Pontiac Solstice 2010, Owner'S Manual, Page: 70 / 390

In addition, your vehicle has dual-stage frontal airbags.
Dual-stage airbags adjust the restraint according to
crash severity. Your vehicle has electronic frontal
sensors, which help the sensing system distinguish
between a moderate frontal impact and a more severe
frontal impact. For moderate frontal impacts, dual-stage
airbags inflate at a level less than full deployment.
For more severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs.
Frontal airbags are not intended to inflate during
vehicle rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts.
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.
What Makes an Airbag Inflate?
In a deployment event, the sensing system sends an
electrical signal triggering a release of gas from the
inflator. Gas from the inflator fills the airbag causing the
bag to break out of the cover and deploy. The inflator,
the airbag, and related hardware are all part of the airbag
module.
Frontal airbag modules are located inside the steering
wheel and instrument panel.
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. Frontal airbags distribute the force of the impact
more evenly over the occupant’s upper body, stopping
the occupant more gradually.
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? on
page 2-39 for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts.
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