How Does an Airbag Restrain?

In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions, even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside of the vehicle.

Airbags supplement the protection provided by safety belts by distributing the force of the impact more evenly over the occupant's body.

But airbags would not help in many types of collisions, primarily because the occupant's motion is not toward those airbags. See When Should an Airbag Inflate? for more information.

Airbags should never be regarded as anything more than a supplement to safety belts.

    See also:

    Right Front Passenger Position
    To learn how to wear the right front passenger’s safety belt properly, see Driver Position on page 24. The right front passenger’s safety belt works the same way as the driver’s safety bel ...

    Weight of the Trailer Tongue
    The tongue load (A) of any trailer is an important weight to measure because it affects the total gross weight of the vehicle. The Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) includes the curb weight of the vehi ...

    Checking Coolant
    The vehicle must be on a level surface when checking the coolant level. Check to see if coolant is visible in the coolant surge tank. If the coolant inside the coolant surge tank is boiling ...