The driver's and right front passenger's frontal airbags are designed to inflate in moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal crashes. But they are designed to inflate only if the impact exceeds a predetermined deployment threshold. Deployment thresholds take into account a variety of desired deployment and non-deployment events and 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 your frontal airbags will or should deploy is not based on how fast your vehicle is traveling. It depends largely on what you hit, the direction of the impact and how quickly your vehicle slows down.
Airbags may inflate at different crash speeds. For example:
| • | If the vehicle hits a stationary object, the airbag could inflate at a different crash speed than if the object were moving. |
| • | If the object deforms, the airbag could inflate at a different crash speed than if the object does not deform. |
| • | If the vehicle hits a narrow object (like a pole) the airbag 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 airbag could inflate at a different crash speed than if the vehicle goes straight into the object. |
The frontal airbags (driver and right front passenger) are not intended to inflate during vehicle rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts because inflation would not likely help the occupants.
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. Inflation is determined by the angle of the impact and how quickly the vehicle slows down in front or near-frontal impacts.
If the GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) of your vehicle is 8,500 lb (3 855 kg) or above , your vehicle has single stage airbags. If the GVWR is below 8,500 lb (3 855 kg) then your vehicle has dual stage airbags. You can find the GVWR on the certification label on the rear edge of the driver's door. See Loading the Vehicle for more information.
Single Stage Airbags
If your vehicle has frontal airbags with single stage deployment and your vehicle goes straight into a wall that does not move or deform, the threshold level is about 9 to 16 mph (14 to 26 km/h). (The threshold level can vary, however, with specific vehicle design, so that it can be somewhat above or below this range.)
Dual Stage Airbags
If your vehicle has frontal airbags with dual stage deployment, the restraint will adjust according to the crash severity. Your vehicle is equipped with electronic frontal sensors which help the sensing system distinguish between a moderate and a more severe frontal impact. For moderate frontal impacts, these airbags inflate at a level less than full deployment. For more severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs. If the front of your vehicle goes straight into a wall that does not move or deform, the threshold level for the reduced deployment is about 12 to 16 mph (19 to 26 km/h), and the threshold level for a full deployment is about 16 to 25 mph (26 to 40 km/h). (The threshold level can vary, however, with specific vehicle design, so that it can be somewhat above or below this range.)
Vehicles with dual stage airbags are also equipped with special sensors which enable the sensing system to monitor the position of both the driver and passenger front seats. The seat position sensors provide information which is used to determine if the airbags should deploy at a reduced level or at full deployment.
