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        General >> Give/Need advice to/from others >> Airbags
        
(Message started by: Highlander on Nov 23^rd, 2008, 10:18pm)

Title: Airbags
Post by Highlander on Nov 23^rd, 2008, 10:18pm

I noticed that the Scorpio airbags say they should be replaced after ten years service...

Given that the youngest Scorpio is now ten years plus how many people have changed their airbags??

AND

Would this have any effect on any insurance claim if we were involved in an accident with airbags installed past their sell by date which going by the manufacturers recommendation should have been changed??

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by Highlander on Nov 23^rd, 2008, 10:38pm

Found this on a Fiat Forum, food for thought...

"As soon as VOSA can sort out the testing details; airbags will come into the MOT.

It's childsplay for each bag to be date-code chipped to the ECU and then the manufacturers will have what they've always wanted - an end-of-life switch on virtually every car.

As said; nobody will spend £2-5000 getting all the bags replaced at ten years".

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by lube-o-rific on Nov 24^th, 2008, 12:13am

I'm glad that I've only got one airbag!

I had a nasty experience when I flipped my N Reg GLX Mondy on the A82 running past Loch Lochy. The air bag did no good whatsoever and nearly broke my wrist. I hate the things!

If my airbag has passed the "date" so much the better!

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by Dave2302 on Nov 24^th, 2008, 6:07pm

Hmmm,

Funny you should bring this up, before I bought my Cossie estate I had a 2.9 Ultima Saloon, which I had a real hard crash in, a doddery old fa-t pulled out on me from a side turning when I was doing 80, never got a chance to brake. The Ultima was totalled as was the Escort I hit :'(. At the time the car was 11 years old, the airbag light always came on then off when I started the car and had no faults stored yet they didn't deploy !!!

Dave

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by pinto on Nov 24^th, 2008, 9:05pm

This one has been floating around for a while. It would be a highly unpopular move by any government to allow VOSA to introduce it tho. You also have to consider that even if you were swimming in cash, how many ford dealerships would actually be able to produce a full set of airbags for a scorpio that werent 10 years + old anyway ?

Personally, I cant see it being introduced myself.

Also, on the subject of non firing airbags, its pretty much a circumstance of luck if they fire or not anyway - it all depends on whether the damage is in the right place/sufficient for the actuators to fire the airbags in the first place. Next time you visit a scrap yard, take a look at the number of cars (usually between 1 and 5 years old too) that have been involved in heavy shunts with no signs whatsoever of airbags activation - its quite frightening really !

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by cossie_al on Nov 24^th, 2008, 9:43pm

My Only first hand experience of air bags being deployed was watching someone else. And I was gobsmacked by the way it happend.
A couple of years ago in the durham area a new out of town shoppping center had been built and everything was open before the car park was finished.
There was raised kerbs seperating the various parking areas and there was going to be some sort of fencing/barriers along the length of these kerbs but at the time most of these hadn't been fitted.
So some unobservant lady in a hurry did not notice the raised kerbs and drove over one at well over 30mph both front tyres burst the sump was spewing hot oil everywhere and as she opened the door I saw the air bags hanging in the front. The passenger had some nasty marks on her face caused by the bag. I went over to help out as did an off duty copper and he said he had never seen an airbag go off in this type of accident. one thing he did say is he has witnessed many very severe accidents where the air bags had not deployed, but he did not mention the ages of the cars involved :-/

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by Wadman on Feb 26^th, 2009, 10:43am

??? Gentlemen, I am not sure what the answer is to my question from the feedback given. Most are in agreement that if either the design or installation of any airbag is faulty, they can be 1 year or 20 years old and still be un-reliable even dangerous. Requires more thought or research on my part.

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by scorpio_man on Feb 26^th, 2009, 10:57am

hi there

i would imagine that it's the charge that goes out of date. possibly the charges are all the same on the ford range, so could be changed 'easily'. :-/

hth

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by rich1 on Feb 26^th, 2009, 7:52pm

why would they need changing ? why would they go out of date, im confused

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by Highlander on Feb 26^th, 2009, 8:25pm

As Andrew says i would imagine the charge has a shelf life and possibly the bag itself would start to deteriorate..

As a little aside, anti terrorist units as part of their investigations swab car steering wheels for traces of explosives.

IF you have handled or been exposed to a detonated airbag recently and they do this to your car expect to be off your work for a while ;)

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by gozz on Feb 26^th, 2009, 10:17pm

Rich.
Hope the one in your cab doesn't fire off,the Eldery William will have it darn the nick ! then you WILL be off you work ;D
GOZZ.

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by SnowyScorpio on Feb 27^th, 2009, 10:41am

A bit OT but this airbag seems to work... ;D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bBVJAFrN0U

//Snowy

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by rich1 on Feb 27^th, 2009, 3:48pm

;D thats funny

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by wumpster on Feb 27^th, 2009, 6:36pm

i had a mer back in 2004 it was 4 years old and no air bag fault lights showing i was involved in a head on and the airbags failed to deploy

Title: Re: Airbags
Post by SnowyScorpio on Mar 25^th, 2009, 9:20pm

In my quest to gain access to the passanger airbag compartment (since one is not mounted in my car they bolted the hatch stuck >:( ) i think i stumbled upon the replacement resistor for the airbag. Maybe worth knowing if you have a passanger airbag and want to remove it (if you for example want to mount a childseat), i guess it would be possible to go to the scrapper and get one...

http://i673.photobucket.com/albums/vv91/snowyscorp/DSCN3018.jpg
Glovebox removed and the hatch to the relays opened.

http://i673.photobucket.com/albums/vv91/snowyscorp/DSCN3025.jpg
Circled what i think to be the airbag replacement resistor.

//Snowy