2004 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Pickup Owner's Manual - Page 78

Single Stage vs. Dual Stage Air Bags Depending on the weight of your vehicle you will have either "Single Stage Air Bags" or "Dual Stage Air Bags". Vehicles that have a passenger sensing system also have dual stage air bags. If the rearview mirror in your vehicle has a passenger air bag status indicator printed on it, your vehicle has the passenger sensing system and therefore, it has dual stage air bags. If the rearview mirror in your vehicle does not have a passenger air bag status indicator printed on it, then your vehicle does not have the passenger sensing system and it has single stage air bags. See Passenger Air Bag Status Indicator on page 3-40 or Passenger Sensing System on page 1-80. Dual Stage Air Bags If your vehicle has frontal air bags with dual stage deployment, the amount of restraint will adjust according to crash severity. For moderate frontal impacts, these air bags inflate at a level less than full deployment. For more severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs. If the front of your vehicle goes straight into a wall that does not move or deform, the threshold level for the reduced deployment is about 10 to 16 mph (16 to 25 km/h), and the threshold level for a full deployment is about 20 to 25 mph (32 to 40 km/h). The threshold level can vary, however, with specific vehicle design, so that it can be somewhat above or below this range. If your vehicle strikes something that will move or deform, such as a parked car, the threshold level will be higher. The air bag is not designed to inflate in rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts because inflation would not help the occupant. 1-72