PONTIAC FIREBIRD 1998 Owner's Guide

How the Air Bag System Works
Where are the air bags?
The driver's air bag is in the middle of the
steering wheel. The
right front passenger's air bag
is in the instrument
panel on the passenger's side.
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If something is between an occupant and an air
bag, the bag might not inflate properly or it
might force the object into that person. The path
of
an inflating air bag must be kept clear. Don’t
put anything between an occupant and an air
bag, and don’t attach or put anything on the steering wheel hub or on or near any other air
bag covering.
When should an air bag inflate?
An air bag is designed to inflate in a moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crash. The air bag
will inflate
only if the impact speed is above the system’s designed
“threshold level.” If your vehicle goes straight into a
wall that doesn’t move or deform, the threshold level is
about
9 to 15 mph ( 14 to 24 km/h). The threshold level
can vary, however, with specific vehicle design,
so that
it can be somewhat above
or below this range. If your vehicle strikes something that will
move or deform, such
as
a parked car, the threshold level will be higher. The
air bag is not designed to inflate in rollovers, side
impacts or rear impacts, because inflation would not
help the occupant.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether
an air
bag 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 frontal or
near-frontal impacts.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The sensing
system triggers a release of gas from the inflator, which
inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag
and related
hardware are all
part of the air bag modules inside the
steering wheel and in the instrument panel in front of
the right front passenger.
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How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe fi-ontal or near-frontal collisions,
even
bdted occupants can contact the steering wheel or the
instrument panel.
Air bags supplement 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 help you in many types of collisions, including
rollovers, rear impacts and side impacts, primarily because an occupant’s motion is not toward those
air bags. Air
bags should never be regarded as an-g more than a
supplement to safety
belts, and then only in moderate to
severe fi-ontal or near-frontal collisions.
What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After an air bag inflates, it quickly deflates, so
quickly that some people may not even realize the air
bag inflated. Some components of the air bag
module
-- the steering wheel hub for the driver’s
air bag, or the instrument panel for the right front
passenger’s bag
-- will be hot for a short time. The
parts of the bag that come into contact with you may
be
warm, but not too hot to touch. There will be some
smoke and dust coming from vents
in the deflated air
bags.
Air bag inflation doesn’t prevent the driver from
seeing or from being able to steer the vehicle, nor does it
stop people from leaving the vehicle.
When an air bag inflates, there is 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 can’t get out
of the vehicle after an air bag inflates, then get
fresh air
by opening a window or door.
In many crashes severe enough to inflate an air bag,
windshields are broken
by vehicle deformation.
Additional windshield breakage may
also occur from
the right front passenger air bag.
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. The service manual for your
vehicle covers the need to replace other parts.
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0 0 Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and
diagnostic module, which records information
about the air bag system. The module records
information about the readiness of the system,
when the sensors are activated and driver’s safety belt usage at deployment.
Let only qualified technicians work on your air
bag system. Improper service can mean that your
air bag system won’t work properly. See your
dealer for service.
NOTICE:
I ~~
If you damage the covering for the driver’s or the
right front passenger’s air bag, the bag may not
work properly. You may have to replace the air
bag module in the steering wheel or both the air
right front passenger’s
air bag. Do not open or
break the
air bag coverings.
~ bag module and the instrument panel for the
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle
Air bags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
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. Your
dealer and the Firebird Service Manual have information
about servicing your vehicle and the air bag system.
To
purchase a service manual, see “Service and Owner
Publications’’
in the Index.
CAUTION:
I
For up to 10 minutes after the ignition key is
turned
off and the battery is 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. Avoid wires wrapped with yellow tape
or yellow connectors. They are probably part of
the air bag system. Be sure to follow proper
service procedures, and make sure the person
performing work for you
is qualified to do so.
The air bag system does not need regular maintenance.
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Rear Seat Passengers
It’s very important for rear seat passengers to buckle up!
Accident statistics show that unbelted people
in the rear
seat 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.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The rear seats have lap-shoulder belts. Here’s how to
wear one properly.
1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
On convertible models, the shoulder belt may lock
if you pull the belt across you very quickly. If this
happens, let the belt go back slightly to unlock it,
Then pull the belt across you more slowly.
2. 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.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.
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 is positioned
so you
would be able to unbuckle the safety belt 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.
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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.
The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop or
a crash.
On convertible models, the safety belt also locks if you
pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.
-
A CAUTION:
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder belt is
too loose. In a crash, you would move forward
too much, which could increase injury. The
shoulder belt should
fit against your body.
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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. Neither
the distance traveled nor the age and size of the traveler
changes the need, for everyone, to use safety restraints.
In fact, the law in every state in the United States and in
every Canadian province
says children up to some age
must be restrained while in
a vehicle.
Smaller Children and Babies
-
A CAUTION:
Children who are up against, or very close to, any
air bag when it inflates can be seriously injured
or killed. This is true even though your vehicle
has reduced-force frontal air bags. Air bags plus
lap-shoulder belts offer the best protection for
adults, but not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle’s safety belt system nor
its air
bag system is designed for them. Young children
and
infants need the protection that a child
restraint system can provide. Always secure
children properly in your vehicle.
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I A CAUTION:
Smaller children and babies should always be
restrained in a child or infant restraint. The
instructions for the restraint
will say whether i
the right type and size for your child. A very
young child’s hip bones are
so small that a
regular belt might not stay low on the hips, as i
should. Instead, the belt will likely be over the
child’s abdomen. In
a crash, the belt would apl
force right on the child’s abdomen, which cod(
cause serious
or fatal injuries. So, be sure that
any child small enough for
one is always prope
restrained in a child or infant restraint.
it is
it
PlY
d
Infants need complete support, including support for
the head and neck. This is necessary because an
infant’s neck is weak and its head weighs so much
compared with the rest of its body.
In a crash, an infant
in a rear-facing restraint settles into the restraint,
so the
crash forces can be distributed across the strongest part
of the infant’s body, the back and shoulders. A baby
should be secured
in an appropriate infant restraint.
This is so important that many hospitals today won’t
release a newborn infant to its parents unless there is
an
infant restraint available for the baby’s fist trip in a
motor vehicle.
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A CAUTION:
L
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
CAUTION: (Continued) at
only 25 mph (40 km/h),
a 12-1b. (5.5 kg) baby
will suddenly become
a 2404b. (110 kg) force on
your arms. The baby would be almost impossible
to hold.
Secure the baby in an infant restraint.
I I
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