2010 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Owners Manual

Driver Side shown, Passenger Side similar
The seat-mounted side impact airbags for the driver and
right front passenger are in the side of the seatbacks
closest to the door.
{WARNING:
If something is between an occupant and an
airbag, the airbag might not inflate properly or it
might force the object into that person causing
severe injury or even death. The path of an
inflating 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
inflation path of a seat-mounted side impact
airbag.
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When Should an Airbag Inflate?
Frontal airbags are designed to inflate 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 inflate 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 inflate and help
restrain the occupants.
Whether the 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 inflate at different crash speeds.
For example:.If the vehicle hits a stationary object, the airbags
could inflate at a different crash speed than if the
vehicle hits a moving object.
.If the vehicle hits an object that deforms, the
airbags could inflate at a different crash speed
than if the vehicle hits an object that does
not deform.
.If the vehicle hits a narrow object (like a pole),
the airbags could inflate 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 inflate at a different crash speed
than if the vehicle goes straight into the object.
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Thresholds can also vary with specific vehicle design.
Frontal airbags are not intended to inflate 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 inflate at a level less than full deployment.
For more severe frontal impacts, full deployment
occurs.
Your vehicle may have one or two seat position
sensors, depending on what model you have.
The seat position sensor(s) enable the sensing system
to monitor the position of the driver seat (all models
except Z06 and ZR1) and the right front passenger seat
(all models). Seat position sensor(s) provide information
that is used to determine if the airbags should deploy at
a reduced level or at full deployment. Your vehicle may or may not have seat-mounted side
impact airbags. See
Airbag Systemon page 2‑44.
Seat-mounted side impact airbags are intended
to inflate in moderate to severe side crashes.
Seat-mounted side impact airbags will inflate if
the crash severity is above the system's designed
threshold level. The threshold level can vary with
specific vehicle design.
Seat-mounted side impact airbags are not intended to
inflate 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.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an
airbag should have inflated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair
costs were. For seat-mounted side impact airbags,
deployment is determined by the location and
severity of the side impact.
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What Makes an Airbag Inflate?
In a deployment event, the sensing system sends an
electrical signal triggering a release of gas from the
inflator. Gas from the inflator fills the airbag causing the
bag to break out of the cover and deploy. The inflator,
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.
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
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. See When Should an Airbag Inflate?
on
page 2‑48for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts.
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What Will You See After an Airbag
Inflates?
After the frontal and seat-mounted side impact airbags
inflate, they quickly deflate, so quickly that some people
may not even realize the airbags inflated. Some
components of the airbag module may be hot for
several minutes. For location of the airbag modules,
see What Makes an Airbag Inflate? on page 2‑50.
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
deflated airbags. Airbag inflation 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.
{WARNING:
When an airbag inflates, 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 inflates, 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, turn on the hazard
warning flashers, and shut off the fuel system after the
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airbags inflate. You can lock the doors, turn the interior
lamps off, and turn the hazard warning flashers off by
using the controls for those features.
{WARNING:
A crash severe enough to inflate the airbags may
have also damaged important functions in the
vehicle, such as the fuel system, brake and
steering systems, etc. Even if the vehicle appears
to be drivable after a moderate crash, there may
be concealed damage that could make it difficult
to safely operate the vehicle.
Use caution if you should attempt to restart the
engine after a crash has occurred. In many crashes severe enough to inflate the airbag,
windshields are broken by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may also occur from
the right front passenger airbag.
.Airbags are designed to inflate only once. After an
airbag inflates, 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.
See
Vehicle Data Recording and Privacy
on
page 8‑18and Event Data Recorderson
page 8‑18.
.Let only qualified technicians work on the airbag
system. Improper service can mean that the airbag
system will not work properly. See your dealer/
retailer for service.
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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 rearview mirror
when the vehicle is started.
United States
Canada 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 OFF,
or the symbol for on or off, will be visible. See
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator on page 4‑34.
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 are not affected by the passenger sensing
system.
The passenger sensing system works with sensors
that are part of the right front passenger seat.
The sensors are designed to detect the presence of
a properly-seated occupant and determine if the right
front passenger frontal airbag and seat-mounted side
impact airbag should be enabled (may inflate) or not.
According to accident statistics, children are safer when
properly secured in a rear seat in the correct child
restraint for their weight and size. We recommend that
rear-facing child restraints not be transported in the
vehicle, even if the airbags are off.
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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.
{WARNING:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can be
seriously injured or killed if the right front
passenger airbag inflates. This is because the
back of the rear-facing child restraint would be
very close to the inflating airbag. A child in a
forward-facing child restraint can be seriously
injured or killed if the right front passenger airbag
inflates and the passenger seat is in a forward
position.
Even if the passenger sensing system has turned
off the right front passenger frontal airbag and
seat-mounted side impact airbag (if equipped),
no system is fail-safe. No one can guarantee that
an airbag will not deploy under some unusual
circumstance, even though the airbag(s) are off.
Secure rear-facing child restraints in a rear seat,
even if the airbag(s) are off. If you secure a
forward-facing child restraint in the right front seat,
(Continued)
WARNING: (Continued)
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.
The passenger sensing system is designed to turn
off the right front passenger frontal airbag and
seat-mounted side impact 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.
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