2009 PONTIAC VIBE Owners Manual

After a minor crash, replacement of
safety belts may not be necessary.
But the safety belt assemblies
that were used during any crash
may have been stressed or
damaged. See your dealer/retailer
to have the safety belt assemblies
inspected or replaced.
New parts and repairs may be
necessary even if the safety belt
system was not being used at
the time of the crash.
Have the safety belt pretensioners
checked if the vehicle has been in
a crash, or if the airbag readiness
light stays on after you start
the vehicle or while you are driving.
SeeAirbag Readiness Light on
page 4-14.Airbag System
This vehicle has the following
airbags:
A frontal airbag for the driver.
A frontal airbag for the right front
passenger.
The vehicle may have the following
airbags:
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
and the passenger seated
directly behind the driver.
A roof-rail airbag for the
right front passenger and the
passenger seated directly behind
the right front passenger.All of the airbags in the 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 inating bag, all airbags
must inate very quickly to do
their job.
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2009 - Pontiac Vibe Owner Manual

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. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, but do not replace them.
Also, airbags are not designed to
deploy in every crash. In some
crashes safety belts are your only
restraint. SeeWhen Should an
Airbag Inflate? on page 1-24.
Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance
of hitting things inside the vehicle
or being ejected from it. Airbags
are “supplemental restraints” to
the safety belts. Everyone in your
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly — whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
{CAUTION
Airbags inate with great force,
faster than the blink of an eye.
Anyone who is up against, or very
close to, any airbag when it
inates 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
Children who are up against, or
very close to, any airbag when it
inates can be seriously injured or
killed. Airbags plus lap-shoulder
belts offer protection for adults
and older children, 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 1-36orInfants and Young
Children on page 1-38.
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2009 - Pontiac Vibe Owner Manual

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 4-14
for more information.Where Are the Airbags?
The driver frontal airbag is in the
middle of the steering wheel.
The right front passenger frontal
airbag is in the instrument panel on
the passenger’s side.If the vehicle has seat-mounted side
impact airbags for the driver and
right front passenger, they are in the
side of the seatbacks closest to
the door.
Driver Side shown, Passenger
Side similar
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2009 - Pontiac Vibe Owner Manual

If the vehicle has roof-rail airbags for
the driver, right front passenger, and
second row outboard passengers,
they are in the ceiling above the side
windows.
{CAUTION
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inate properly or
it might force the object into that
person causing severe injury or
even death. The path of an
inating 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.
(Continued)
CAUTION (Continued)
Do not use seat accessories
that block the ination path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path of an
inating roof-rail airbag will be
blocked.
When Should an Airbag
Inate?
Frontal airbags are designed to
inate in moderate to severe frontal
or near-frontal crashes to help
reduce the potential for severe
injuries mainly to the driver or right
front passenger head and chest.
However, they are only designed
to inate if the impact exceeds apredetermined deployment
threshold. Deployment thresholds
are used to predict how severe a
crash is likely to be in time for the
airbags to inate and help restrain
the occupants.
Whether the frontal airbags will or
should deploy is not based on
how fast the 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 inate at
different crash speeds. For example:
If the vehicle hits a stationary
object, the airbags could inate at
a different crash speed than if the
vehicle hits a moving object.
If the vehicle hits an object that
deforms, the airbags could inate
at a different crash speed than if
the vehicle hits an object that
does not deform.
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2009 - Pontiac Vibe Owner Manual

If the vehicle hits a narrow object
(like a pole), the airbags could
inate 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
inate at a different crash speed
than if the vehicle goes straight
into the object.
Thresholds can also vary with
specic vehicle design.
Frontal airbags are not intended
to inate during vehicle rollovers,
rear impacts, or in many side
impacts. Frontal airbags for the
driver and right front passenger
may also deploy if a serious impact
occurs to the underside of the
vehicle such as hitting a curb, falling
into a deep hole, or landing hard.
In addition, the vehicle has
dual-stage frontal airbags.
Dual-stage airbags adjust the
restraint according to crash severity.The 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
inate at a level less than full
deployment. For more severe frontal
impacts, full deployment occurs.
The vehicle may have seat-mounted
side impact and roof-rail airbags.
SeeAirbag System on page 1-21.
Seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags are intended
to inate in moderate to severe
side crashes. Seat-mounted
side impact and roof-rail airbags
will inate if the crash severity
is above the system’s designed
threshold level. Your vehicle
has sensors which detect side
impacts. These sensors signal the
appropriate side impact airbag
to inate. The threshold level can
vary with specic vehicle design.Seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags are not intended to
inate in frontal impacts, near-frontal
impacts, rollovers, or rear impacts.
A seat-mounted side impact airbag is
intended to deploy on the side of the
vehicle that is struck. A roof-rail
airbag is intended to deploy on the
side of the vehicle that is struck. It is
possible that, in a crash involving the
rear side of your vehicle, that only the
roof-mounted airbag will deploy.
In any particular crash, no one can
say whether an airbag should have
inated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because
of what the repair costs were.
For frontal airbags, ination 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.
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2009 - Pontiac Vibe Owner Manual

What Makes an Airbag
Inate?
In a deployment event, the sensing
system sends an electrical signal
triggering a release of gas from the
inator. Gas from the inator lls
the airbag causing the bag to break
out of the cover and deploy. The
inator, 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.
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 1-24for
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 and
seat-mounted side impact 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 1-26.
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2009 - Pontiac Vibe Owner Manual

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
(Continued)
CAUTION (Continued)
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.
The 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.
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.
The vehicle has a crash sensing
and diagnostic module which
records information after a crash.
SeeVehicle Data Recording and
Privacy on page 12-17andEvent
Data Recorders on page 12-17.
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.
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2009 - Pontiac Vibe Owner Manual

Passenger Sensing
System
The vehicle has a passenger
sensing system for the right front
passenger position. The passenger
airbag status indicator will be
visible in the instrument panel when
the vehicle is started.
The words ON and OFF will be
visible during the system check.
When the system check is complete,
either the word ON or the word
OFF will be visible depending onwhether the seat is occupied and/or
the weight of the occupant. If the
seat is unoccupied, the light will not
be visible after the system check.
SeePassenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 4-15.
The passenger sensing system will
turn off the right front passenger
frontal airbag and seat-mounted
side impact airbag under certain
conditions. The driver airbags
and the roof-rail airbags are not
affected by the passenger sensing
system.
The passenger sensing system will
also turn off the right front passenger
frontal airbag, seat-mounted side
impact airbag (if equipped), and
safety belt pretensioner if it detects
that there is no occupant in that
position.
The passenger sensing system
works with sensors that are part of
the right front passenger seat.
The sensors are designed to detectthe presence of a properly-seated
occupant and determine if the
right front passenger frontal airbag
and seat-mounted side impact
airbag (if equipped) should
be enabled (may inate) or not.
According to accident statistics,
children and infants are safer when
properly restrained in a child
restraint system or infant restraint
system secured in a rear seating
position.
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 the 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.
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