Airbags

[Harvey]

Hi all, I have a general question regarding airbag safety. I hope someone can help me.
I’ve been looking for a new or near new car to replace my aging 05 Mitsy 380. I’ve been looking
at several different cars over the last few weeks and this very day a thought dawned on me.
Most new cars have at least 6 airbags. Out of those 6 the rears usually come out from the B pillar shooting towards the back,
C pillar shooting towards the front, roof just above the rear window shooting down or out of the seat also shooting towards the front.
All this is fine when your passengers are human. But what happens if your German shepherd has his head
out of or near the window in the event the rear airbag deploys ?
Would the sudden deployment be enough to injure or even kill your pet ? I asked the guy at the service
counter (as if that would do me any good–and it didn’t) his response was that I was being “fatalistic”.
This new development may throw a spanner in my new car search.
I can’t risk my pet’s life in a car that has rear bags.
I figure disconnecting the rear bags would not be possible if not illegal.
Does anyone have an opinion on this ?

Topic

[ed k]

not sure how the car safety laws are in your country but in the US side airbags have been required in all cars since the late 2000’s; typically it consists of a front seat mounted torso airbag and curtain airbag that deploys downward from the roof….. some cars also have torso rear side airbags

i have noticed in some newer cars a frontal impact will deploy the side curtain/torso airbags along with the front airbags to keep you from hitting any hard structures inside the car

my best advise would be to secure the dog in a proper dog restraint

[Harvey]

Thanks Spedison. Actually I forgot to include that he is restrained when traveling.
He wears a chest harness which is then attached by a short length of seat belt to
the baby capsule mount on the rear deck. This will prevent him from shooting
forward in case of a frontal. It’s not a great system but as far as I know it’s all there is.
There are no really effective safety systems built for pets traveling in cars and I’ve never seen
crash test dummies simulating dogs or cats.
My Misty only has 4 front bags none in the back and it just never occurred to me.

As for the laws I suspect as far as airbags go, most country’s laws would be pretty much the same.

[Stuart Tierney]

Take a look at this video.

Mind the language. A bit rough for those of a delicate disposition.

Stu.

[Harvey]

Thanks Schtoo, I love this guy. (well I don’t actually love him as such)
I’ve seen most of his videos. Yeh he swears a bit but he’s no-nonsense and tells it like it is throwing in some good humor into the mix.
I eventually found his email, wrote to him personally and asked him the question and he did give me some good info on the airbags.
In essence, he answered my question and confirmed that the airbag would indeed kill the pet.
But if the side impact were hard enough to deploy the bag the pet would like be dead anyway.
As is his style, no nonsense, but I like no nonsense.

Thanks again Schtoo.

[Author]

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