Lexus ES300 2001 Owner's Manuals (in English)

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
154
CAUTION
The driver or front passenger too close to the steering
wheel or dashboard during airbag deployment can be
killed or seriously injured. Lexus strongly recommends
that:
The driver sit as far back as possible from the
steering wheel while still maintaining control of the
vehicle.
 The front passenger sit as far back as possible from
the dashboard.
 All vehicle occupants be properly restrained using
the available seat belts.
16E257

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
155


SRS side airbags
In response to a severe side impact, the SRS side
airbags work together with the seat belts to help
reduce
injury by inflating. The SRS side airbags help
to reduce injuries mainly to the driver's or front
passenger's chest.
The SRS side airbag on the passenger seat is activated
even with no passenger in the front seat.
Be sure to wear your seat belt properly.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
156
CAUTION
SRS side airbags inflate with considerable force. To
avoid potential death or serious injury when they inflate,
the driver and front passenger must:
 Wear their seat belts properly.
 Remain properly seated with their back upright and
against the seat at all times.
16E179
The indicator comes on when the ignition key is
turned to the ªACCº or ªONº position. It goes off
after about 6 seconds. This means the SRS airbags
are operating properly.
This warning light system monitors the airbag sensor
assembly, front airbag sensors, side airbag sensors,
front seat belt pretensioner assemblies, inflators,
warning light, interconnecting wiring and power sources.
(For details, see ªService reminder indicators and
warning buzzersº on page 60 for instructions.)

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157
16E023
The SRS front airbag system is designed to activate
in response to a severe frontal impact within the
shaded area between the arrows in the illustration.
The SRS front airbags will deploy if the severity of the
impact is above the designed threshold level,
comparable to an approximate 25 km/h (15 mph)
collision when impacting straight into a fixed barrier that
does not move or deform.
If the severity of the impact is below the above threshold
level, the SRS front airbags may not deploy.However, this threshold velocity will be considerably
higher if the vehicle strikes an object, such as a parked
vehicle or sign pole, which can move or deform on
impact, or if it is involved in an underride collision (e.g.
a collision in which the nose of the vehicle ªunderridesº,
or goes under, the bed of a truck, etc.).
It is possible that in some collisions at the lower zone of
airbag sensor detection and activation the SRS airbags
and seat belt pretensioners will not operate all together.
For the safety of all occupants, always wear your seat
belts properly.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
158
16E134±1

1Collision from the rear
2Vehicle rollover
The SRS front airbags are not designed to inflate if
the vehicle is involved in a rear collision, if it rolls
over, or if it is involved in a low±speed frontal
collision.
The SRS side airbags are designed to inflate when
the passenger compartment gets a severe collision
from the side.
The SRS side airbags may rather not to activate in the
impact in which the occupant wearing the seat belt
correctly would not get serious injury.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
159
16E135

1Collision from the side at an angle
2Collision from the side to the vehicle body
other
than the passenger compartment
The SRS side airbag system may not activate if the
vehicle is subjected to a collision from the side at
certain angles, or a collision to the side of the
vehicle body other than the passenger
compartment as shown in the illustration.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
160
16E171

1Collision from the front
2Collision from the rear
3Vehicle rollover
The SRS side airbags are not designed to inflate if
the vehicle is involved in a front or rear collision, if
it rolls over, or if it is involved in a low±speed side
collision.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
161
16E159

1Hitting a curb, edge of pavement or hard
material
2Falling into or jumping over a deep hole
3Landing hard or vehicle falling
The SRS front airbags may deploy if a serious
impact occurs to the underside of your vehicle.
Some examples are shown in the illustration.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
162
16E232

1Side airbag modules (airbag and inflator)
2Airbag module for front passenger (airbag and inflator)
3Side airbag sensors
4Airbag module for driver (airbag and inflator)
5SRS warning light
6Airbag sensor assembly
7Front airbag sensors
The SRS airbag system consists mainly of the above
components, and their locations are shown in the
illustration.
The airbag sensor assembly consists of a safing sensor
and airbag sensor.

COMFORT ADJUSTMENT
163
In a severe frontal impact, the sensors detect
deceleration and the system triggers the front airbag
inflators. In a severe side impact, the side airbag sensor
triggers the side airbag inflator. Then a chemical
reaction in the inflators quickly fills the airbags with
non±toxic gas to help restrain the forward or lateral
motion of the occupants.
When the SRS operates, it produces a fairly loud noise
and release some smoke and residue along with
non±toxic
gas. This does not indicate a fire. This gas is
normally harmless; however, for those who have
delicate skin, it may cause a minor skin irritation. Be
sure to wash off any residue as soon as possible to
prevent any potential skin irritation.
Deployment of the airbags happens in a fraction of a
second, so the airbags must inflate with considerable
force. While the system is designed to reduce serious
injuries, it may also cause minor burns or abrasions and
swelling.
Parts of the airbag module (steering wheel hub,
dashboard, front seats) may be hot for several minutes,
but the airbags themselves will not be hot. The airbags
are designed to inflate only once.
A crash severe enough to inflate the driver and front
passenger airbags may break the windshield as the
vehicle buckles. In vehicles with a front passenger
airbag, the windshield may also be damaged by
absorbing some of the force of the inflating airbag.