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How many Lives Do Airbags Really Save?
2007-09-03 16:33:00
Did you ever wonder just how many lives and people have been affected by airbags and seat belts?  We are often asked that question and there are lots of statistics out there addressing this issue.  We found it amazing how much these restraint systems have increasingly changed our lives and the lives of those around us year after year. Although some of these statistics are good news, some of them are not: Here are the answers that tell the real story.  In 2006, NHTSA conducted the National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS). The overall observed shoulder belt use rate was 82 percent in 2005, compared to 80 percent observed in 2004. In 2005, an estimated 2,741 lives were saved by air bags. From 1987 to 2005, a total of 19,659 lives were saved.   In 2005, 31,415 occupants were killed (passenger cars, light trucks, vans, and SUVs)  in motor vehicle traffic crashes, 72 percent of the 43,443 traffic fatalities reported for the year.  Of the 31,415 ...
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Airbag Recalls - July 2007
2007-08-23 19:01:00
July 2007   Suzuki is recalling 75,697 MY 2006-2007 Forenza and Reno passenger vehicles. The front seat belt tongue will not latch into the buckle and, in rare cases, even the locked tongue will pop out by low stretching force. If the buckle does not latch completely, the buckle could release without pressing the release button. These buckle malfunctions, which could prevent a person from using the seat belt or could cause the seat belt to fail to function as designed, can increase the risk of injury in a crash. Dealers will replace the front driver and passenger seat belt buckles with the improved part. The recall is expected to begin during November 2007. 07V-315   General Motors Daewoo Auto & Technology is recalling 78 MY 2006-2007 Chevrolet Optra vehicles located in Guam and Saipan. These vehicles were built with a seat belt buckle with an improper ultrasonic weld of the spring rib and fixation rib of buckle undercover in both front seat belts. A spring rib or fixation rib...
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Why Didn't My Airbag Deploy
2007-08-15 21:43:00
Week after week, month after month I am asked ?Why didn?t my airbag go off?  I was hit hard enough, the frame rail is bent, the engine mount was broken but the airbag never went off.? These situations are far too common and even more commonly misunderstood.  The airbag systems are designed for specific impacts, using very specific criteria to determine the severity of the crash as well as the degree of danger to the occupants of the vehicle.   The earlier models used multiple sensors placed strategically in the front end of vehicles, while many of the newer cars and trucks simply use one central Sensing and Diagnostic Module and one remote sensor to determine deployment.  With the addition of head airbags, knee bag, side curtains, and seat airbags, again multiple sensors are in play, however each sensor is designated to a specific airbag.  One for frontal, one for side airbag, one fur curtain, etc...   But let me get back to the question at hand.  The answer is ?the airbags will de...

April, May, June 2007 Airbag Recalls
2007-07-12 17:53:00
June 2007   DaimlerChrysler is recalling 798 MY 2007-2008 Sebring and MY 2008 Dodge Avenger vehicles. The front seat track position sensors utilized for the air bag system may not function properly. This could increase the risk of injury to front seat occupants during certain crash conditions. Dealers will inspect the front seat track position sensors and replace them. The recall began on June 18, 2007. 07V-240   DaimlerChrysler is recalling 39 MY 2007 Dodge and Freightliner Sprinter 2500 and 3500 trucks. The window bag module diffuser material may contain hairline cracks. In the case of a crash with a trigger signal for the window bag module, it is possible that such a diffuser may crack at the beginning of the air bag activation. Dealers will replace the window bag module. The manufacturer has not yet provided an owner notification schedule for this campaign. 07V-246 May 2007   DaimlerChrysler is recalling 270,958 MY 2005 Town and Country and Dodge Caravan minivans originally so...
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Airbag Recalls Through March 2007
2007-07-09 19:10:00
March 2007 GM is recalling 359 MY 2007 Pontiac G6 passenger vehicles for failing to conform to the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208, 'Occupant Crash Protection.' The right front passenger seats in these vehicles are built with a passenger air bag sensing system. When tested with a representative, unrestrained six year old child, the system is required to turn off the right front passenger's airbag. Interference during system calibration caused the seats to be out of specification. This can increase the risk of injury to a child seat occupant during certain crash conditions. Dealers will replace the passenger sensing system free of charge. The manufacturer has not yet provided an owner notification schedule. Nissan is recalling 16,309 MY 2007 Versa hatchback model vehicles. The terminals for the passenger side seat belt tension sensor harness connector may have been damaged during the manufacturing process. This could result in a loss of electrical ...
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Airbag Recalls Through March 2007
2007-07-06 21:43:00
March 2007   GM is recalling 359 MY 2007 Pontiac G6 passenger vehicles for failing to conform to the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208, 'Occupant Crash Protection.' The right front passenger seats in these vehicles are built with a passenger air bag sensing system. When tested with a representative, unrestrained six year old child, the system is required to turn off the right front passenger's airbag. Interference during system calibration caused the seats to be out of specification. This can increase the risk of injury to a child seat occupant during certain crash conditions. Dealers will replace the passenger sensing system free of charge. The manufacturer has not yet provided an owner notification schedule.   Nissan is recalling 16,309 MY 2007 Versa hatchback model vehicles. The terminals for the passenger side seat belt tension sensor harness connector may have been damaged during the manufacturing process. This could result in a loss of electrica...
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Dilemma
2007-06-18 18:35:00
Recently, I was speaking to a body shop owner. He was frustrated with how the insurance appraiser was handling an estimate, specifically the times and rates he was allowing for airbag replacement. It seems this appraiser was not allowing these times to be charged at mechanical rate ($55/hr), even though the price guides specifically indicated (M) next to each of the times stated. The appraiser maintained that these were body repair times ($42/hr), while the shop owner maintained these were mechanical rates and times. POINT (Insurance Appraiser) Why should an insurance company pay out more money to the same body technician for working inside the car on accident related damages than he does working outside the car doing the same? Isn?t the sensor a body component? The same question can be asked about the airbags themselves. They are all listed parts within the body repair estimating guide. The labor times and rates in these estimating systems are only guides, not gosp...
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What airbag parts do I replace?
2007-06-18 18:20:00
Today I received a call from a body shop that was unsure of the components to replace after a deployment. They were working on a 2006 Nissan Maxima. Only the driver?s airbag deployed and they, along with the insurance appraiser, were confused as to why this happened and what parts were actually needed. The front harness was cut from the accident as well. The estimate allowed them the driver?s airbag and the replacement of the front harness only. Looking it up in our database as well as the factory database, this vehicle calls for all deployed components along with the control unit to be replaced after deployment. I directed them to check the seat belts (which were overlooked originally), for operation. These pretensioners deploy milliseconds prior to the airbag deployment. We discussed how many occupants were in the car (only the driver was). I explained to them that beginning as early as 2002 manufacturers have been installing occupant sensors and ?smart bags?. These sys...
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