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01-21-2012, 03:34 PM | #1 |
Drives: Loaded 2007 mica silver sedan Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: New hampshire
Posts: 226
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Failure of airbag deployment
Just a short note for all the yaris owners. I've owned a 2007 yaris sedan since new and had over 137000 trouble free miles on it. On December 21st I hit a rather large patch of black ice on interstate 393 just outside of Concord, NH. I ended up doing a 360 in the middle of the road then hitting a guard rail straight on with the nose of the yaris at better than 45 to 50 mph. NO DEPLOYMENT OF THE AIR BAGS. I was the only one in the car and not hurt, but my insurance company totaled the vehicle.
When I called Toyota I got the response that sometimes this happens. Not what I expected from Toyota. My understanding is any impact on the nose of over 30 or so mph would activate the airbags. Just a fair warning to all of you with a fontal impact the air bags may not deploy. It's been fun but I've gone back to a gas guzzlin SUV. At least I have some more steel around me for protection. |
01-21-2012, 04:32 PM | #2 |
Drives: 2009 Base Hatch 2 Dr Auto Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: nj
Posts: 4,790
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Since you were not hurt the car made the right decision not to deploy the airbags.
I think you did not have a full frontal impact at 50 mph because the car was going in the direction of the highway not the guardrail when it went into a spin. You hit the guardrail while spinning. It was a glancing blow. I dont know how many pictures of these cars have been posted here after accidents showing really serious dammage. There is always a happy ending for the occupants I have noticed. Your decision to deploy an SUV in response to the accident is going to cost you a lot of money and for what?
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01-21-2012, 04:51 PM | #3 |
Not quite a noob
Drives: e46 325 Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: edmonton
Posts: 1,408
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The airbags only deploy if the airbag sensor is hit. If your particular crash managed to hit everything BUT the airbag sensor, you would not have deployed airbags. Just sayin. I'll take a look at my car on Monday again, but I think our cars have the airbag sensor aft of the rad.
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01-21-2012, 05:05 PM | #4 |
Drives: 2009 Base Hatch 2 Dr Auto Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: nj
Posts: 4,790
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Hmmm I do not know but I think its behind the bumper.
It would be interesting to know exactly how the car knows to deploy the airbags. If they go off for no reason they are VERY expensive to replace. I think deployed airbags are a major reason cars are totaled these days.
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01-21-2012, 05:13 PM | #5 |
Not quite a noob
Drives: e46 325 Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: edmonton
Posts: 1,408
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Our airbags are only 200-300 bucks each. Not enough to warrant totalling a car. It's more that generally if the airbags go off it's likely that damage elsewhere is extreme. If framerails are bent, it's an instant write off
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01-21-2012, 05:37 PM | #6 |
Drives: 2009 Base Hatch 2 Dr Auto Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: nj
Posts: 4,790
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I have never replaced an airbag but for some reason I believe airbags are about ten times that to replace.
At least in NJ.
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01-21-2012, 05:38 PM | #7 |
ULTIMATE
Drives: 09 5dr LB, 2x 08 3dr LB Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: USA, CT
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The front sensors are mounted just behind the crumple zone for the front bumper mounts. They are accelerometers and I believe single axis ones, so they need to be subjected to a specific threshold of deceleration in a specific direction to trigger. The SRS also takes into account seat position and if the seat belt is fastened when deciding whether or not to pop the airbag(s).
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01-21-2012, 05:48 PM | #8 |
Drives: 2009 Base Hatch 2 Dr Auto Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: nj
Posts: 4,790
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How much is an airbag to replace when it pops?
Like the drivers?
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01-21-2012, 06:30 PM | #9 |
Not quite a noob
Drives: e46 325 Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: edmonton
Posts: 1,408
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Just look on ebay. An airbag is not 3000 bucks to replace..
This is the MOST EXPENSIVE on the first page of results. http://www.ebay.com/itm/TOYOTA-YARIS...item5648263cf2 |
01-21-2012, 07:01 PM | #10 |
Drives: 2009 Base Hatch 2 Dr Auto Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: nj
Posts: 4,790
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Whats a new one go for?
When I looked online in parts sellers ( things like brakes, shocks) I could not find them for sale.
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01-21-2012, 07:03 PM | #11 |
Not quite a noob
Drives: e46 325 Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: edmonton
Posts: 1,408
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Well, as listed in the link, anywhere from 100-200 dollars. There's really no such thing as a used or new airbag. It's more like "Undeployed/deployed.
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01-21-2012, 07:14 PM | #12 |
Drives: 2009 Yaris 3D AT Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: The O.C.
Posts: 72
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Air bag deployment failure is a common occurrence in automobiles. Search the topic on the internet and you'll be amazed at the situations it doesn't go off when it should and when it goes off when it shouldn't. One girl was sitting in the passengers front seat with her foot on the dash. The air bag deployed for no reason and took her foot off.
I know two people that had air bag failures. One was an extreme accident where it did not deploy. Friend contacted a lawyer and he said it was near impossible to win a case against auto makers for non deployment because it is not a primary safety device like a seat belt. Another guy I know had it go off on a 5 MPH fender bender. He got a broken nose and two black eyes. Scared him so bad he thought he was going to have a heart attack.
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01-21-2012, 08:14 PM | #13 |
Drives: '08 LB MT Bayou Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Colorado
Posts: 1,671
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^ Wait... "took her foot off" as in severed? That sounds a bit like urban legend. Either that or some information is missing.
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01-21-2012, 10:48 PM | #14 |
Not quite a noob
Drives: e46 325 Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: edmonton
Posts: 1,408
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it was her own fault for having her feet up there.
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01-22-2012, 01:17 AM | #15 |
Shush!
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and the professional comes out of the woodwork
FYI i am a total loss claims adjuster for major insurance company here in socal based on the information you have provided without photos or being there (of course).. it sounds as if your primary speed may have begun around the 30-45 you stated.. though you may directly impacted the frontal impact bar directly, by the time you finished skidding around the ice your speed decreased. so therefore, by the time the actual impact was made, you may have only been going 20-25. there are black boxes inside vehicles that can be pulled for information to determine the speed the crash impact was at & the speed at the time the brakes were depressed & how it took for brakes to work. AMAZING, EH it is up to Toyota if they feel that they wish to investigate; however it sounds as if they dont feel it should have deployed in this situation & i rather agree with them. the sensor for front impact collision airbag deployment is not exactly centered straight on.. your license plate is in the center afterall! if it is not triggered exactly correctly & at the right speed, it will not deploy. No our airbags dont cost 3k, however.. a 2007 in avg condition has a approx acv(actual cash value) or 7-8 with a salvage value of approx 2k, leaving a threshhold of 5-6k in repairs. BUT if safety becomes involved (twisted frame or such) they will declare it total loss due to structural issues. IT IS NOT ALWAYS ECONOMIC TOTAL LOSS. please dont fault the car for doing its job; youre not hurt, are you? if the airbag had gone off, you probably would have gotten airbag burn(those chemicals are super nasty!) and god forbid you were wearing glasses, broken your nose! if you dont believe how fast those things deploy, check out the recent Mythbusters thing they did... they shot a safety cone super high into the air simply by deploying an airbag on blacktop... DRIVE SAFE YALL
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01-22-2012, 01:57 AM | #16 | |
USAF_SrA_E-4
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Quote:
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01-22-2012, 11:23 AM | #17 |
Mr. 155 and climbing
Drives: Seriously Modded 07 Sedan Join Date: Jun 2006
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01-22-2012, 05:29 PM | #18 |
Shush!
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Lol im still around... just on kawi forums too now ;-) bout to take MSG and buy a bike
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