1997 GMC Safari Owner's Manual - Page 38

, CAUTION: A I something is between occupant and an air f an bag, the bag might not inflate properly or it might force the object into thatperson. The path of an inflating air bag mustbe kept clear. Don't put anything between an occupant and an air bag, and don't .attach or putanything on the steering wheel hub or on.or near other air any bag covering. And don't hang anything from the assist handle on the passenger's sideof the instrument panel. When should an air bag inflate? An air bag is designed to inflate in moderate to severe a frontal or near-frontal crash. Theair bag will inflate only if the impact speed is above the system's designed "threshold level." If your vehicle goes straight into a wall that doesn't move or deform, thethreshold level is about 11 to 16 mph (1 8 to 26 km/h). The threshold level can vary, however, withspecific vehicle design, so that it canbe somewhat above orbelow 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 inflatein rollovers, side impacts or rear impacts, because inflation would not help the occupant. In any particular crash,no one cansay whether an a r i bag should have inflated simply because of the damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were. Inflation isdetermined by the angle of the impact and how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal or near-frontal impacts. What makes an air bag inflate? In an impact of sufficient severity, the ar bag sensing i system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The sensing system triggers arelease of gas from theinflator, which inflates the a r bag. The inflator, air bag and related i hardware are d l part of the air bag modules inside the steering wheel and in the instrument panel in frontof the right front passenger. 1-30