2010 GMC Sierra 1500 Crew Cab Owner's Manual - Page 121

If the GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) of your vehicle is 8,500 lb (3 855 kg) or above, the vehicle has single stage airbags. If the GVWR is below 8,500 lb (3 855 kg) then the vehicle has dual stage airbags. You can find the GVWR on the certification label on the rear edge of the driver's door. See Loading the Vehicle on page 5‑33 for more information. The vehicle may have dual‐stage frontal airbags. Dual-stage airbags adjust the restraint according to crash severity. The 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. Vehicles with dual stage airbags also have a driver's seat position sensor which enables the sensing system to monitor the position of the driver seat (all models). The seat position sensor provides information that is used to determine if the airbags should deploy at a reduced level or at full deployment. The vehicle may or may not have seat‐mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags. See Airbag System on page 2‑73. Seat‐mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags are intended to inflate in moderate to severe side crashes. In addition, these roof-rail airbags are intended to inflate during a rollover or in a severe frontal impact. Seat‐mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags will inflate if the crash severity is above the system's designed threshold level. The threshold level can vary with specific vehicle design. Roof-rail airbags are not intended to inflate in rear impacts. A seat‐mounted side impact airbag is intended to deploy on the side of the vehicle that is struck. Both roof-rail airbags will deploy when either side of the vehicle is struck, or if the sensing system predicts that the vehicle is about to roll over, or in a severe frontal impact. 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 frontal airbags, inflation is determined by what the vehicle hits, the angle of the impact, and how quickly the vehicle slows down. For seat‐mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags, deployment is determined by the location and severity of the side impact. In a rollover event, roof-rail airbag deployment is determined by the direction of the roll. 2-79