[mithun]

There’s a lot of sales buzz these days about Airbags, which quite frankly are not a ‘must have’ in our slow speed driving conditions. They not only cost quite a packet to begin with but also being ‘single use’ only - cannot be re-used coz of the 'explosive' nature of the inflation mechanism employed. In fact they go off with quite an audible bang, sometimes even when NOT when called upon to so and cost more than Rs: 25k to replace !

Airbags Waste of Money according to Indiacar.com !!!

OK, it may be waste of money in India where people never ever wear their seat-belts !!!

So what's you opinion regarding Air-Bags in Indian cars taking into consideration initial cost, replacement cost, safety parameters, driving conditions etc...

[M77]

Originally Posted by mithun

Airbags Waste of Money according to Indiacar.com !!!

OK, it may be waste of money in India where people never ever wear their seat-belts !!!

So what's you opinion regarding Air-Bags in Indian cars taking into consideration initial cost, replacement cost, safety parameters, driving conditions etc...

Air bags are not needed for people who want to find themselves
in a vegetative state after an accident. ( on the wheel chair, drooling
and peeing all over), with the "momo" imprint from the steering
wheel on their forheads.

[1self]

dear members,

this debate can go on & on....but one aspect is clear....one NEEDS ABS & AIRBAGS as a bare minimum...and i feel the smaller and chaeper the vehicle...it become even more imperative to have it...one just has to see some accident sites and one gets a clear picture of how an airbag-abs-seatbelt combo could easily have saved the day!!

and for us enthuiasts...we do not have race tracks...so we make do with relatively deserted stretches of roads...& push pedal to metal...in such cases it is an absolute must...thoughts??

[S@~+#0$#]

My colleague's old Saab-93 car here in Melbourne has 4 seat bags, the new cars have atleast 8, so when I told him that my Esteem had none, he raised his eye-brows and got very paranoid about it and said that he wouldn't want to sit in my car ever.

This question is going on in my mind since then. I feel airbags and ABS should be made mandatory in all new cars. This way the cost will also come down.

I am convinced about ABS, but it is the airbags bit that I still need an answer to? What do the owners of Swift-VXi(ABS) and Swift-ZXi have to say about that? Has any body had to spend a fortune on replacing the Air-bags when it was unnecessary? The reason for asking Swift owners IMO is because the bigger cars which have these features are mostly driven by chauffers.

[manveet]

I don't know about other cars but for Honda Accord the airbags don't get deployed if passanger isn't wearing seat belts. I have confirmed this from Honda service manager

Well I can't be too sure about that. The Manual says the airbags are euipped to deploy in all cases EXCEPT when the dashboard Airbag light indicates a problem.

The Manual also says that for Accords equipped with side air-bags, they deactivate for the duration when anyone leans on the path of the air-bag (for safety reasons) and EVEN for that time period, the dash light goes ON.

The same fact has been re-iterated at a couple of other places also in the manual .. ABS and AIRBAGS will "always" work unless the light is on while driving.
When the engine is started, the light should turn on for a couple of seconds before going off .. this indicates that ABS and Airbags are working fine

Infact my dad hit the underside of the Accord yesterday (he was REALLY slow, so not much damage) because of which the dashboard Airbag light is now permanently On .. so I'm assuming the Sensor's need to be recalibrated/fixed by the Honda technician. Will re-confirm quoted text when I visit there.

From my past performance I have noticed that the Service guy just wants the Customer to be happy and gives whatever story he wants. When I take my OHC down to them, the Service guy crticises the NHC and when my friend took the NHC, the same guy was all praise for it !! so much for facts !!

[suman]

Manveet, AFAIK, front seat belts must be worn for airbags to deploy...the lights on the instrument panel that come on & go out merely indicate that the equipment is in working order, however, actual deployment of airbags would only happen if seatbelts are on.

ABS, of course, is "on" from the moment the car is started & has nothing to do with occupants wearing seatbelts

[manveet]

Originally Posted by suman

Manveet, AFAIK, front seat belts must be worn for airbags to deploy...

well, i respect your's and shan2nu's opinion, and it makes logical sense also .. but then the Manual should specify this .. THAT is my concern ..

Originally Posted by suman

the lights on the instrument panel that come on & go out merely indicate that the equipment is in working order

Well, in case of side air-bags, it specifically talks of deployment. The manual explains the following scenario in detail
say a child leans on the door panel, the side air-bag light goes on and it wont deploy. The moment the child leans away, the light goes off and the airbag is ready for deployment.

Originally Posted by suman

however, actual deployment of airbags would only happen if seatbelts are on

One thing i'll do when I get home is check my friend's Accord (since mine is malfunctioning anyways) to see whether the Airbag light is on when the Seatbelt light is on (i.e. seatbelt not used). Hopefully, that should help.

But eitherways, this is an important point that has come up so i'll re-verify from the Accord dealer over the weekend. But just for my info, have you seen this fact documented anywhere?

Originally Posted by suman

ABS, of course, is "on" from the moment the car is started & has nothing to do with occupants wearing seatbelts

Yes, Suman .. I know that
ABS point was mentioned to highlight the fact that the Airbag light concept (staying "on" initially and then staying "off" wherein both indicate a particular status) extends to other lights also such as the ABS.

[suman]

Originally Posted by manveet

But eitherways, this is an important point that has come up so i'll re-verify from the Accord dealer over the weekend. But just for my info, have you seen this fact documented anywhere?

Nope buddy, was told about it during my TDs with both the Endeavour & the Dicor recently; will let you know in due course if its documented on the Dicor manual.

Was also told about it when a neighbour of ours died early this year when their Prado overturned after hitting something (see my thread about Greater Noida expressway disaster) - airbags didn't deploy as neither of the front seat occupants were wearing seatbelts (lady of course flew through the windscreen, hit the road & died so wouldn't have had a chance anyway)

[rks]

Originally Posted by manveet

Infact my dad hit the underside of the Accord yesterday (he was REALLY slow, so not much damage) because of which the dashboard Airbag light is now permanently On .. so I'm assuming the Sensor's need to be recalibrated/fixed by the Honda technician. Will re-confirm quoted text when I visit there.

That precisely is the problem with having sophisticated electronics in your car. They are fine as long as they are company-fitted. The moment there is a problem with these gizmos, you are at the mercy of your ASC -- once these guys mess with the OEM fitting, it will never be the same again. So in my opinion, having airbags and the like is simply not worth it in our country. Even if you could afford the money, you can never be sure it will work as specified. And these electronic gizmos are more likely to fail in Indian conditions -- high heat and humidity, dusty and dirty roads with poor drainage and massive potholes/speedbreakers, etc.

So the golden rule in this country is -- keep it simple, so that it can't possibly be messed up. That is, unless you have a lot of time on your hands to chase the ASC guys and ensure that they do a proper job. What about safety? Drive safe, depend on your driving skills -- and don't worry, be happy.

[theMAG]

Originally Posted by kashd

Do we require ABS in Indian condition. ABS is mainly used for snowy or ver slippery conditions and also for very high speed driving. As these conditions are not common in India, do we still need ABS ?
Kash

ABS requirement is highly subjective and had been the source of constant debate between my friend's Swift Vxi with ABS, and my Swift Vxi w/o ABS. I can tell you for a fact that there has not been half an instance in my friend's almost 1 year of car ownsership that the ABS would have been needed. But, ABS is not something that can be generalized as not required.

Airbags are designed to deploy only at high speeds. I've known many Indian cars where the airbags havent deployed even after a severe accident such as the car somersaulting after an impact. Statistics show that airbags kill more than they save. But, I don't think we can still make a blanket statement against airbags.

These would be required if your driving is mainly highway oriented at constant high speeds and certainly not for city/grocery shopping.

[manveet]

• Originally Posted by theMAG

  I've known many Indian cars where the airbags havent deployed even after a severe accident such as the car somersaulting after an impact

• Originally Posted by theMAG

  Statistics show that airbags kill more than they save

Where have you heard of such incidents and what statistics are these. Please quote the source(s).

These would be required if your driving is mainly highway oriented at constant high speeds and certainly not for city/grocery shopping.

Ever heard of terrible accidents within city limits. I am sure you'll find many threads on this forum with pictures.

[anupamsinha]

I read a bit about airbags and ABS. It may be a requirement for some car driver's to be wearing a seat belt but haven't really heard that it's a general rule. I don't think that airbags would only deploy when you have buckled up. Secondly I don;t exactly remember airbags killing people, but yeah the no. of people being saved by airbag wasn't quite impressive.

[suman]

Originally Posted by theMAG

Airbags are designed to deploy only at high speeds.

I don't agree with the high speed bit, what exactly would you term as "high speed"?

[sandeep108]

Regarding swift owners, most owners with drivers will never buy the zxi, maybe vxi or vxi with abs. ABS has helped me on a couple of occasions. Airbags is a supplemental safety system, helping you only if wearing seatbelts. In fact one of the requirements for airbags is a pre-tensioner seatbelt system as well.

In our Indian conditions - children sitting on laps, people just pulling the seatbelt over loosely - which would be totally banned in developed countries, god only knows whether it will save or take lives. Any case we take our own safety so casually that it is clearly reflected in our accident statistics.

But if I can afford it, I would always go for ABS AND airbag options.

For my kids, I have inculcated a habit of child seats (it helped when a bus crashed into us at a red light) and now that they are grown up, they have to wear rear seat belts as well. When walking, try and find a footpath (rare but still possible) and always wait for the signal, no running across to save a few seconds. But tell me, how many of us really follow basic safety practices? Most taxi drivers remove their seatbelts once they cross the city toll naka, when actually that is the time wearing it may really save their life.

[grvanand]

I have a Palio 1.6 with ABS and driver airbags. As for airbags, luckily i have not experienced any need but it is mandatory to wear seatbelts at all times. This is because, when the airbag gets activated, it has to hit the chest of the driver and not the face.
For ABS, it has helped me on many occassions and I now find it hard to drive a non ABS car due to the sense of its lockup. ABS truely helps and should be made mandatory for cars sold in India.