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 right front 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 deploy is not based on how fast the vehicle is traveling. It depends largely on what you hit, the direction of the impact, and how quickly the vehicle slows down.
Frontal airbags may inflate at different crash speeds. For example:
| • | If the vehicle hits a stationary object, the airbags could inflate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle hits a moving object. |
| • | If the vehicle hits an object that deforms, the airbags could inflate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle hits an object that does not deform. |
| • | If the vehicle hits a narrow object (like a pole), the airbags could inflate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle hits a wide object (like a wall). |
| • | If the vehicle goes into an object at an angle, the airbags could inflate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle goes straight into the object. |
Thresholds can also vary with specific vehicle design.
Frontal airbags are not intended to inflate during vehicle rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts.
Single Stage vs. Dual Stage Airbags
Depending on the weight of the vehicle, you will have either "Single Stage Airbags" or "Dual Stage Airbags." Vehicles that have a passenger sensing system also have dual stage airbags. See Passenger Airbag Status Indicator or Passenger Sensing System .
If the GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) of the vehicle is 8,500 lb (3 855 kg) or above, the vehicle may have single stage airbags. If the GVWR is below 8,500 lb (3 855 kg) then the vehicle may have dual stage airbags. You can find the GVWR on the certification label on the rear edge of the driver door. See Loading the Vehicle for more information.
In addition, 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.
The vehicle may or may not have roof-rail airbags. See Airbag System . 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. 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 frontal impacts, near-frontal impacts, or rear impacts. All roof-rail airbags will deploy when either side of the vehicle is struck.
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 roof-rail airbags, deployment is determined by the location and severity of the side impact.
