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.
In addition, your vehicle has "dual stage" frontal airbags, which adjust the restraint according to crash severity. 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 10 to 15 mph (16 to 24 km/h), and the threshold level for a full deployment is about 17 to 25 mph (27 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.
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. |
Frontal airbags (driver and right front passenger) are not intended to inflate during vehicle rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts.
Your vehicle may or may not have roof-mounted side impact airbags and a rollover sensor. See Airbag System . These roof-mounted "rollover capable" side impact airbags are intended to inflate in moderate to severe side crashes, and during a rollover. They may also inflate in some frontal crashes. Both rollover capable side impact airbags will inflate if the crash severity is above the system's designed "threshold level." The threshold level can vary with specific vehicle design. Side impact airbags are not intended to inflate in rear impacts. Both side impact airbags will deploy when either side of the vehicle is struck. If your vehicle does not have a right front passenger seat and a rear seat, only the driver's frontal airbag will deploy in a frontal impact.
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 side impact airbags, inflation is determined by the location and severity of the impact.
