2008 HUMMER H3 Owners Manual

Rollover capable roof-rail airbags are designed to help
contain the head and chest of occupants in the outboard
seating positions in the rst and second 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 1-59for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts.
What Will You See After an
Airbag Inates?
After the frontal airbags inate, they quickly deate,
so quickly that some people may not even realize
an airbag inated. Roof-rail airbags may still be at
least partially inated for some time after they deploy.
Some components of the airbag module may be hot for
several minutes. For location of the airbag modules,
seeWhat Makes an Airbag Inflate? on page 1-60.
The parts of the airbag that come into contact
with you may be warm, but not too hot to touch.
There may be some smoke and dust coming
from the vents in the deated airbags.Airbag ination does not prevent the driver from
seeing out of the windshield or being able to steer
the vehicle, nor does it prevent people from leaving
the vehicle.
{CAUTION:
When an airbag inates, there may be 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
inates, 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, and turn
the hazard warning ashers on when the airbags inate.
You can lock the doors, turn the interior lamps off,
and turn the hazard warning ashers off by using the
controls for those features.
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In many crashes severe enough to inate the airbag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also occur from the
right front passenger airbag.
Airbags are designed to inate only once. After an
airbag inates, you will need some new parts for
the 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 has a crash sensing and diagnostic
module which records information after a crash.
SeeVehicle Data Recording and Privacy on
page 7-16andEvent Data Recorders on page 7-17.
Let only qualied technicians work on the airbag
systems. Improper service can mean that an
airbag system will not work properly. See your
dealer/retailer for service.
Passenger Sensing System
Your vehicle has a passenger sensing system for
the right front passenger’s position. The passenger
airbag status indicator will be visible in the instrument
panel when you start your vehicle.
The words ON and OFF, or the symbol for on and off,
will be visible 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 3-30. United States
Canada
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The passenger sensing system will turn off the right
front passenger’s frontal airbag under certain conditions.
The driver’s airbags are not part of the passenger
sensing system.
The passenger sensing system works with sensors that
are part of the right front passenger’s seat and safety
belt. The sensors are designed to detect the presence of
a properly-seated occupant and determine if the right
front passenger’s frontal airbag should be enabled
(may inate) or not.
Accident statistics show that children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear rather than the front seat.
We recommend that children be secured in a rear seat,
including: an infant or a child riding in a rear-facing
child restraint; a child riding in a forward-facing child
seat; an older child riding in a booster seat; and children,
who are large enough, using safety belts.
A label on your sun visor says, “Never put a rear-facing
child seat in the front.” This is because the risk to the
rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.
{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger’s airbag inates. This is because
the back of the rear-facing child restraint
would be very close to the inating airbag.
Even though the passenger sensing system is
designed to turn off the right front 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. We recommend that
rear-facing child restraints be secured in a rear
seat, even if the airbag is off.
If you 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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The passenger sensing system is designed to turn off
the right front passenger’s frontal airbag if:
The right front passenger seat is unoccupied.
The system determines that an infant is present in
a rear-facing infant seat.
The system determines that a small child is present
in a child restraint.
The system determines that a small child is present
in a booster seat.
A right front passenger takes his/her weight off of
the seat for a period of time.
The right front passenger seat is occupied by a
smaller person, such as a child who has outgrown
child restraints.
Or, if there is a critical problem with the airbag
system or the passenger sensing system.When the passenger sensing system has turned off the
right front passenger’s frontal airbag, the off indicator
will light and stay lit to remind you that the airbag is off.
SeePassenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 3-30.
If a child restraint has been installed and the on indicator
is lit, turn the vehicle off. Remove the child restraint
from the vehicle and reinstall the child restraint following
the child restraint manufacturer’s directions and refer
toSecuring a Child Restraint in the Right Front
Seat Position on page 1-51.
If, after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting
the vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, check to make
sure that the vehicle’s seatback is not pressing the child
restraint into the seat cushion. If this happens, slightly
recline the vehicle’s seatback and adjust the seat
cushion if possible. Also make sure the child restraint
is not trapped under the vehicle head restraint.
If this happens, adjust the head restraint. SeeHead
Restraints on page 1-7.
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Remove any additional material from the seat such
as blankets, cushions, seat covers, seat heaters,
or seat massagers before reinstalling or securing the
child restraint.
If the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in the child
restraint in a rear seat position in the vehicle, and
check with your dealer/retailer.
The passenger sensing system is designed to enable
(may inate) the right front passenger’s frontal
airbag anytime the system senses that a person of
adult size is sitting properly in the right front passenger’s
seat. When the passenger sensing system has
allowed the airbag to be enabled, the on indicator will
light and stay lit to remind you that the airbag is active.
For some children who have outgrown child restraints
and for very small adults, the passenger sensing system
may or may not turn off the right front passenger’s
frontal airbag, depending upon the person’s seatingposture and body build. Everyone in your vehicle who
has outgrown child restraints should wear a safety
belt properly — whether or not there is an airbag
for that person.
If a person of adult-size is sitting in the right front
passenger’s seat, but the off indicator is lit, it could be
because that person is not sitting properly in the seat.
If this happens, turn the vehicle off, remove any
additional material from the seat, such as blankets,
cushions, seat covers, seat heaters or seat massagers
and ask the person to place the seatback in the fully
upright position, then sit upright in the seat, centered on
the seat cushion, with the person’s legs comfortably
extended. Restart the vehicle and have the person
remain in this position for two to three minutes.
This will allow the system to detect that person and
then enable the right front passenger’s frontal airbag.
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Safety belts help keep the passenger in position on
the seat during vehicle maneuvers and braking, which
helps the passenger sensing system maintain the
passenger airbag status. See “Safety Belts” and
“Child Restraints” in the Index for additional information
about the importance of proper restraint use.If you ever pull the shoulder portion of the belt out all
the way, you will engage the child restraint locking
feature. This may unintentionally cause the passenger
sensing system to turn the airbag(s) off for some
adult size occupants. If this happens, just let the belt
go back all the way and start again.
{CAUTION:
If the airbag readiness light in the instrument
panel cluster ever comes on and stays on,
it means that something may be wrong with
the airbag system. If this ever happens, have
the vehicle serviced promptly, because an
adult-size person sitting in the right front
passenger’s seat may not have the protection
of the airbag(s). SeeAirbag Readiness Light
on page 3-29for more on this, including
important safety information.
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A thick layer of additional material, such as a blanket
or cushion, or aftermarket equipment such as seat
covers, seat heaters, and seat massagers can affect
how well the passenger sensing system operates.
We recommend that you not use seat covers or other
aftermarket equipment other than any that GM has
approved for your specic vehicle. SeeAdding
Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle on
page 1-68for more information about modications
that can affect how the system operates.
{CAUTION:
Stowing of articles under the passenger’s
seat or between the passenger’s seat cushion
and seatback may interfere with the proper
operation of the passenger sensing system.
Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped
Vehicle
Airbags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
There are parts of the airbag system in several places
around your vehicle. Your dealer/retailer and the service
manual have information about servicing your vehicle
and the airbag system. To purchase a service manual,
seeService Publications Ordering Information on
page 7-15.
{CAUTION:
For up to 10 seconds after the ignition is
turned off and the battery is disconnected,
an airbag can still inate during improper
service. You can be injured if you are close
to an airbag when it inates. Avoid yellow
connectors. They are probably part of the
airbag system. Be sure to follow proper
service procedures, and make sure the person
performing work for you is qualied to do so.
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Adding Equipment to Your
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Q:Is there anything I might add to or change
about the vehicle that could keep the airbags
from working properly?
A:Yes. If you add things that change your vehicle’s
frame, bumper system, height, front end or side
sheet metal, they may keep the airbag system from
working properly. Changing or moving any parts of
the front seats, safety belts, the airbag sensing and
diagnostic module, steering wheel, instrument panel,
roof-rail airbag modules, ceiling headliner or pillar
garnish trim, overhead console, front sensors, side
impact sensors, rollover sensor module, or airbag
wiring can affect the operation of the airbag system.
In addition, your vehicle has a passenger sensing
system for the right front passenger’s position, which
includes sensors that are part of the passenger’s
seat. The passenger sensing system may not
operate properly if the original seat trim is replaced
with non-GM covers, upholstery or trim, or with GM
covers, upholstery or trim designed for a different
vehicle. Any object, such as an aftermarket seat
heater or a comfort enhancing pad or device,
installed under or on top of the seat fabric, couldalso interfere with the operation of the passenger
sensing system. This could either prevent proper
deployment of the passenger airbag(s) or prevent
the passenger sensing system from properly turning
off the passenger airbag(s). SeePassenger Sensing
System on page 1-62.
If you have any questions about this, you should
contact Customer Assistance before you modify
your vehicle. The phone numbers and addresses for
Customer Assistance are in Step Two of the
Customer Satisfaction Procedure in this manual.
SeeCustomer Satisfaction Procedure on page 7-2.
If your vehicle has rollover roof-rail airbags, see
Different Size Tires and Wheels on page 5-73
for additional important information.
Q:Because I have a disability, I have to get my
vehicle modied. How can I nd out whether
this will affect my airbag system?
A:If you have questions, call Customer Assistance.
The phone numbers and addresses for Customer
Assistance are in Step Two of the Customer
Satisfaction Procedure in this manual. See
Customer Satisfaction Procedure on page 7-2.
In addition, your dealer/retailer and the service manual
have information about the location of the airbag sensors,
sensing and diagnostic module and airbag wiring.
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