Airbags didnt deploy
02-20-2008, 09:57 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: 06-06-2006
Location: Canada
Posts: 4
Airbags didnt deploy
The other day my wife was hit broadside in our 06 fully loaded HHR and the airbags didnt deploy. The collision knocked her from a stop,25 feet across the road and wrapped the car around the pole on the side of the road.
My question is ...should the airbags deployed??? Car has about 10 grand in damage maybe more as full estimate isnt in. Im hoping the insurance writes this car off as i dont want it after seeing all the damage.
Altho i love the looks of this car its had a pile of small problems from day 1 and i have just about had it dealing with GM as a whole.
We started looking for a new car and im constantly drawn back to the looks of the HHR... but i had bought this as it has a 5 star collision rating but after no airbag deployment in this accident im not comfortable with my wife and kids riding in the car anymore. Does anyone else have a similar experience?
BTW drunk driver hit her and wife has concussion and alot of bruising from the side impact and no pics yet as the car is not in my possession.
If i would have know this would happen i wouldnt have babied this car and just ran the crap out of it from day 1
My question is ...should the airbags deployed??? Car has about 10 grand in damage maybe more as full estimate isnt in. Im hoping the insurance writes this car off as i dont want it after seeing all the damage.
Altho i love the looks of this car its had a pile of small problems from day 1 and i have just about had it dealing with GM as a whole.
We started looking for a new car and im constantly drawn back to the looks of the HHR... but i had bought this as it has a 5 star collision rating but after no airbag deployment in this accident im not comfortable with my wife and kids riding in the car anymore. Does anyone else have a similar experience?
BTW drunk driver hit her and wife has concussion and alot of bruising from the side impact and no pics yet as the car is not in my possession.
If i would have know this would happen i wouldnt have babied this car and just ran the crap out of it from day 1
02-20-2008, 10:03 PM
#2
Senior Member
Join Date: 06-24-2006
Location: Bowling Green, OH
Posts: 2,315
welcome, side impacts do not deploy the steering wheel airbag. Because sensors are in the front of car detect front/rear collisions and the airbag wouldnt have helped in side impacts do to head and body would go to side away from collision not towards steering wheel due to physics. thats why they have side impact airbags. Hope no one was hurt seriously. Would have been same in all cars not just HHR
02-20-2008, 10:40 PM
#4
Thread Starter
Join Date: 06-06-2006
Location: Canada
Posts: 4
I do understand that no matter what rating the car has, to many other factors come into play for any guarantees in a crash. Car has every option that was offered,Full airbags all round. Just suprised the side impact bags didnt deploy as it was quite the crash.
Wife was sitting at the exit of the local mall and a car jumped a windrow ( big pile of snow piled up from snow removal graders) flew 20 feet in the air and hit the drivers front quarter panel sending her car spinning 20 feet down the sidewalk into a pole. Witnesses said it was like someting out of the dukes of hazards. 2 feet further back and that car would have landed in my wifes lap and instead of coming home ... who knows?
Shiny, Black , polished ,all that wax, for nothing, I loved that HHR, Damn drunk drivers, hope the other driver enjoyed their eveing in jail
Wife was sitting at the exit of the local mall and a car jumped a windrow ( big pile of snow piled up from snow removal graders) flew 20 feet in the air and hit the drivers front quarter panel sending her car spinning 20 feet down the sidewalk into a pole. Witnesses said it was like someting out of the dukes of hazards. 2 feet further back and that car would have landed in my wifes lap and instead of coming home ... who knows?
Shiny, Black , polished ,all that wax, for nothing, I loved that HHR, Damn drunk drivers, hope the other driver enjoyed their eveing in jail
02-20-2008, 11:04 PM
#5
Senior Member
Join Date: 06-24-2006
Location: Bowling Green, OH
Posts: 2,315
Here is a quote about airbag deploying from 2006 HHR owner's manual 1-61 threw 1-62:
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an
airbag should have inflated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs
were. For frontal airbags, inflation is determined by
what the vehicle hits, the angle of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down. For side impact
airbags, inflation is determined by the location and
severity of the impact.
My guess is sensor didn't think it was a "severe" impact or wasn't in "right location" to deploy airbags. Sounds like everyone was ok and didn't need the airbags. (going on the info provided about how much car damage was in dollars and none about wife going to hospital or injuries)
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an
airbag should have inflated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs
were. For frontal airbags, inflation is determined by
what the vehicle hits, the angle of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down. For side impact
airbags, inflation is determined by the location and
severity of the impact.
My guess is sensor didn't think it was a "severe" impact or wasn't in "right location" to deploy airbags. Sounds like everyone was ok and didn't need the airbags. (going on the info provided about how much car damage was in dollars and none about wife going to hospital or injuries)
02-20-2008, 11:33 PM
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: 08-19-2007
Location: So.Cal.
Posts: 829
You say your HHR is loaded, but does it have side air bags?
The fact that your wife was NOT severly injured indicates the accident may not have been bad enough to activate the sensors. Steering wheel and dash bags will not open in a side impact. They open based on decereration rate, not amount of impact.
The fact that your wife was NOT severly injured indicates the accident may not have been bad enough to activate the sensors. Steering wheel and dash bags will not open in a side impact. They open based on decereration rate, not amount of impact.
02-21-2008, 07:20 AM
#7
Senior Member
Join Date: 07-17-2006
Location: Dallas, GA
Posts: 6,050
02-21-2008, 08:31 AM
#8
Senior Member
Join Date: 12-14-2007
Location: Toronto ON Canada
Posts: 2,964
My 2003 Cavalier was hit sideways in the front passenger fender, right on the wheel, other vehicle travelling about 60kph. It spun the car about 45 degrees and pushed it about 10 feet back. In that case both front airbags deployed, but did nothing as the impact was sideways. There were no side airbags. I guess its hard to tell when they will deploy.
02-21-2008, 08:37 AM
#9
Senior Member
Join Date: 01-01-2008
Location: Windsor, Ca
Posts: 991
one has to fully understand how airbag sensors function before expecting them to deploy at any major impact.
The bottom line is this-was she injured? if so, would the air bags have prevented, or lessened her injuries.
But if the car came equipped with side-impact air bags, It sounds as if they should deploy in a severe side impact...
here's an example:
I run a Limousine company. we had a driver lose control of a Towncar at 55 mph when it struck a pool of standing water in a roadwork area making the lane narrower. The car spunt to the right, and the driver' over-corrected to the left, causing him to strike the median off-set.
it peeled the entire front of the car back to down the left side. The front end was basically wiped to the left. The driver was shoved to the diagonal right towards the glove box due to his forward momentum.
the air bags did not deploy even though the sensor mounts were relocated.
The simple fact is that had the airbags deployed, the steering wheel airbag would probably have injured him because it would have struck his left shoulder area as he moved forward to the right.
in simple terms, air bag sensors basically work with a ball-bearing attached to a spring inside a tube. The weight of the ball-bearing causes the spring to expand during deceleration. The spring has to expand a certain distance to allow the ball bearing to make contact with the end of the tube. In a side impact, the ball bearing has to extend the spring far enough to the side to make contact with the tube to ignite the side air bags. If this occurs, the air bag will deploy. so speed, inertia, rate of deceleration, and direction of momentum all play a role in whether or not the air bags will trigger. remember, these cars have 2nd generation air bags now...they dont ignite/deploy as easily, or as forcefully as the 1st gen airbags used to.
Bottom line is this-if the air bags did not deploy, they were not suupposed to deploy in that type of accident.
as for the amount of damaged sustained, and the fact that you do not want it repaired...you may be able to negotiate that fact "under the table" with the body shop. often times, they will lower an estimate to keep cars out of "totalled" range...but many insurance companies prefer NOT to repair a car. It is easier for them to simply pay it off as a total, and get you in to another car.
as for being disappointed with your HHR...I firly believe there are plenty of "monday through thursday" cars out there, and a few 'friday" cars...sounds like you bought a "friday" car.
The bottom line is this-was she injured? if so, would the air bags have prevented, or lessened her injuries.
But if the car came equipped with side-impact air bags, It sounds as if they should deploy in a severe side impact...
here's an example:
I run a Limousine company. we had a driver lose control of a Towncar at 55 mph when it struck a pool of standing water in a roadwork area making the lane narrower. The car spunt to the right, and the driver' over-corrected to the left, causing him to strike the median off-set.
it peeled the entire front of the car back to down the left side. The front end was basically wiped to the left. The driver was shoved to the diagonal right towards the glove box due to his forward momentum.
the air bags did not deploy even though the sensor mounts were relocated.
The simple fact is that had the airbags deployed, the steering wheel airbag would probably have injured him because it would have struck his left shoulder area as he moved forward to the right.
in simple terms, air bag sensors basically work with a ball-bearing attached to a spring inside a tube. The weight of the ball-bearing causes the spring to expand during deceleration. The spring has to expand a certain distance to allow the ball bearing to make contact with the end of the tube. In a side impact, the ball bearing has to extend the spring far enough to the side to make contact with the tube to ignite the side air bags. If this occurs, the air bag will deploy. so speed, inertia, rate of deceleration, and direction of momentum all play a role in whether or not the air bags will trigger. remember, these cars have 2nd generation air bags now...they dont ignite/deploy as easily, or as forcefully as the 1st gen airbags used to.
Bottom line is this-if the air bags did not deploy, they were not suupposed to deploy in that type of accident.
as for the amount of damaged sustained, and the fact that you do not want it repaired...you may be able to negotiate that fact "under the table" with the body shop. often times, they will lower an estimate to keep cars out of "totalled" range...but many insurance companies prefer NOT to repair a car. It is easier for them to simply pay it off as a total, and get you in to another car.
as for being disappointed with your HHR...I firly believe there are plenty of "monday through thursday" cars out there, and a few 'friday" cars...sounds like you bought a "friday" car.
02-21-2008, 09:13 AM
#10
Senior Member
Join Date: 11-20-2006
Location: Peoria, IL
Posts: 931
I think your experience may be a testament to the safety of the car, not a problem! Your wife only experienced minor injuries in what sounds to be a serious crash. If you feel strongly that the side impact airbags should have deployed, maybe a call to the NHTSA to report the issue is in order.