink of an eye. If you are too close to an
in ating airbag, as you would be if you were
leaning forward, it could seriously injure you.
Safety belts help keep you in position before
and during a crash. Always wear your safety
belt, even with airbags. The driver should sit
as far back as possible while still maintaining
control of the vehicle.
{CAUTION:
Anyone who is up against, or very close to, any
airbag when it in ates can be seriously injured
or killed. Airbags plus lap-shoulder belts offer
the best protection for adults, but not for young
children and infants. Neither the vehicle’s safety
belt system nor its airbag system is designed
for them. Young children and infants need the
protection that a child restraint system can
provide. Always secure children properly in
your vehicle. To read how, seeOlder Children
on page 1-18andInfants and Young Children on
page 1-20.
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There is an airbag
readiness light on the
instrument panel cluster,
which shows the airbag
symbol.
The system checks the airbag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical
problem. SeeAirbag Readiness Light on page 3-24
for more information.Where Are the Airbags?
The driver’s airbag is in the middle of the steering wheel.
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The right front passenger’s airbag is in the instrument
panel on the passenger’s side.
{CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and an
airbag, the bag might not in ate properly or it
might force the object into that person causing
severe injury or even death. The path of an
in ating airbag must be kept clear. Do not put
anything between an occupant and an airbag,
and do not attach or put anything on the
steering wheel hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.
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When Should an Airbag In ate?
Airbags are designed to in ate in moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crashes. But they are designed to
in ate only if the impact exceeds a predetermined
deployment threshold. Deployment thresholds take into
account a variety of desired deployment and
non-deployment events and are used to predict how
severe a crash is likely to be in time for the airbags to
in ate and help restrain the occupants. Whether your
frontal airbags will or should deploy is not based on how
fast your vehicle is traveling. It depends largely on what
you hit, the direction of the impact and how quickly your
vehicle slows down.In addition, your vehicle has “dual stage” frontal airbags,
which adjust the restraint according to crash severity.
Your vehicle is equipped with electronic frontal sensors,
which help the sensing system distinguish between a
moderate frontal impact and a more severe frontal
impact. For moderate frontal impacts, these airbags
in ate at a level less than full deployment. For more
severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs. If the front
of your vehicle goes straight into a wall that does not
move or deform, the threshold level for the reduced
deployment is about 12 to 16 mph (19 to 26 km/h), and
the threshold level for a full deployment is about
18 to 22 mph (28.9 to 35.4 km/h). (The threshold level
can vary, however, with speci c vehicle design, so that it
can be somewhat above or below this range.)
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Frontal airbags may in ate at different crash speeds.
For example:
If the vehicle hits a stationary object, the airbags
could in ate at a different crash speed than if the
vehicle hits a moving object.
If the vehicle hits an object that deforms, the airbags
could in ate at a different crash speed than if the
vehicle hits an object does not deform.
If the vehicle hits a narrow object (like a pole) the
airbags could in ate at a different crash speed than if
the vehicle hits a wide object (like a wall).
If the vehicle goes into an object at an angle the
airbags could in ate at a different crash speed than if
the vehicle goes straight into the object.
The frontal airbags are not intended to in ate during
vehicle rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an airbag
should have in ated simply because of the damage to a
vehicle or because of what the repair costs were. In ation
is determined by what the vehicle hits, the angle of the
impact, and how quickly the vehicle slows down.
What Makes an Airbag In ate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the airbag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The
sensing system triggers a release of gas from the
in ator, which in ates the airbag. The in ator, airbag,
and related hardware are all part of the airbag modules
inside the steering wheel and in the instrument panel
in front of the right front passenger.
How Does an Airbag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. Airbags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Airbags distribute the force of
the impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually. But airbags would
not help you in many types of collisions, including
rollovers, rear impacts and many side impacts, primarily
because an occupant’s motion is not toward those
airbags. Airbags should never be regarded as anything
more than a supplement to safety belts, and then only in
moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal collisions.
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What Will You See After an Airbag
In ates?
After an airbag in ates, it quickly de ates, so quickly that
some people may not even realize the airbag in ated.
Some components of the airbag module — the steering
wheel hub for the driver’s airbag or the instrument panel
for the right front passenger’s bag — will be hot for a
short time. The parts of the bag 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 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.
Your vehicle has a feature that may automatically unlock
the doors, turn the interior lamps on, turn the hazard
warning ashers on and turn off the HVAC when the
airbags in ate (if battery power is available). You can
lock the doors again, turn the interior lamps off, turn the
hazard warning ashers off and turn the HVAC on by
using the controls for those features.
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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.
Airbags are designed to in ate only once. After an
airbag in ates, you will need some new parts for your
airbag system. If you do not get them, the airbag
system will not be there to help protect you in another
crash. A new system will include airbag modules and
possibly other parts. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need to replace other parts.
Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and
diagnostic module which records information after a
crash. SeeVehicle Data Collection and Event Data
Recorders on page 7-9.
Let only quali ed technicians work on your airbag
system. Improper service can mean that your airbag
system will not work properly. See your dealer for
service.
Passenger Sensing System
Your vehicle has a passenger sensing system. The
passenger airbag status indicator will be visible when you
turn your ignition key to RUN or START. The words ON
and OFF or the symbol for on and off, will be visible on
the instrument panel during the system check. When the
system check is complete, either the word ON or the word
OFF, or the symbol for on or the symbol for off will be
visible. SeePassenger Airbag Status Indicator on
page 3-25.
The passenger sensing system will turn off the
passenger’s frontal airbag under certain conditions.
The driver’s airbag is not part of the passenger sensing
system.Passenger
Airbag Status
Indicator – United States
Passenger
Airbag Status
Indicator – Canada
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The passenger sensing system works with sensors that
are part of the passenger’s seat. The sensors are
designed to detect the presence of a properly-seated
occupant and determine if the passenger’s frontal airbag
should be enabled (may in ate) or not.
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they are
restrained in the rear rather than the front seat. General
Motors recommends that child restraints be secured in a
rear seat, including an infant riding in a rear-facing infant
seat, a child riding in a forward-facing child seat and an
older child riding in a booster seat. Never put a child in a
rear-facing child restraint in the right front passenger seat
unless the passenger airbag status indicator shows off.
Never put a rear-facing child restraint in the right front
passenger seat unless the airbag is off.
{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s airbag in ates. This is because the
back of the rear-facing child restraint would be
very close to the in ating airbag. Be sure the
airbag is off before using a rear-facing child
restraint in the right front seat position.
Even though the passenger sensing system is
designed to turn off the passenger’s frontal
airbag if the system detects a rear-facing child
restraint, no system is fail-safe, and no one can
guarantee that an airbag will not deploy under
some unusual circumstance, even though it is
turned off. General Motors recommends that
rear-facing child restraints be secured in a rear
seat whenever possible, even if the airbag is off.
If you need to secure a forward-facing child
restraint in the right front seat, always move the
front passenger seat as far back as it will go.
It is better to secure the child restraint in a
rear seat.
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