What Will You See After an Airbag
Inflates?
After the frontal airbags and seat-mounted side impact
airbags inflate, they quickly deflate, so quickly that some
people may not even realize an airbag inflated. Roof-rail
airbags may still be at least partially inflated for some
time after they deploy. Some components of the airbag
module may be hot for several minutes. For location of
the airbag modules, see What Makes an Airbag Inflate?
on page 1-61.
The parts of the airbag that come into contact with you
may be warm, but not too hot to touch. There may be
some smoke and dust coming from the vents in the
deflated airbags. Airbag inflation does not prevent the
driver from seeing out of the windshield or being able to
steer the vehicle, nor does it prevent people from leaving
the vehicle.
{ CAUTION:
When an airbag inflates, there may be 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 cannot get
out of the vehicle after an airbag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or a door. If you
experience breathing problems following an airbag
deployment, you should seek medical attention.
The vehicle has a feature that may automatically unlock
the doors, turn the interior lamps on, and turn the hazard
warning flashers on when the airbags inflate. You can
lock the doors, turn the interior lamps off, and turn the
hazard warning flashers off by using the controls for
those features.
1-62