Frontal Air Bags
Depending on the severity of the crash, frontal air bags inflate to prevent occupants from hitting the steering wheel, dashboard, and windshield. Frontal air bags for both drivers and passengers have been standard equipment in all vehicles since 1998.

Frontal air bags do not eliminate the need for safety belts and typically do not offer protection in rollovers, side-impact, or rear-end crashes. Air bag effectiveness depends upon the proper use of safety belts, which help keep you in place should a collision occur. Occupants who are unbelted or out-of-position can end up being seriously injured or killed if they are too close to the air bag when it deploys.

Advanced (Frontal) Air Bag Systems
Beginning with 2004 vehicles, advanced air bag systems are required in a portion of each manufacturer's production. By September 1, 2006, all new vehicles will have advanced (frontal) air bag systems. The charts included in this web site indicate which vehicles are certified to the new Federal standard for advanced air bags.

Advanced air bag systems are a next-generation frontal air bag system designed to further reduce the likelihood of serious injury or death to occupants, whether adults or children, who may be too close to the air bag when it deploys. Most advanced air bag systems use sensors that automatically detect the severity of the crash, the occupant's size, safety belt use, and/or seating position, and deploy the appropriate level of power to the driver's and passengers frontal air bags.

You will need to talk with the dealer or review the owner's manual to learn more about the specific features and sensor technologies in use as part of the advanced air bag system.

• Buckle your safety belt.
• Keep about 10 inches or more between your chest and the air bag cover.
• Never place a rear-facing infant seat in front of an air bag, even a reduced-power or advanced air bag, unless the air bag on-off switch is in the OFF position.
• Place children age 12 and under in the back seat, and make sure they are properly restrained, either in a safety belt or a child safety seat that is appropriate for their size, weight, and age.

Warning!!! Even with advanced air bags, children can be killed or seriously injured by air bags. Always put children age 12 and under in the rear seat.

On-Off Switches
An on-off switch can deactivate the driver's or passenger's air bag. Almost all vehicles without rear seats or with small rear seats, such as pickups and sports cars, now include a passenger-side on-off switch as standard equipment. Check the Available Features chart for an individual vehicle at www.safercar.gov for the availability of on-off switches. If you own a vehicle without an on-off switch and have a demonstrated need to have one installed by a dealer or repair facility, you may do so if you meet one of the following conditions:

• You must transport a child age 12 or under, including an infant riding in rear-facing infant seat, in the front passenger seat.
• You have a medical condition where the air bag poses a special risk that outweighs the risk of hitting your head, neck, or chest in a crash if the air bag is turned off.
• You cannot change your customary driving position and keep 10 inches between the center of the steering wheel and the center of your chest.

More details and an on-off switch request form may be obtained at www.safercar.gov/airbags. Given that on-off switches are not available for all vehicles, verify availability of a switch for the vehicle you want to purchase before you request authorization for switch installation.

Side Air Bags (SABs)
Side-impact air bag (SAB) technology has advanced rapidly in recent years. SABs offer additional protection to two main areas of the body – the head and the chest – during side-impact crashes.

SABs providing head protection show these footnotes in the charts: curtain (c), tubular (t), or combo (b). Curtain and tubular SABs typically deploy downward from the vehicle's roof rail. Combination or “combo” air bags typically deploy upward from the seat back and provide both head and chest protection. SABs providing chest-only protection will have the following footnotes in the chart depending on their mount location: door-mounted (d) or seat-mounted (s). You should read the owner's manual for specific information about the side-impact air bag system in a vehicle.

SAB Out-of-Position Tests
A Technical Working Group of experts representing the automotive and insurance industries has developed voluntary SAB testing procedures to minimize the potential risk of SAB-related injuries for out-of-position occupants. If a vehicle has an “M” in the column labeled “SAB Out-of-Position Tests,” it means the manufacturer has reported to the government that all SABs in the vehicle have successfully completed the full battery of tests specified under the voluntary guidelines.

Rollover Air Bags
With input from a separate rollover sensor, some curtain SABs can be designed to also deploy as rollover air bags in the event of a rollover. Rollover air bags stay inflated longer to help keep you inside the vehicle. Ejection is the most common source of injuries and fatalities in rollover crashes. Rollover air bags, along with properly worn safety belts, reduce the risk of injury and ejection. Check the Available Features chart for the individual vehicle at www.safercar.gov for the availability of curtain SABs that function as rollover air bags.

Consider Weight
All other things being equal, a heavier vehicle will generally better protect you in a crash. This is particularly the case in two-vehicle crashes. NHTSA research historically has shown that occupants in passenger cars are at a greater risk of being fatally injured when struck in the front or the side by a heavier and higher-riding light truck (such as a pickup) or SUV. Improved energy-absorbing front ends and safety technologies such as head-protecting side-impact air bags can help lower this risk to vehicle occupants