The misconceptions of Vietnamese drivers about airbags

Many Vietnamese drivers wonder why the car crashed head but air bags do not sprung or argue constantly about not fastening the seat belt, the air bag does not open.

1. What to do to prevent "wrong foot brake and accelerator"?

Airbags are part of the car's passive safety system , which minimizes the risk for people on the vehicle when an accident occurs.

In addition to airbags, there is a force-absorbing structure of the body, seat belts and emergency belt tensioners. To maximize the ability to protect the occupants, airbags often operate independently of the rest but also when the operation depends, depending on the design of each automaker.

Typically, users only understand the airbag on their model, but use this knowledge to apply in general when talking about other brands' cars. Therefore, the driver community often has controversy surrounding airbags. Here are the common misconceptions of Vietnamese drivers.

1. Just stabbing is sprung

Depending on the situation, it is not necessary to stab the air bag.

The answer is that depending on the situation, it is not necessary to stab the air bag. There are cases where the car collided leading to the front end, but the air bag still does not open, because at this time the electronic calculations of the car show that, just a safety belt is enough to protect people on the car, without needing airbags.

According to the reaction order, when the vehicle hits another object, the chassis system, the vehicle body absorbs a portion of the force (possibly deforming), reducing the force applied to the cabin. After that, the seat belt keeps passengers from rushing forward due to inertia. The safety reaction process will stop here, if the collision is not dangerous enough to threaten the lives of people in the car.

So how can the vehicle recognize the life of the car in danger?

The answer is based on the source of information that the sensors are in front, on the body of the vehicle, which leads to the central ECU controller. Such information is a combination of many factors such as stop acceleration, force absorption, deformation, movement of fixed parts on the vehicle. If the ECU calculates and analyzes this information source, the result of the collision is strong enough or life-threatening, the airbag will explode.

The calculation of "how dangerous" depends on the views of each manufacturer and characterization of each vehicle.

2. Tighten the newly opened airbag seat belt

Another controversy is whether the air bag will expand if not tied up.The correct answer is the car of each carrier. Most Japanese cars, for example Toyota design independent airbag and seatbelt systems. If the ECU calculates the collision dangerously enough to inflate the air bag, the air bag will inflate without regard to the installed seat belt.

For Mercedes, the automaker has a different structure of airbags and seat belts.

Some German carmakers like Volkswagen and BMW also designed these two technologies independently. Even with BMW, if the occupant does not fasten the seatbelt, the airbag is sooner and more sensitive in the event of a collision that is dangerous enough.

However, like Mercedes, the automaker has a different structure of airbags and seat belts. That is, if you do not fasten your seat belt, the air bag will not open. Mercedes Vietnam technical expert said, designing air bags when installing safety belts to ensure the best solution for people sitting. But the technology is still set up smart so that in case the car finds the collision too dangerous, even if the seatbelt is not tightened, the airbag will still explode.

The vehicle does not give any warning on the dashboard or screen for "not wearing a seatbelt, the air bag does not sprung" , but only emitting a sound with a flashing symbol when the seated person does not buckle up as above Most cars of all brands. Therefore, car owners need to understand this structure when buying a car and reminding their companion.

But there are also a number of firms designed according to the principle of "airbags only sprung when fastening the seatbelt" and set the warning status for users. On some models, the airbag light will indicate "Airbag OFF" if you do not fasten your seat belt and turn ON if tied.

Experts also give advice, no matter what the manufacturer's design, wearing a seatbelt when sitting in a car is always a prerequisite. You should not blame the air bags for not opening because they do not buckle up, it is important for users to know how to protect themselves first, by simply wiring.

3. There is no person sitting in the extra seat, the air bag does not open

Whenever the crash truck is dangerous enough, the airbag will automatically explode without knowing if someone is in the passenger seat.

With this question, the answer is also case by case . Toyota experts say the company does not consider this case, so whenever the crash truck is dangerous enough, the airbag will automatically explode without knowing if someone is in the passenger seat.

But Mercedes is different. German carmaker added load cells under the seats. In the accident, when the sensor noticed that there was an impact force large enough for people to sit, the airbag in the new seat opened. The reason why the company offers this structure is to bring the highest safety if children sit in the extra seats.

In the case of children sitting in this seat, the air bag inflates like a small bomb that explodes straight into the head, chest, which can be much more dangerous for children than car collisions. The sensor under the seat will read the force, if the force is less than a limit, the ECU understands that the position is child, the seat airbag does not explode but only an airbag in the driver's seat.

Some other German carmakers offer the option to automatically switch off or automatically turn off the airbag for the seat side to reduce costs when air bags inflate without passengers.