The airbags can protect vehicle occupants during frontal and side collisions by reducing their
movement in the direction of the collision.
Each triggered airbag is filled by a gas generator. This causes the airbag covers to break open and the
airbags inflate forcefully to cover their deployment zones within milliseconds. Once a vehicle
occupant wearing a seat belt starts to sink into the inflated airbag, the gas inside the airbag starts to
escape to cushion the occupant and slow down their movement. This reduces the risk of severe and
fatal injuries. A triggered airbag will not always prevent other injuries from occurring, such as
swelling, bruising, burning and grazing. Deployment of an airbag can also result in frictional heat.
The most important factors for triggering the airbag are the type of accident, the angle of impact,
the vehicle speed and the type of object with which the vehicle collides. Therefore, visible damage
to the vehicle does not always mean that the airbag should have been triggered.
The triggering of the airbag system depends on the vehicle deceleration rate caused by the collision
and registered by the electronic control unit. If this rate is below the reference value programmed
into the control unit, the airbags will not be triggered, even though the vehicle may be badly
damaged as a result of the collision. Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack of vehicle damage
in an accident is not necessarily an indication of whether an airbag should inflate or not. It is not
possible to define a range of vehicle speeds and reference values, since the circumstances will vary
considerably between one collision and another. It is therefore impossible to cover every possible
kind and angle of impact that would trigger the airbags. Important factors in the triggering of the
airbag include, for example, the nature (hard or soft) of the object that the vehicle hits, the angle of
impact as well as vehicle speed.
Airbags serve only as a supplement to the three-point seat belt in some accident situations when the
vehicle's deceleration is sufficient to trigger the airbags. Airbags can be triggered only once and only
in certain situations. The seat belts are always there to provide protection in situations when the
airbags are not triggered or have already been triggered. For example, if the vehicle collides with a
further vehicle following the initial collision, or is hit by another vehicle.
The airbag system is part of the vehicle's overall passive safety concept. The airbag system can work
effectively only when the occupants are wearing their seat belts correctly and have assumed a
proper sitting position ⇒ Sitting position .
Components of the vehicle safety concept
The following vehicle safety equipment makes up the vehicle's safety concept to reduce the risk of
severe and fatal injuries. Depending on the vehicle equipment level, some of the equipment may not
be fitted in your vehicle or may not be available in some countries.
Optimised seat belts for all seats.
Front airbags for driver and front passenger.
Airbag indicator lamp .
Control units and sensors.
Adjustable steering column.
If applicable, mounting points for the top tether for child seats.
