U.S. Auto Makers Seek to Make Air Bags Deploy More Slowly
May 05, 2011
WASHINGTON -- The Big Three auto makers are proposing changes in government test standards that would allow them to install air bags that inflate less forcefully, industry officials said. Some 24 children and 19 adults have been killed by deploying air bags since the mid-1980s, according to government statistics. Those deaths combined with injuries from air bags and the rapid growth in the number of vehicles with air bags have prompted the auto makers to propose reducing the force with which air bags inflate, the officials said. ``We don't want air bags to get a bad reputation. They're saving lives. They're doing some good things, but we think they could be made better,'' said Mclain Wilbur, director for vehicle safety at the American Automobile Manufacturers Association in Detroit. The association is scheduled to make the proposal to the government and media tomorrow on behalf of Ford Motor Co., Chrysler Corp. and General Motors Corp.. Currently, air bags can deploy as fast as 200 miles an hour, in less time than the blink of an eye. The industry association wants to change government crash tests that require an air bag to deploy with sufficient force to cushion an unbelted dummy in a 30 mph crash into a solid barrier. The proposal would keep the test at 30 mph but change the test to more accurately reflect that most real-world crashes are with less force but over a greater length of time, association officials said. That change would give manufacturers flexibility to reduce the force and speed of air-bag deployment, Mr. Wilbur said. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration repeatedly has said air bags are an important safety feature -- saving more than 1,500 lives -- but can be dangerous for children who don't wear seat belts, are in rear-facing infant seats or are close to the dashboard when the bag deploys.
