
yellow
blue
1-33
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have inflated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were.
Inflation is determined by the angle of the impact and
how quickly the vehicle slows down in frontal or
near
-
frontal impacts.
The air bag system is designed to work properly under a
wide range of conditions, including off
-
road usage.
Observe safe driving speeds, especially on rough terrain.
As always, wear your safety belt. See “Off
-
Road
Driving” in the Index for more tips on off
-
road driving.
What makes an air bag inflate?
In an impact of sufficient severity, the air bag sensing
system detects that the vehicle is in a crash. The sensing
system triggers a release of gas from the inflator, which
inflates the air bag. The inflator, air bag and related
hardware are all part of the air bag modules inside the
steering wheel and in the instrument panel in front of the
right front passenger.
How does an air bag restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near
-
frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. Air bags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Air bags distribute the force
of the impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper
body, stopping the occupant more gradually. But
air bags would not help you in many types of
collisions, including rollovers, rear impacts and
side impacts, primarily because an occupant’s motion
is not toward those air bags. Air bags should never be
regarded as anything more than a supplement to safety
belts, and then only in moderate to severe frontal or
near
-
frontal collisions.
What will you see after an air bag inflates?
After an air bag inflates, it quickly deflates, so quickly
that some people may not even realize the air bag
inflated. Some components of the air bag module
--
the
steering wheel hub for the driver’s air bag, or the
instrument panel for the right front passenger’s
bag
--
will be hot for a short time. The parts of the
bag that come into contact with you may be warm, but
not too hot to touch. There will be some smoke and
dust coming from vents in the deflated air bags. Air bag
inflation doesn’t prevent the driver from seeing or from
being able to steer the vehicle, nor does it stop people
from leaving the vehicle.
Summary of Contents for 1999 Suburban
Page 6: ...yellowblue vi Model Reference This manual covers these models 4 Door Utility Suburban ...
Page 70: ...yellowblue 1 64 NOTES ...
Page 138: ...yellowblue 2 68 Instrument Panel ...
Page 242: ...yellowblue 4 60 NOTES ...
Page 350: ...yellowblue 6 70 NOTES ...
Page 397: ...yellowblue 7 47 Maintenance Record DATE ODOMETER READING SERVICED BY MAINTENANCE PERFORMED ...
Page 398: ...yellowblue 7 48 Maintenance Record DATE ODOMETER READING SERVICED BY MAINTENANCE PERFORMED ...
Page 412: ...yellowblue 8 14 NOTES ...