airbags

Ahem...
I may be wrong, but I've always been given to understand that the impact has to be pretty severe for the airbag(s) to deploy, in which case I would think that the vehicle would be kind of "immobilised" anyway...
I have not "tested" this theory personally, and have no wish to any time soon...

Regards,
Ed. C.

Mark,
Agree with above, it requires a certain amount of force for the airbag to deploy, and therefore the theory is that the result of the sudden stop would mean the vehicle is not driveable, however, there are several methods of deploying an airbag, particularly the type in the steering wheel, and in some of these if the vehicle is able to continue, you can drive it, so the answer, NO, and, YES.
Remember that also, after and accident, the law regarding a vehicle being driven on public roads changes also.
Rolande

Mark S
I believe the electrical system associated with the engine is isolated for a period of time something like 15 to 20 minutes. I had an unfortunate incident in the UK about five years ago. The impact deployed the airbags and the driver had to wait 20 minutes until he could start the vehicle again. The vehicle was still drivable obviously, cut the airbags away with a knife and off he went.

I may also have a stupid question, when you buy a second hand vehicle how would

you know if the airbags have been replaced (or what ever they do) if it has been

in an accident previous to you buying it ?

Snatchem

Ok , i will answer both questions , is the vehicle imoobilised if the air bags go off ?

If the air bags go off , its due to 3 sencors , one is in the seat belts , second is in the seat , the third in the front . If the air bags go off , they also trigger lock devices in the seat belts. This means the seat belts need to be replaced also .

The system dosnt shut down the engine as such , but the radiator going through the engine block can do it sometimes lol .

Now , the question about the air bags been replaiced . You usualy can see a diffrent colour in the airbag cover to the rest of the dash if its been changed , Due to the amount of some the dash gets to see . But this dosnt alsway meen the car was in a accident. The air bag could of been replaiced due to been faulty.

You can always pick a car thats been in a accident anyway . Seam sealer, Gaps , bolts ect. 9 times out of 10 , if the bags have gone off , the car is a write off . But there is our group of friends who like to buy these cars at fowles and slap them up for a quick buck . If you arnt sure what a stacked car looks like , you should get it checked by a panel beater anyway , even if your buying from a yard. Then you van have peie of mind.

Hope this helps

Morning all.
I believe what Eric is referring to is the seat belt "Pre-Tensioner", a small explosive charge in the seat belt stem which, when triggered, has the effect of tightening the seat belt to remove any slack just before impact. If the pre-tensioner fires the mechanism must be replaced. It does not "lock" the belt, just tightens it to reduce injury.
Some older vehicles with airbags don't have pre-tensioners. All newer ones do.
John.

By the way, a large 'roo could very easily trigger an airbag, especially if the bar fitted to the vehicle is not properly engineered or the sensor is marginal. Some early airbags had very sensitive sensors and would trigger at the drop of a hat. Now days I believe the Aust standard is for a minimum 25KMH collision to trigger the bag.
John.