1994 Pontiac Grand Am Owner's Manual - Page 24

When i s an air bag expected to inflate? The air bag is designed to inflatein moderate to severe frontal near-frontal or crashes. The air bag will only inflate if the velocity of the impact is above the designed threshold level. When impacting straight into a wall that does not move or deform, the threshold level formost GM vehicles is between 9 and 15 mph (14 and 23 km/h). However, this velocity threshold depends on the vehicle design and may be several miles-per-hour faster How The Air Bag System or slower. In addition, thisthreshold velocity will be considerably higher if the Works vehicle strikes an object such as aparked Where is theair bag? car which will move and deform on The driver'sair bag is in the middle ofthe impact. The airbag is alsonot designed to inflate in rollovers, side impacts, or rear steering wheel. impacts where the inflation would provide no occupant protection benefit. . What makes an air bag inflate? In a frontal impact of sufficient severity,the air bag sensing system detects that the vehicle is suddenly stopping as a result of a crash. The sensing system triggersa chemical reactionof the sodium azide sealed in the inflator. The reaction produces nitrogen gas, which inflates the cloth bag. The inflator, cloth bag, and related hardware are all part the air bag inklator of module packed inside the steering wheel. I I How does an air bag restrain? ~ In any particular crash, the determination of whether 'the air bag should have inflated cannot be based solely on the level of damage on the vehicle(s), Inflation is determined by the angle of the impact and the vehicle's deceleration, of which vehicle damage is only one indication. Repair cost is not a good indicator of whether an air bag should have deployed. In moderate to severefrontal or near-frontal collisions, even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel. The air bag supplements the protektion provided by safety belts. Air.bags distribute the force of the impact more evenly over the occupant's upper body, stopping the occupant more gradually. But air bags would not provide protectionin many types of collisions, including rollovers and rear and side impacts, primarily because an occupant's motionis not toward the air bag. Air bags should never be regarded as anythingmore than a supplement to safety beltprotection in moderate to severe frontal and near-frontal :ollisions.