1996 Ford F150 Owner's Manual - Page 250

The driver SRS is designed to deploy in moderate to severe frontal crashes where the deceleration is of sufficient magnitude. The SRS is designed to always activate in a frontal collision equivalent to hitting a solid barrier (such as a wall) at about 14 mph or more, or, roughly speaking, a full frontal perpendicular collision with a parked car or truck of similar size at 28 mph (45 km/h) or more. However, the air bag system also is designed so that it may deploy within a range of 8 to 14 mph (13 to 23 km/h) into a solid barrier or approximately 16 to 28 mph (25 to 45 km/h) full frontal into a parked car or truck of similar size. Careless or high speed driving while plowing snow which results in vehicle decelerations equivalent to or greater than the air bag deployment thresholds described above, can deploy the air bag. Such driving also increases the risk that the driver may become involved in an accident. Should this occur, the SRS is designed to deploy and help reduce the risk of injury to the driver. When using the F-150 Regular Cab 4x4 for snow removal, never modify or defeat the "tripping mechanisms" designed into the snow removal equipment by its manufacturer. Doing so may cause damage to the vehicle and the snow removal equipment as well as possible SRS deployment. Commercial snow removal applications should utilize F-350 Regular Cab 4x4 vehicles which are much more conducive to the rigors of long hours of plow operation. As with all vehicles which contain an SRS system, Ford recommends that you always properly wear your safety belts and never tamper with, disconnect, or deactivate the SRS. 248