Airbags and seat belts for ultimate safety.
While airbags provide an important function in the protection of motorists during collisions, it is important to bear in mind that they are designed to act as a supplementary support system, or SRS. Seatbelts are the true life savers, capable of restraining drivers and passengers in any sort of accident.
Airbags, on the other hand, will not offer any viable protection (and thus will not deploy) during t-bone collisions, rollovers, and rear end collisions. Furthermore, an airbag can only be used once, and therefore is of no additional assistance in the event that there are multiple collisions. Finally, airbags operate via complex systems that weigh the severity of what is occurring against pre-programmed factory settings that use figures taken from the results of crash tests. A collision that does not meet the requirements can still leave you injured, but the airbag won’t deploy.
Consider too that an airbag fills in a tenth of a second, all while the driver or passenger is being thrust forward, towards the dashboard or steering wheel. In slow motion, it may appear that the airbag is soft and pillow-like, offering gentle resistance as the driver is pushed towards it. In reality, all of this takes less time than it takes to blink, and the trauma can lead to collapsed lungs or even a broken neck.
The best way to prevent such injuries is to be seated a proper distance from the SRS module, which tends to be a recommended 10-12 inches from the wheel. Equally vital, of course, is to be wearing a properly adjusted seatbelt. As well, remember that when applying the brakes suddenly (in order to avoid a collision), the stop will thrust a driver forward and into the deploying airbag if said driver isn’t buckled properly or maintaining a safe distance from the SRS system.
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