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Re: Airbags

Jerome Soh <soh@domain.elided> writes:
>Similarly, if you wear your seat belt and shoulder belt, why do you 
>need an exploding steering wheel or dashboard so you can't see where 
>you're going?
>
>Am I the only one who feels this way?
>
>----------------------------
>
>I feel the same way!  I would never get ABS or an airbag if I had the
>choice... unfortunately, most cars today have standard airbags and it's
>illegal to remove them.  I believe that the airbag was invented because
>of the lazy  Americans refusing to wear their seatbelts... so SOME form
>of passive safety had to be employed... even though you have to wear
>your seatbelt for airbags to be fully effective.

I had the same questions when I was looking for my 325iC.  BMW started
putting airbags in them starting in '90.  

I wrote to my brother-in-law who's a doctor at a local large hospital
and had him look up some stats.  Here's his reply:

   Overall Airbag decrease in fatality-19%
   Airbag+Seat Belt-28% lower fatality
   Fatalities compared to belt alone- 15% fewer
   Airbag fatalities w/o seatbelt- 31% fewer than no seatbelt and no airbag
   Reduction of fatalities due to ejection from vehicle- 9%
   In another study:
   23% reduced fatality in frontal crashes, compared to with & without seatbelt
   16% reduced fatality in all crashes, front, back, side.

Note the 3rd line, "Fatalities compared to belt alone- 15% fewer."  I 
always wear my seatbelt, but, I would then asssume that I would have a 
better chance of living through an accident if I have an airbag.

The only bad thing I've heard is that when they deploy, people can get 
slight burns on their forearms.

Seems to me, no matter how you slice it, you're better off with an
airbag.

And, for those of you who really don't want them, why not just disable
them?  You can easily disable your airbag (isn't there a connector on
the bottom of the steering column that you unplug to remove the airbag?)
and I'm sure there's some method of disabling the ABS.  

         Just my $0.02 worth (+/-),
                 Larry.
______________________________________________________________________________
Lawrence R. Schwarcz, Software Design Engr/NCD      Internet:  lrs@domain.elided
Hewlett Packard Company                               Direct:  (408) 447-2543
19420 Homestead Road MS 43LN                            Main:  (408) 447-2000
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O-
             Copywight (c) 1996 Elmer Fudd.  All wights wesewved.
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