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Airbag System
Your vehicle has the following airbags:
A frontal airbag for the driver.
A frontal airbag for the right front passenger.
A seat-mounted side impact airbag for the
driver.
A seat-mounted side impact airbag for the
right front passenger.
A roof-rail airbag for the driver, passenger
directly behind the driver, and the third
row outboard passenger position.
A roof-rail airbag for the right front passenger,
passenger directly behind the right front
passenger, and the third row outboard
passenger position.
All of the airbags in your vehicle will have the
word AIRBAG embossed in the trim or on
an attached label near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word AIRBAG will
appear on the middle part of the steering wheel
for the driver and on the instrument panel for
the right front passenger.With seat-mounted side impact airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear on the side of the seatback
closest to the door.
With roof-rail airbags, the word AIRBAG will
appear along the headliner or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Even though today’s
airbags are also designed to help reduce the risk
of injury from the force of an in ating bag, all
airbags must in ate very quickly to do their job.
Here are the most important things to know about
the airbag system:
{CAUTION:
You can be severely injured or killed in a
crash if you are not wearing your safety
belt — even if you have airbags. Wearing
your safety belt during a crash helps
reduce your chance of hitting things
inside the vehicle or being ejected from it.
CAUTION: (Continued)
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CAUTION: (Continued)
Airbags are “supplemental restraints” to
the safety belts. All airbags are designed
to work with safety belts, but do not
replace them.
{CAUTION:
Frontal airbags are designed to deploy in
moderate to severe frontal and near
frontal crashes. They are not designed to
in ate in rollover, rear crashes, or in many
side crashes.
Seat-mounted side impact airbags are
designed to in ate in moderate to severe
crashes where something hits the side of
your vehicle. They are not designed to
in ate in frontal, in rollover, or in rear
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
crashes. Rollover capable roof-rail airbags
are designed to in ate in moderate to
severe crashes where something hits the
side of your vehicle, during a vehicle
rollover, or in a severe frontal impact.
They are not designed to in ate in rear
crashes.
Everyone in your vehicle should wear a
safety belt properly — whether or not
there is an airbag for that person.
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{CAUTION:
Airbags in ate with great force, faster
than the blink of an eye. Anyone who is
up against, or very close to, any airbag
when it in ates can be seriously injured
or killed. Do not sit unnecessarily close to
the airbag, as you would be if you were
sitting on the edge of your seat or leaning
forward. 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.
Occupants should not lean on or sleep
against the door or side windows in
seating positions with seat-mounted side
impact airbags and/or roof-rail airbags.
{CAUTION:
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 48orInfants and Young Children
on page 51.
There is an airbag
readiness light on the
instrument panel cluster,
which shows the
airbag symbol.
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The system checks the airbag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an
electrical problem. SeeAirbag Readiness Light on
page 217for more information.
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver’s frontal airbag is in the middle of the
steering wheel.The right front passenger’s frontal airbag is in the
instrument panel on the passenger’s side.
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The seat-mounted side impact airbags for the
driver and right front passenger are in the side of
the seatbacks closest to the door.The roof-rail airbags for the driver, right front
passenger, passengers behind the driver and right
front passenger, and the third row outboard
passengers are in the ceiling above the side
windows.
Driver Side shown, Passenger Side similarDriver Side shown, Passenger Side similar
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{CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and
an airbag, the airbag 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.
Do not use seat accessories that block
the in ation path of a seat-mounted side
impact airbag.
If your vehicle has roof-rail airbags, never
secure anything to the roof of your
vehicle by routing the rope or tie down
through any door or window opening. If
you do, the path of an in ating roof-rail
airbag will be blocked.
When Should an Airbag In ate?
Frontal airbags are designed to in ate in moderate
to severe frontal or near-frontal crashes to help
reduce the potential for severe injuries mainly
to the driver’s or right front passenger’s head and
chest. However, they are only designed to
in ate if the impact exceeds a predetermined
deployment threshold. Deployment thresholds 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.
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 that
does not deform.
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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.
Thresholds can also vary with speci c vehicle
design.
Frontal airbags are not intended to in ate during
vehicle rollovers, rear impacts, or in many
side impacts.
In addition, your vehicle has dual-stage frontal
airbags. Dual-stage airbags adjust the restraint
according to crash severity. Your vehicle has
electronic frontal sensors, which help the sensing
system distinguish between a moderate frontal
impact and a more severe frontal impact. For
moderate frontal impacts, dual-stage airbags in ate
at a level less than full deployment. For more
severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs.
Seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags are
intended to in ate in moderate to severe side
crashes. In addition, these roof-rail airbagsare intended to in ate during a rollover or in a
severe frontal impact. Seat-mounted side impact
and roof-rail airbags will in ate if the crash severity
is above the system’s designed threshold level.
The threshold level can vary with speci c vehicle
design.
Seat-mounted side impact airbags are not
intended to in ate in frontal impacts, near-frontal
impacts, rollovers, or rear impacts. Roof-rail
airbags are not intended to in ate in rear impacts.
A seat-mounted side impact airbag is intended
to deploy on the side of the vehicle that is struck.
Both roof-rail airbags will deploy when either
side of the vehicle is struck, or if the sensing
system predicts that the vehicle is about to
roll over, or in a severe frontal impact.
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. For frontal airbags, in ation is
determined by what the vehicle hits, the angle
of the impact, and how quickly the vehicle slows
down. For seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags, deployment is determined by the
location and severity of the side impact. In a
rollover event, roof-rail airbag deployment
is determined by the direction of the roll.
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What Makes an Airbag In ate?
In a deployment event, the sensing system sends
an electrical signal triggering a release of gas
from the in ator. Gas from the in ator lls
the airbag causing the bag to break out of the
cover and deploy. The in ator, the airbag,
and related hardware are all part of the airbag
module.
Frontal airbag modules are located inside the
steering wheel and instrument panel. For vehicles
with seat-mounted side impact airbags, there
are airbag modules in the side of the front
seatbacks closest to the door. For vehicles with
roof-rail airbags, there are airbag modules in
the ceiling of the vehicle, near the side windows
that have occupant seating positions.
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. In
moderate to severe side collisions, even belted
occupants can contact the inside of the vehicle.Airbags supplement the protection provided by
safety belts.
Frontal airbags distribute the force of the impact
more evenly over the occupant’s upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually.
Seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags
distribute the force of the impact more evenly over
the occupant’s upper body.
Rollover capable roof-rail airbags are designed to
help contain the head and chest of occupants
in the outboard seating positions in the rst,
second, and third rows. The rollover capable
roof-rail airbags are designed to help reduce the
risk of full or partial ejection in rollover events,
although no system can prevent all such ejections.
But airbags would not help in many types of
collisions, primarily because the occupant’s motion
is not toward those airbags. SeeWhen Should
an Airbag Inflate? on page 81for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything
more than a supplement to safety belts.
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