1998 Buick LeSabre Owner's Manual - Page 34

When should an airbag inflate? An air bag is designed to inflate in moderate to severe a frontal or near-frontal crash. The air bag will inflate only if the impact speed is above the system's designed "threshold level." If your vehicle goesstraight into a wall that doesn't move or deform, the threshold level is about 9 to 15 mph (14 to 24 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, side impacts or rear impacts, because inflation would not help the occupant. In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air bag should have inflated simply because of the damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were. Inflation is determined by the angleof the impact and how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal or near-frontal impacts. What makes anair bag inflate? In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The sensing system triggers a release of gas fromthe inflator, which inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag and related hardware are all part of the air bag modules inside the steering wheel and in the instrument panel in frontof the right front passenger. How does an air bag restrain? In moderate to severe frontalor near-frontal collisions, even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel the or instrument panel.Air bags supplement the protection of provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute the force the impact more evenly over the occupant's upper body, stopping the occupant more gradually. But air bags would not help you in many types of collisions, including rollovers, rear impacts and impacts, primarily because side an occupant's motion is not toward those bags. Air air bags should never be regarded as anything more than a supplement to safety belts, and then only in moderate to severe frontal or near-fiontal collisions. 1-22