Air Bags

[megaladon6]

as a former tow driver i have to say that i've seen air bags save lives, and i have NEVER seen one burn someone's face and break bones. HOWEVER, this was on 2000 and newer, mostly middle to higher end cars and chevy trucks (rich area of NY)
but the early generations of bags were pretty nasty. and VERY sensitive.
i would never depend on one to save my life, as said--sometimes they don't go off when it appears they should. (FWIW some cars disable them if you don't have the seatbelt on)

 

[rustyroger]

but the early generations of bags were pretty nasty. and VERY sensitive.

Air bags have been greatly improved since they were first introduced, I would trade an airbag breaking my nose over smashing my head into the windshield every time.
I wonder what police officers attending wrecks and paramedics and ER crews think.

Seat belts have been required in every car sold in the UK since 1966. Wearing them wasn't required until 1983 and most people didn't use them until then. Road deaths were immediately reduced when buckling up became law.
Some of the cars in the '60s had very poorly designed belts that were uncomfortable to wear and hard to adjust to fit properly. Thankfully modern cars have addressed these issues, just as airbags are much better now as is just about every aspect of secondary safety.

Roger.

 

[CHRIS.O]

I don't really think the airbag breaking a nose or burning somebody would be a complaint in a serious wreck where other more serious injuries are possible but my 30-40mph wreck that smashed my face all to hell and burned it pissed me off. I had no injuries other than that. If I was rolling along at 60 and hit something I would be glad I had it. But like others have said the bags in modern cars have come a long way from the early air bags that caused unnecessary injuries in low speed collisions.

 

[rustyroger]

I don't really think the airbag breaking a nose or burning somebody would be a complaint in a serious wreck where other more serious injuries are possible but my 30-40mph wreck that smashed my face all to hell and burned it pissed me off. I had no injuries other than that. If I was rolling along at 60 and hit something I would be glad I had it. But like others have said the bags in modern cars have come a long way from the early air bags that caused unnecessary injuries in low speed collisions.

I'm not trying to flame you, but a busted and burnt face after a 30-40 mph collision strikes me as getting off lightly.
At that kind of speed cracked ribs from the belts themselves are quite possible.

A problem that comes with safer cars is they are driven with less regard to risk.
If you were in a hypothetical vehicle that was perfectly safe now matter how you drove it the temptation to take a risk is much greater than in a normal car, conversely if you were in a vehicle that would give you lethal injuries in a crash you would be completely focused on staying out of harms way.

Roger.

 

[CHRIS.O]

See now it struck me as bullshit. The wreck wasn't even a direct collision. I went down into a ditch. The car was drive able. No injuries other than my face being smashed and my left hand being blown off the wheel and into the driver side window. I get where your coming from and I agree they are a useful aid in reducing serious injury but my head isn't going to smack the windshield skipping across a ditch. I've been in worse wrecks with older vehicles without modern safety equipment and I fared better. Just the luck of the draw I suppose.

 

[rustyroger]

Luck of the draw sums it up neatly.

Maybe the only part of your Jeep that took a knock happened to be where the airbag sensor was, conversely people have walked away from high speed wrecks without a scratch having not even buckled up.

When I really should have been doing something useful I have watched tv shows telling how someone drowned in their cats water bowl or broken their neck slipping in the shower, and how others have walked away from helicopter crashes or similar.

I still maintain the best safety device sits in the drivers seat, I guess most users of this forum pay above average attention to their drivng and keeping their cars in good shape.
This doesn't keep us safe from the drunks, drug abusers, people yapping into their cellphones, or those driving unsafe cars we have to share the roads with. Nor does it preclude us from making errors ourselves. I've been lucky over 39 years of driving and never been in a wreck, but I know it could be my turn next time I take my car out, so everyone in the car is buckled up and the airbags are enabled before I move off.

Roger.

 

[pencero]

lol I forgot entirely about this thread and beat the sh*t out of my steering wheel in frustration yesterday. Then I remembered this thread and I'm thinking I'll be removing the airbag from it this week. All I have to do is determine if the computer will present a problem or not.