| Since their invention in the 1950s, up | | | | certain child restraint seats. Placing |
| through development during the 1970s and | | | | certain child seats on the front |
| finally institution as a required | | | | passenger seat is designed to result in |
| feature in the 1980s, airbags have | | | | the automatic deactivation of the front |
| become an important factor in decreasing | | | | seat passenger's airbag. In some cases, |
| injuries of those involved in automotive | | | | the sensing system may misinterpret a |
| accidents. Airbags function as | | | | properly seated small adult as one of |
| supplemental safety devices designed to | | | | these specific child seats, resulting in |
| work with seat belts to minimize | | | | deactivation of the front passenger |
| injuries in vehicle accidents. In | | | | airbag when the airbag might be |
| theory, airbags reduce the chance that | | | | beneficial for the adult, increasing the |
| the occupant of a vehicle's upper body | | | | risk of injury in a crash. |
| or head will strike the vehicle's | | | | May 2007 |
| interior during a crash, thus decreasing | | | | DaimlerChrysler is recalling 270,958 MY |
| the incidence of injury. Both frontal | | | | 2005 Town and Country and Dodge Caravan |
| and side-impact air bags are designed to | | | | minivans originally sold in or currently |
| deploy in moderate to severe crashes. | | | | registered in the 27 states plus the |
| During a car accident various sensors | | | | District of Columbia that use greater |
| throughout the vehicle determine the | | | | amounts of salt for winter road deicing. |
| severity of the crash. An onboard | | | | The up-front (UF) airbag sensors that |
| computer, called the Electronic Control | | | | contain brass bushings installed in |
| Unit (ECU), processes the information | | | | these vehicles may corrode and crack |
| and, in an event of moderate to severe | | | | allowing water to enter the sensor. |
| crash, it sends a signal to the inflater | | | | These sensors provide enhanced air bag |
| inside the air bag module. At that point | | | | performance in certain types of frontal |
| the airbag is supposed to inflate, | | | | crashes. In one of these crashes, with |
| protecting the vehicle's occupants from | | | | one or both of the vehicle's UF sensors |
| serious injury as a result of striking | | | | inoperative, the occupants will not |
| the vehicle's interior. As a result of | | | | benefit from the enhanced air bag |
| the effectiveness of initial driver and | | | | protection that these sensors would |
| passenger front airbags, the adoption of | | | | provide. |
| rear-passenger and side-impact curtain | | | | Hyundai de Puerto Rico is recalling |
| airbags has become more common over the | | | | 2,967 MY 2005-2007 Tucson vehicles. |
| last decade, in an attempt to create the | | | | Static airbag deployment testing |
| highest degree of safety possible. | | | | conducted by NHTSA using fifth |
| Unfortunately, as the number of airbags | | | | percentile female dummies indicated that |
| being placed in new cars has increased, | | | | a small stature adult driver not wearing |
| so has the overall need for the airbags | | | | a seat belt and involved in a frontal or |
| themselves. Thus, more airbags are | | | | near frontal crash, the deployment of |
| manufactured and the overall quality of | | | | the driver air bag may result in an |
| the airbags produced has seen some | | | | insufficient margin of compliance as |
| degree of decline. One way this decrease | | | | measured by the test dummy used in the |
| in quality has become apparent is in the | | | | NHTSA test. This can cause increased |
| increasing incidence of defective | | | | risk of injury to the driver under |
| airbags and airbag failure in | | | | certain crash conditions. |
| automobiles produced both in the United | | | | June 2007 |
| States and abroad. | | | | DaimlerChrysler is recalling 798 MY |
| Because drivers usually never have the | | | | 2007-2008 Sebring and MY 2008 Dodge |
| chance to test the airbags in their | | | | Avenger vehicles. The front seat track |
| vehicle until the airbag's functionality | | | | position sensors utilized for the air |
| becomes a matter of life or death, the | | | | bag system may not function properly. |
| possibility of defective airbags has | | | | This could increase the risk of injury |
| lead manufacturers of a variety of | | | | to front seat occupants during certain |
| automobiles to issue recalls for the | | | | crash conditions. |
| airbags in the vehicles. If there | | | | DaimlerChrysler is recalling 39 MY 2007 |
| exists a possibility that the airbags | | | | Dodge and Freightliner Sprinter 2500 and |
| might malfunction or there might occur | | | | 3500 trucks. The window airbag module |
| airbag failure. | | | | diffuser material may contain hairline |
| The following is a non-comprehensive | | | | cracks. In the case of a crash with a |
| list of airbag failure-related | | | | trigger signal for the window airbag |
| automobile recalls instituted in April | | | | module, it is possible that such a |
| through June of 2007 from the National | | | | diffuser may crack at the beginning of |
| Highway Traffic Safety Administration | | | | the airbag activation. |
| (NHTSA): | | | | As one can see from this small sampling |
| April 2007 | | | | of the defective airbag recalls that |
| BMW is recalling 225 MY 2007 6-Series | | | | have been instituted either voluntarily |
| passenger vehicles for failing to | | | | by auto makers, or at the insistence of |
| conform to the requirements of Federal | | | | the NHTSA, there are many occasions in |
| Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208, | | | | which one or many of the airbags |
| 'Occupant Crash Protection. The front | | | | installed in a vehicle will not operate |
| passenger seat has a sensing system that | | | | as intended and therefore be a defective |
| detects if the seat is occupied. This | | | | airbag that might cause an airbag |
| sensing is programmed to detect if the | | | | failure in an accident. |
| seat is occupied by a small adult or | | | | |