Safety features of your vehicle
60
3
How does the air bag system
operate
Air bags are activated (able to
inflate if necessary) only when the
ignition switch is turned to the ON
or START position.
The appropriate air bags inflate instantly in the event of a serious
frontal collision or side collision in
order to help protect the occupants
from serious physical injury.
There is no single speed at which the air bags will inflate.
Generally, air bags are designed to
inflate based upon the severity of a
collision and its direction. These
two factors determine whether the
sensors produce an electronic
deployment/ inflation signal.
Air bag deployment depends on a number of factors including vehicle
speed, angles of impact and the
density and stiffness of the vehi-
cles or objects which your vehicle
hits in the collision. The determin-
ing factors are not limited to those
mentioned above. The front air bags will completely
inflate and deflate in an instant.
It is virtually impossible for you to
see the air bags inflate during an
accident.
It is much more likely that you will
simply see the deflated air bags
hanging out of their storage com-
partments after the collision.
In addition to inflating in serious side collisions, side and/or curtain
air bags will inflate if the sensing
system detects a rollover.
When a rollover is detected, side and/or curtain air bags will remain
inflated longer to help provide pro-
tection from ejection, especially
when used in conjunction with the
seat belts. In order to help provide protection,
the air bags must inflate rapidly.
The speed of the air bag inflation is
a consequence of extremely short
time in which to inflate the air bag
between the occupant and the
vehicle structures before the occu-
pant impacts those structures. This
speed of inflation reduces the risk
of serious or life-threatening
injuries and is thus a necessary
part of the air bag design.
However, air bag inflation can also
cause injuries which can include
facial abrasions, bruises and bro-
ken bones because the inflation
speed also causes the air bags to
expand with a great deal of force.
There are even circumstances under which contact with the
steering wheel or passenger air
bag can cause fatal injuries,
especially if the occupant is
positioned excessively close to
the steering wheel or passenger
air bag.
Safety features of your vehicle
74
3
The SRS consists of air bags
installed under the pad covers in the
center of the steering wheel and the
passenger's side front panel above
the glove box.
The purpose of the SRS is to provide
the vehicle's driver and/or the front
passenger with additional protection
than that offered by the seat belt sys-
tem alone in case of a frontal impact
of sufficient severity. The SRS uses
sensors to gather information about
the driver's and front passenger's
seat belt usage and impact severity.
The seat belt buckle sensors deter-
mine if the driver and front passen-
ger's seat belts are fastened. These sensors provide the ability to
control the SRS deployment based on
whether or not the seat belts are fas-
tened, and how severe the impact is.
The advanced SRS offers the ability
to control the air bag inflation with
two levels. A first stage level is pro-
vided for moderate-severity impacts.
A second stage level is provided for
more severe impacts.
The passenger’s front air bag is
designed to help reduce the injury of
children sitting close to the instru-
ment panel in low speed collisions.
However, children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear seat.
According to the impact severity and
seat belt usage, the SRSCM (SRS
Control Module) controls the air bag
inflation. Failure to properly wear
seat belts can increase the risk or
severity of injury in an accident.Additionally, your vehicle is equipped
with an occupant detection system in
the front passenger's seat. The occu-
pant detection system detects the
presence of a passenger in the front
passenger's seat and will turn off the
front passenger's air bag under cer-
tain conditions. For more detail, see
"Occupant detection system" in this
chapter.
