When should an airbag inflate, When should an airbag, Inflate? -24 – Buick 2012 LaCrosse User Manual

Page 80

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Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2012

3-24

Seats and Restraints

Rear Seat Driver Side Shown,

Passenger Side Similar

On vehicles with second row seat‐
mounted side impact airbags, they
are in the sides of the rear seatback
closest to the door.

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WARNING

If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inflate properly
or it might force the object into
that person causing severe injury

(Continued)

WARNING (Continued)

or even death. The path of an
inflating airbag must be kept
clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an
airbag, and do not attach or put
anything on the steering wheel
hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.

Do not use seat accessories that
block the inflation path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.

Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie‐down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path of an
inflating roof-rail airbag will be
blocked.

When Should an Airbag
Inflate?

Frontal airbags are designed to
inflate in moderate to severe frontal
or near frontal crashes to help
reduce the potential for severe
injuries, mainly to the driver's or
front outboard passenger's head
and chest. However, they are only
designed to inflate if the impact
exceeds a predetermined
deployment threshold. Deployment
thresholds are used to predict how
severe a crash is likely to be in time
for the airbags to inflate and help
restrain the occupants.

Whether the frontal airbags will or
should inflate is not based primarily
on how fast the vehicle is traveling.
It depends on what is hit, the
direction of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down.

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