Front air bags

The front air bags increase protection for the driver's and front-passenger's head and chest.

Driver's air bag 1 deploys in front of the

Driver's air bag 1 deploys in front of the steering wheel; front-passenger front air bag 2 deploys in front of and above the glove box.

They are deployed:

in the event of certain frontal impacts
if the system determines that air bag deployment can offer additional protection to that provided by the seat belt
if the seat belt is fastened
independently of other air bags in the vehicle

If the vehicle overturns, the front air bags are generally not deployed unless the system detects high vehicle deceleration in a longitudinal direction.

Your vehicle has adaptive, two-stage front air bags. In the event of a collision, the air bag control unit evaluates the vehicle deceleration. In the first deployment stage, the front air bag is filled with enough propellant gas to reduce the risk of injuries.

The front air bag is fully deployed if a second deployment threshold is exceeded within a few milliseconds.

Vehicles with OCS (USA only): deployment of the front-passenger front air bag is also influenced by the weight category of the front passenger, which is determined by the Occupant Classification System (OCS).

Vehicles with OCS (USA only): the lighter the passenger side occupant, the higher the vehicle deceleration rate required (predicted at the start of the impact) for second stage inflation of the front-passenger front air bag.

In the second stage, the front air bags are inflated with the maximum amount of propellant gas available.

The front air bags are not deployed in situations where a low impact severity is predicted. You will then be protected by the fastened seat belt.

Vehicles with BabySmart™ (Canada only):

do not place any objects which weigh more than 20 lb (9 kg) on the front-passenger seat. This could cause the system to identify the seat as being occupied. In the event of an accident, the restraint systems on the front-passenger side are triggered.

Have restraint systems that have been triggered replaced.

The front-passenger front air bag will only deploy if:

the system, based on the OCS weight sensor readings, detects that the frontpassenger seat is occupied (USA only).

the center console is not lit, USA: indicator lamp in the center console is not lit, USA:

Canada:

the center console is not lit. indicator lamp in the center console is not lit.

the air bag control unit predicts a high impact severity.

    See also:

    Towing a vehicle with both axles on the ground
    When having your vehicle towed, observe the important safety notes. WARNING The power assistance for the steering and the brake force booster do not work when the engine is not running. You ...

    Belt warning for the driver and front passenger
    Regardless of whether the driver and front passenger have fastened their seat belts already, the seat belt warning lamp lights up for 6 seconds after every engine start. It then goes out if t ...

    Setting the center vents in the rear compartment
    1 Rear-compartment air vent, left 2 Rear-compartment air vent, right 3 Rear-compartment air vent thumbwheel, right 4 Rear control panel for automatic climate control 5 Rear-compartment a ...