airbag GMC SAVANA 2007 Owner's Guide

When Should an Airbag Inate?
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.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.
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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 what the vehicle hits, 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), your vehicle has dual
stage airbags. You can find the GVWR on the
certification label on the rear edge of the driver’s
door. SeeLoading Your Vehicle on page 259
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 has electronic
frontal sensors which helps 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 18 to 25 mph
(29 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 also have 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.
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What Makes an Airbag Inate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the airbag
sensing system detects that the vehicle is in a
crash. The sensing system triggers a release of
gas from the inflator, which inflates the airbag.
The inflator, airbag, and related hardware are all
part of the airbag modules inside the steering
wheel and in the instrument panel in front of the
right front passenger.
How Does an Airbag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal
collisions, even belted occupants can contact
the steering wheel or the instrument panel.
The airbag supplements the protection provided
by safety belts. Airbags distribute the force of
the impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper
body, stopping the occupant more gradually.
But airbags would not help you in many types of
collisions, including rollovers, rear impacts,
and many side impacts, primarily because an
occupant’s motion is not toward those airbags.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything
more than a supplement to safety belts, and then
only in moderate to severe frontal or near-frontal
collisions.
What Will You See After an Airbag
Inates?
After an airbag inflates, it quickly deflates, so
quickly that some people may not even realize the
airbag inflated. Some components of the airbag
module — the steering wheel hub for the driver’s
airbag or the instrument panel for the right
front passenger’s bag — may be hot for a short
time. The parts of the airbag that come into contact
with you may be warm, but not too hot to touch.
There may be some smoke and dust coming from
the vents in the deflated airbags. Airbag inflation
does not prevent the driver from seeing out of
the windshield or being able to steer the vehicle,
nor does it prevent people from leaving the vehicle.
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{CAUTION:
When an airbag inates, there may be
dust in the air. This dust could cause
breathing problems for people with a
history of asthma or other breathing
trouble. To avoid this, everyone in the
vehicle should get out as soon as it is
safe to do so. If you have breathing
problems but cannot get out of the
vehicle after an airbag inates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or a door.
If you experience breathing problems
following an airbag deployment, you
should seek medical attention.
Your vehicle has a feature that may automatically
unlock the doors, turn the interior lamps on, and
turn the hazard warning flashers on when the
airbags inflate. You can lock the doors again, turn
the interior lamps off, and turn the hazard warning
flashers off by using the controls for those features.In many crashes severe enough to inflate an
airbag, windshields are broken by vehicle
deformation. Additional windshield breakage
may also occur from the right front passenger
airbag.
•Airbags are designed to inflate only once.
After they inflate, you will need some new
parts for the airbag system. If you do not get
them, the airbag system will not be there
to help protect you in another crash. A new
system will include airbag modules and
possibly other parts. The service manual
for your vehicle covers the need to replace
other parts.
•Your vehicle has a crash sensing and
diagnostic module which records information
after a crash. SeeVehicle Data Collection
and Event Data Recorders on page 430.
•Let only qualified technicians work on the
airbag system. Improper service can mean
that an airbag system will not work properly.
See your dealer for service.
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Airbag Off Switch
If your vehicle has one of the switches pictured in
the following illustrations, your vehicle has an
airbag off switch that you can use to turn off the
right front passenger’s airbag.
If your vehicle does not have an airbag off
switch, it may have a passenger sensing system.
SeePassenger Sensing System on page 89.This switch should only be turned to airbag OFF if
the person in the right front passenger’s position
is a member of a passenger risk group identified
by the national government as follows:
Infant.An infant (less than 1 year old) must
ride in the front seat because:
•
My vehicle has no rear seat;
•My vehicle has a rear seat too small to
accommodate a rear-facing infant seat; or
•The infant has a medical condition which,
according to the infant’s physician, makes
it necessary for the infant to ride in the front
seat so that the driver can constantly
monitor the child’s condition.
United StatesCanada
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Child age 1 to 12.A child age 1 to 12 must
ride in the front seat because:
•
My vehicle has no rear seat;
•Although children ages 1 to 12 ride in the rear
seat(s) whenever possible, children ages 1 to
12 sometimes must ride in the front because
no space is available in the rear seat(s) of my
vehicle; or
•The child has a medical condition which,
according to the child’s physician, makes
it necessary for the child to ride in the front
seat so that the driver can constantly monitor
the child’s condition.
Medical Condition.A passenger has a
medical condition which, according to his or
her physician:
•
Causes the passenger airbag to pose a
special risk for the passenger; and
•Makes the potential harm from the passenger
airbag in a crash greater than the potential
harm from turning off the airbag and allowing
the passenger, even if belted, to hit the
dashboard or windshield in a crash.
{CAUTION:
If the right front passenger’s airbag is
turned off for a person who is not in
a risk group identied by the national
government, that person will not have the
extra protection of an airbag. In a crash,
the airbag will not be able to inate and
help protect the person sitting there.
Do not turn off the passenger’s airbag
unless the person sitting there is in a risk
group. SeeAirbag Off Switch on page 86.
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To turn off the right front passenger’s airbag,
insert your ignition key into the switch, push in,
and move the switch to the off position.
The airbag off light will come on to let you know
that the right front passenger’s airbag is off.
The light will stay on to remind you that the airbag
is off. The right front passenger’s airbag will
remain off until you turn it back on.
{CAUTION:
If the airbag readiness light ever comes
on when you have turned off the airbag,
it means that something may be wrong
with the airbag system. The right front
passenger’s airbag could inate even
though the switch is off. If this ever
happens, do not let anyone whom the
national government has identied as a
member of a passenger airbag risk group
sit in the right front passenger’s position
(for example, do not secure a rear-facing
child restraint in your vehicle) until you
have your vehicle serviced. SeeAirbag
Readiness Light on page 169for
additional information.
United StatesCanada
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To turn the right front passenger’s airbag on,
insert your ignition key into the switch, push in,
and move the switch to the on position.
Passenger Sensing System
If your instrument panel has one of the indicators
pictured in the following illustrations, your
vehicle has a passenger sensing system.
If your vehicle does not have a passenger sensing
system, it may have an airbag off switch. See
Airbag Off Switch on page 86.
United StatesCanadaUnited StatesCanada
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The passenger airbag status indicator on the
instrument panel will be visible when you turn your
ignition key to RUN or START. The words ON
and OFF, or the symbol for on and off, will
be visible on the instrument panel during the
system check. When the system check is
complete, either the word ON or the word OFF,
or the symbol for on or the symbol for off, will
be visible. SeePassenger Airbag Status Indicator
on page 172.
The passenger sensing system will turn off the
right front passenger’s frontal airbag under certain
conditions. The driver’s airbag is not part of the
passenger sensing system.
The passenger sensing system works with
sensors that are part of the right front passenger’s
seat. The sensors are designed to detect the
presence of a properly-seated occupant and
determine if the passenger’s frontal airbag should
be enabled (may inflate) or not.Accident statistics show that children are safer if
they are restrained in the rear rather than the front
seat. We recommend that child restraints be
secured in a rear seat, including an infant riding
in a rear-facing infant seat, a child riding in a
forward-facing child seat and an older child riding
in a booster seat.
If your vehicle has a rear seat, it will accommodate
a rear-facing child restraint. A label on your sun
visor says, “Never put a rear-facing child seat
in the front.” This is because the risk to the
rear-facing child is so great, if the airbag deploys.
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{CAUTION:
A child in a rear-facing child restraint can
be seriously injured or killed if the right
front passenger’s airbag inates. This is
because the back of the rear-facing child
restraint would be very close to the
inating airbag.
Even though the passenger sensing
system is designed to turn off the
passenger’s frontal airbag if the system
detects a rear-facing child restraint,
no system is fail-safe, and no one can
guarantee that an airbag will not deploy
under some unusual circumstance,
even though it is turned off.
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
We recommend that rear-facing child
restraints be secured in the rear seat,
even if the airbag is off.
If you need to secure a forward-facing
child restraint in the right front seat,
always move the front passenger seat
as far back as it will go. It is better to
secure the child restraint in a rear seat.
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