Mazda3 Air Bags Faulty?

**Autobeat** · June 1st, 2006 11:07 PM

From the pic, I would have also expected the airbags to already deploy. A friend's 03 Civic VTIS' airbags deployed with, what seems like a much lesser impact, if I base it on the damages. The civic was still repairable. I even got to ride it after it got fixed.

This Mazda 3 was even declared a total wreck and yet the airbags did not deploy? Then again, maybe it just how Mazda has set the sensitivity of their airbags versus Hondas?

**mrpink** · June 1st, 2006 11:22 PM

mazda3driver: given the amount of damage the car sustained, i'm glad you and your wife walked away with only minor injuries .. and as a buyer of a car with airbags, it's only natural to want them to deploy when you're in a crash .. of course if you get more injured if the airbags did deploy, ibang usapan na naman ito .. but nevertheless, buti minor injuries lang .. kung jeep siguro yung tumama ng ganyan .. may ilan paserho siguro ang critical na ngayon ..

OT: mazdamazda: The force of the bag is intended to hit an average man in the chest, but shorter people are hit in the face. This impact is especially dangerous for those shorter than 5'4" ...

dangerous pala kung "vertically challenged" .. so kung pandak ka .. safer ba na tanggalin nalang yung airbag ..

**oldblue** · June 2nd, 2006 12:12 AM

Originally Posted by mackieboy

tsk tsk tsk...
kasama ba sa PMS ang airbag check? or possible ba to check airbags?
ma discuss nga yan sa mga members..

nasa manual ata yan. i dont know about mazda pero yun sa honda kasama, my certain kilometer na dapat i-check ang airbags. the crv in my sig has dual side airbags pero 1999 pa. 4 years sa honda casa pero ni minsan hindi nila ata na-check ito or even pinalitan.

may expiration period ba ang airbags? kasi 7 years na ito. gusto ko din sana malaman.

**OTEP** · June 2nd, 2006 12:15 AM

If there are no evident problems in your airbag system (the idiot lamp did not illuminate), Nissan will inspect it 10 years after purchase. It is stated in the manual. I'm not sure about other vehicle makes.

**mazda3driver** · June 2nd, 2006 09:04 AM

Originally Posted by Alpha_One

I'm terribly sorry about your accident, but I don't think the airbags would have saved your wife from injuries. First of all, the airbag system has no way of figuring out if your wife was crosslegged while carrying a dog. Second, your wife was in an improper position, which defeats the purpose of all the "protection" anyway. I doubt the airbags would have been of much help, consider yourself lucky you weren't killed.

To put it into perspective, my aunt has written off an AE92 and an Isuzu Fuego pickup truck in similar accidents (to be more specific, she hit telephone poles both times). Neither car had airbags, but she walked away with similar injuries.

I'd say the car did its job. Now, whether the car did its job well enough for you I can't say anything about that. I know how you feel, but in car crashes, I'd expect the worst.

I disagree, me and my wife would not have gotten those injuries to the face. She would have still gotten that sprained ankle and because of her seating position. She would have still gotten that bruised shoulder but not the laceration to the chin and the 4 broken teeth (which are all still painful now even after goin to the dentist twice) if those air bags opened. Just last night more than 3 weeks after the accident, she cried herself to sleep even with those pain killers because of her teeth. I'm not askin for sympathy for her injuries. I'm just making it clear that although our injuries are considered minor to many of you, they are still painful and they could have been prevented by the air bag.

Trust me, nothing has been said in this thread that I already know by researching this issue everyday since the accident. Nothing can convince me that we were better off without those air bags.

**mazda3driver** · June 2nd, 2006 09:10 AM

Originally Posted by OTEP

If there are no evident problems in your airbag system (the idiot lamp did not illuminate), Nissan will inspect it 10 years after purchase. It is stated in the manual. I'm not sure about other vehicle makes.

Yes Mazda said there was no malfunction because I never reported any warning lamp that illuminated.

**an0nim0us** · June 2nd, 2006 12:16 PM

From the pictures, and the force of impact (grabe pala, pasok kalahati nung engine compartment). I would have expected those airbags to deploy. Kung ako man ang driver, and even if manuals say na hitting a pole will not deploy it, I still expected it to have worked in this case! Hirap mag-comment pero mukhang may problema nga yung system.

Sorry bout what happened Mazda3driver, I didnt realize it was that serious when I first read this thread (la pa yata pictures nun?). Wish you and your wife recover quickly from that truamatic experience.

**lancer** · June 2nd, 2006 09:44 PM

this simply means that quality is not always represented by looks?

**batang_raon14** · June 2nd, 2006 10:14 PM

Originally Posted by lancer

this simply means that quality is not always represented by looks?

I wont consider it as such that soon. But I'd really conclude to myself that airbag deployment is really circumstance-dependent and in some point may even cause additional pain to an already injured body part IMO.

**OTEP** · June 2nd, 2006 10:14 PM

Just thinking out loud. What if the airbags did deploy and you broke your forearm and nose and got some burns from the explosive charge? Still go after the manufacturer?

It's really hard to say whether the SRS would have lessened injuries. As previously stated, they are installed to prevent death. Airbag inflicted injuries are not uncommon. It's one of the compromises of their job.