CHEVROLET CAMARO 1993 Owner's Guide

If the air bag readiness light
d b doesn’t come on when you
start your vehicle, or stays on, or
comes on when you are driving,
your air bag system may not work
properly. Have your vehicle
serviced right away.
I
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How the Air Rag System Works
Where is the air bag?
The driver’s air bag is
in the middle of the
steering wheel.
Y
p
The right-front passenger’s air bag is located
in the instrument panel on the
passenger’s side.
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Seats & Safety Belts
When is an air bag expected to inflate?
The air bag is designed to inflate in
moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal
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 for most
GM vehicles is between 9 and 14 mph
(14 and 23 km/h). However, this velocity
threshold depends
on the vehicle design
and may be several miles-per-hour faster
or slower. In addition, this threshold
velocity
will be considerably higher if the
vehicle strikes an object such as a parked
car which will move and deform on
impact. The air bag
is also not designed to inflate
in rollovers, side impacts, or rear
impacts where the inflation would provide
no occupant protection benefit.
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.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In a frontal or near-frontal impact of
sufficient severity, sensors strategical
located on the vehicle detect that the
vehicle is suddenly stopping as a result of
a crash. These sensors complete an
electrical circuit, triggering a chemical
reaction of the sodium azide sealed
in the
inflator. The reaction produces nitrogen
gas, which inflates a cloth bag. The
inflator, cloth bag, and related hardware
are all part
of the air bag inflator modules
packed inside the steering wheel and
in
the instrument panel in front of the
passenger.
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How does an air bag restrain?
[n moderate to severe frontal or
near-frontal collisions,
even belted
occupants can contact
the steering wheel
or the instrument panel. The air bag
supplements the protection 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 protection in many
types of collisions, including rollovers
and rear and side impacts, primarily
because an occupant’s motion
is not
toward
the air bag. Air bags should never
be regarded as anything more than a
supplement to safety belt protection
in
moderate to severe frontal and
near-frontal collisions.
What will you see after an air bag
inflation?
After the air bag has inflated, it will then
quickly deflate. This occurs
so quickly
that some people may not even realize
that the air bag inflated. The air bag will
not impede the driver’s vision or ability
to steer the vehicle, nor will
it hinder the
occupants from exiting the vehicle. There
will be small amounts of smoke coming
from vents
in the deflated air bags. Some
components of the air bag module
in the
steering wheel hub for the driver’s air bag
or the instrument panel for the
passenger’s bag may be hot for a short
t
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t
t
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ime, but the portion of the bag that comes
nto contact with you will not be hot to
he touch. The nitrogen gas used to inflate _._ .~ ~
he air bag will have vented into the
Iassenger compartment, and the bag will
Je deflated within seconds after the
:ollision. Nitrogen makes
up about 80%
3f the air we breathe and is not hazardous.
As the nitrogen vents from the bag, small
particles are also vented into the
passenger compartment.
In many crashes severe enough to inflate
an air bag, windshields are broken by
vehicle deformation. Additional
windshield breakage may occur
in
vehicles with passenger air bags because
the windshield acts as a reaction surface
.~~ ~
for the inflating air bag. 29-9.
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Seats & Safety Belts
CAUTlON;
on’t attach anything to
~ :e steering wheel pad. It
0
0
0
-* 9 30
might injure thedriver if the
air bag inflates.
Don’t set anything on or attach
anything
to the instrument
panel.
It might injure the
passenger
if the air bag
inflates.
The air bags are designed
to
inflate only once. After they
inflate, you’ll need some new
parts for your air bag system.
If you don’t get them, the air
bag system won’t be there
to
help protect you in another
crash.
A new system will
include air bag modules and
possibly other parts.
Let only qualified technicians
work on you# air bag system.
Improper service can mean
that your air bag system
won’t
work properly. See your dealer
for service.
I
may not work properly. You may
have
to replace both the air bag a
%ak the air bag cover.
: instrument panel. Don’ pen or
Servicing Your Chevrolet with the Air
Bag System
Please tell or remind anyone who works
on your Chevrolet that it has the air bag
system. There are parts of the air bag
system
in several places around your
vehicle. You don’t want the system to
inflate while someone is working on your
vehicle. The air bag system does not need regular maintenance.
Your Chevrolet
dealer and the
1993 Camaro Service
Manual have information about the air
bag system, including repair
or disposal.
I A For up to 2 minutes after the
L ignition key is turned off and
the battery disconnected, an air bag
can still inflate during improper
service.
You can be injured if you
are close to an air bag when it
inflates. Be sure to follow the proper
service procedures.
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When electrical work is done under the
hood or inside your vehicle, the ignition
should be in
LOCK if possible. Avoid
wires wrapped with yellow tape, or yellow
connectors. They are probably part
of the
air bag system.
Your vehicle has a driver’s air bag and a
right-front passenger’s air bag. Both bags
must
be disconnected if the ignition has to
be on for electrical work or if the steering
column is to be disassembled. First,
disconnect the driver’s air bag like this:
1. Turn off the ignition.
2. Remove the SIR (air bag) fuse.
(See “Fuses and Circuit Breakers”
in the Index.)
3. Disconnect the yellow connector at the
base
of the steering column. After
you follow this procedure for the
jriver
’s air bag, then disconnect the
right-front passenger’s air bag like this:
1. Remove the cover under the instrument
2. Disconnect the small yellow connector
When the work is complete, if the air bag
system was disconnected, be sure to
reattach everything and replace
the fuse
before turning the ignition on. When you
turn the ignition key on, be sure you see
the air bag readiness light on the
instrument panel.
If you don’t see this lighl
flash and then go out as usual, have your
air bag system repaired.
panel.
below the glove box.
Safety Belt Use dumg
Pregnancy
Safety belts work for everyone, including
pregnant women. Like all occupants, they
are more likely to be seriously injured if
they don’t wear safety belts.
A pregnant woman should wear a
lap-shoulder belt, and the lap portion
should be worn as low as possible
throughout the pregnancy.
The best way to protect the fetus is to
protect the mother. When a safety belt is
worn properly, it’s more likely that the
fetus won’t be hurt in a crash. For pregnant
women, as for anyone, the key to making
safety belts effective is wearing them
properly.
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Seats 8t Safety Belts
Passenger Positions
Right Front Passenger Position
The right front passenger’s safety belt
works the same way as
the driver’s safety
belt. See “Driver Position,” earlier
in this
part.
Rear Seat Passengers
It’s very important for rear seat
passengers
to buckle up! Accident
statistics show that unbelted people
in the
rear seal are hurt more often in crashes
than those who are wearing safety belts.
Rear passengers who aren’t safety belted
can be thrown out
of the vehicle in a
crash. And they can strike others in the
vehicle who are wearing safety belts.
The rear seats
have lap-shoulder belts.
Here’s
how to wear one properly.
1.
2.
Pick up the latch plate and pull the
belt across
you. Don’t let it get
twisted.
Push the latch plate into the buckle
until it clicks.
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If the belt stops before it reaches the
buckle,
tilt the latch plate and keep
pulling
until you can buckle it.
If
the belt is not long enough, see
“Safety Belt Extender” at
the end of
this section.
Make sure the release button
on the
buckle Paces upward or outward so
you would be able to unbuckle it
quickly if you ever had to.
3. To make the lap part tight, pull down
on the buckle end
of the belt as you
pull up
on the shoulder part. The lap
part
of the belt should be worn
low and snug
on the hips, just touching
the thighs. In a crash, this applies force to
the strong pelvic bones. And you‘d be
less
likely to slide under the lap belt. If
you slid under it, the belt would apply
force at your abdomen.
This could cause
serious
or even fatal injuries. The
shoulder belt should go over the shoulder
and across the chest. These parts
of the
body are best able to take belt restraining
forces.
33.
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Seats & Safety Belts
r
The safety belt locks if there's a sudden
stop or a crash.
You can be seriously
hurt if
1 4 your shoulder belt is too loose.
I In a crash you would move forward
3 much, which could increase
I InJury. The shoulder belt should fit
To unlatch the belt, just push the
button on the buckle.
children
Everyone in a vehicle needs protection!
That includes infants and all children
smaller than adult size. In fact, the law
in
every state and Canadian province says
children up to some age must be
restrained while
in a vehicle.
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Smaller Children and Babies
Smaller children and babies
should always
be restrained in
a child or infant restraint. The
instructions for the restraint will say
whether
it is the right type and size
for your child. A very young child’s
hip bones are so small that a regular
h-lt might not stay low on the hips,
uu it should. Instead, the belt will
likely be over the child’s abdomen.
In a crash the belt would apply force
right
on the child3 abdomen, which
could
cause serious or fatal injuries.
So, be sure that any child small
enough for one is always properly
itrained
in a child or infant
ldraint.
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Never hold a baby in your arms while riding in a vehicle. A baby doesn’t
weigh much - until a crash. During a crash a baby will become so heavy
you can’t hold it. For example, in a crash at only 25 mph (40 km/h>, a I2-pound
(5.5 kg) baby will suddenly become a 240-pound (I 10 kg) force on your arms.
The baby
would be almost impossible to hold.
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
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Seats & Safety Belts
CAUTION: I
Child Restraints
Be sure to follow the instructions for the
restraint.
You may find these instructions
on the restraint itself or
in a booklet, or
both. These restraints use the belt system
in your vehicle, but the child also has to
be secured within
the restraint to help
reduce the chance of personal injury. The
instructions that come with
the infant or
child restraint
will show you how to do
that.
Where to Put the Restraint
Accident statistics show that children are
safer
if they are restrained in the rear
rather than the front seat.
We at General
Motors therefore recommend that you put
your child restraint
in the rear seat. If you
are using a rear-facing child restraint,
don’t put
it in the front seat. Here’s why:
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