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Accident, but why no air bag???

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Old 12-23-2005, 03:29 PM
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Accident, but why no air bag???

I was stopped waiting to make a left turn and a lady rear-ended me..
good thing cop was there to witness it....
but why didnt air bag deploy??? i called Acura and said someone from Legal Dept will contact me soon... I wasnt hurt bad, but neck and back pain is starting to come up slightly.

Sue? sue? sue?


http://www.fotothing.com/hjin25
Old 12-23-2005, 04:04 PM
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Legal dept ? "Down boy"

The direction of acceleration is the opposite way as if you hit something so I figure the system "knows" this. In a rear end you are accelerated forward rather than decelerated. Your headrest, if you positioned it properly, is your best friend in a rear-end collision.

I certainly hope your OK. I was rear-ended many years back. It was only a tap but my back bugged me for a day or two. Hopefully you will not have any problems.

I will never EVER agree with the "sue mentality". If you really are hurt then that's one thing but I would think it is a bit early to jump to that conclusion. Just don't sign anything or agree to sue anyone too quickly. See how you feel and IF you really are injured then you usually will have plenty of time to seek damages. I doesn't hurt to document things just in case. If you have mild discomfort for a few days and are fine then on then why bother suing ?. If you develop cronic pain over this then that's entirely different.

Best of luck. I really hope that you will be OK and that you will be back in your TL and happy again....without having to make some lady's life a living hell if you aren't hurt and she really wasn't willfully negligent.
Old 12-23-2005, 04:07 PM
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If you sue, some smart-ass lawyer is sure to read page 23 (or thereabouts) of the owner's manual and point out the part that says if you have a moderate to severe frontal collision, sensors will detect the vehicle's rapid deceleration, etc.

Since you were stopped, it was more likely you experienced acceleation and not decleration.

This is from the 2004 owner's manual, so if anything has changed you might still have a chance.

But my sincere condolences on your accident and hope your injuries were not serious or will cause any long term problems.
Old 12-23-2005, 04:12 PM
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CHILL OUT! air bags come out in a front collision because you are thrown forward. In a rear collision you are pushed back so there is no reason for the airbag to come out. So you car worked how it was supposed too. And the link at the bottom of your post doesn't work. So stop bitching at acura and blame the lady who hit you
Old 12-23-2005, 04:22 PM
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How do these people even pass a drivers test!!!
Old 12-23-2005, 04:25 PM
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Oh my god!

This is simple physics my friend! What airbag did you want to deploy??? The headrest airbag?

Sorry, but you're an idiot!
Old 12-23-2005, 04:35 PM
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Airbags are triggered by the computers that detect the vehicles rate of deceleration. The faster your cars slows from a controlled movement, the quicker the airbags are deployed. Remember, the rate of deceleration!

So if you are going 60 mph and drive over the parking divider that sits on the ground, your airbag won't deploy. If you are stopped and somebody slams into the back of your car, your front airbags shouldn't deploy.
Old 12-23-2005, 04:43 PM
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why are you so quick to sue Acura?

IMO this is in no way Acura's fault.. Just like tennis said, go after the lady who hit you.
Old 12-23-2005, 04:50 PM
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I guess airbag is something new this year. People have no clue how and when it works.
Old 12-23-2005, 05:53 PM
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That going to be hard to fix you mite need whole clip is the car total?
Old 12-23-2005, 07:38 PM
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Originally Posted by trancemission
why are you so quick to sue Acura?

IMO this is in no way Acura's fault.. Just like tennis said, go after the lady who hit you.

I am sorry to hear about the accident, truly, I am, but why the hell do people immediately think lawsuit. You should look at my TL accident thread, look at the pictures, look at my medical bills, and I have not seriously considered suing the fool who was at fault. I wouldn't sue anybody, your insurance will pay your medical bills.
Old 12-23-2005, 07:51 PM
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Originally Posted by HJIN25
I was stopped waiting to make a left turn and a lady rear-ended me..
good thing cop was there to witness it....
but why didnt air bag deploy??? i called Acura and said someone from Legal Dept will contact me soon... I wasnt hurt bad, but neck and back pain is starting to come up slightly.

Sue? sue? sue?


http://www.fotothing.com/hjin25


It's amazing to me that airbags have been in cars for nearly two decades now and people STILL don't get how they work. It EXPLICITLY states in the safety booklet that comes with your car that airbags ARE NOT DESIGNED to deploy in rear-end collisions. They can offer you ZERO protection and will only add more to the repair bill in rear-end collisions.

Old 12-23-2005, 07:56 PM
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What happened to your rear spoiler?
Old 12-23-2005, 11:23 PM
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Originally Posted by SilverUA5
What happened to your rear spoiler?
Probably popped off from the impact. The passenger side of the trunk lid is crumpled up, which probably popped off the spoiler.



Just a FYI for everyone... the SRS sensor doesn't just monitor the rate of deceleration. It also monitors the rate of acceleration. For instance, if you're sitting at a light and someone ran into you head-on, then the air bags will deploy because the rate of rearward acceleration has reached the deployment threshold.

So it actually monitors both the rates of acceleration and deceleration. But when it is moving forward (like being rear ended) it won't deploy. There's no point of the SRS deploying in a rear-end collision with forward momentum.




HJIN25 --

Sue Acura, by all means. We'll all be here to laugh at you.

Get the car fixed, make sure you're okay, see a doctor if not. Move on with life. I can't even believe that you made that phone call. Someone at Acura is laughing his ass off right now.
Old 12-24-2005, 02:07 AM
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Originally Posted by Pure Adrenaline
Probably popped off from the impact. The passenger side of the trunk lid is crumpled up, which probably popped off the spoiler.



Just a FYI for everyone... the SRS sensor doesn't just monitor the rate of deceleration. It also monitors the rate of acceleration. For instance, if you're sitting at a light and someone ran into you head-on, then the air bags will deploy because the rate of rearward acceleration has reached the deployment threshold.

So it actually monitors both the rates of acceleration and deceleration. But when it is moving forward (like being rear ended) it won't deploy. There's no point of the SRS deploying in a rear-end collision with forward momentum.
.
This is from memory and a LONG time ago, so somebody might know for sure... but what used to trigger an airbag is a simple component that had a 'ball' and a trigger...if the car was stopped quickly, the ball went forward and hit the trigger deploying the airbag... it would also do the same thing if someone hit you in the front and you were standing still.. ie, your car would move backward and the ball would 'stay still' until it hit the trigger coming back toward it...

Any new people who know for sure/??
Old 12-24-2005, 04:48 AM
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I believe there are also impact sensors to trip if the airbags are too go off.

Not sure why you would want your airbags to go off in a rear end collision. It wouldn't do anything to protect you and could cause you more injury. The point of the airbag is so that you don't slam your head against the steering wheel.

So by all-means sue Honda. It would just be a waste of money if an attorney would be stupid enough to take it. Now if you sued the other driver that might make more sense.
Old 12-24-2005, 12:05 PM
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Exactly how the air bag decides to deploy is not clearly under by our family.
The wife was involved in a T/A a few weeks back.
While driving down a street traveling at 25 or 30 mph a nut job turned left (from the opposing traffic lanes) to get into a restuarnt parking lot.
My wife T-boned the car (it was an Accord) and totalled the Accord.
She hit square on so our TL had bumper, hood, lite assembly and one quarter panel damage.
Cost to repair $3,500 +-. The nut jobs insurance covered everything and the car seems to be fine.
But the point is the airbag did not deploy.
Everyone on scene wondered why and so did (do) we.
No injuries and no plans to sue sue sue.
But it's pretty weird.
Old 12-24-2005, 01:00 PM
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Originally Posted by Radcliffe1
Exactly how the air bag decides to deploy is not clearly under by our family.
The wife was involved in a T/A a few weeks back.
While driving down a street traveling at 25 or 30 mph a nut job turned left (from the opposing traffic lanes) to get into a restuarnt parking lot.
My wife T-boned the car (it was an Accord) and totalled the Accord.
She hit square on so our TL had bumper, hood, lite assembly and one quarter panel damage.
Cost to repair $3,500 +-. The nut jobs insurance covered everything and the car seems to be fine.
But the point is the airbag did not deploy.
Everyone on scene wondered why and so did (do) we.
No injuries and no plans to sue sue sue.
But it's pretty weird.
If it only did $3500 or so in damage then it wasn't a very hard impact. And if your wife was uninjured, then it certainly wasn't above the threshold for airbag deployment. Honda's airbag technology is some of the best in the business and while I'm sure any system will have malfunctions, I have never personally heard of one. If your wife had no injuries, she didn't need an airbag. That would have added $1000-2000 more to the repair bill of the TL and it could have possibly gave her burns or bruises that she otherwise didn't have.

Moderate to severe frontal collisions or side collisions are when the airbags are supposed to deploy. They're not big pillows... they deploy rapidly at high speed and, having been hit by one in a car accident, it's a nice alternative to the dash or steering wheel but it's not a soft bag of air by any means. It sounds like someone firing a shotgun inside the car and fills the cabin with white powdery stuff that can irritate your lungs.

If your wife had been injured by hitting the steering wheel, then you'd have reason to wonder if the SRS system had malfunctioned. But the collision you described isn't enough to deploy them - and you should be thankful that Honda's airbag technology is advanced enough to sense these things.
Old 12-25-2005, 02:56 AM
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Your wife could have been doing 30 when she saw the guy but hit the brakes hard and only hit at 10 to 15.. I do not think the airbags are supposed to deploy at that speed...

BUT, there is a guy at work who had another kind of car and he had his airbags deploy on a seeminly small accident... he hit a pickup truck (easy to do in Texas)... with a trailer hitch hanging out the back... seemed the hitch hit directly on the airbag sensor while putting a hole in his bumper... he said it hit him in the face and he had this powder all of him.. not much damage to his car and nothing to the truck...
Old 01-03-2006, 04:27 PM
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here a question

in past 5 years i got in 3 car accident none air bags came out in 2002 acura rsx: 1st accident rear end truck front got pushed in. 2nd accident was 1 lane street I thought it was bigger made right in wrong lane and tried go back to the one im suppose go in lady hit me front right side no air bag front bumper tore off lights broken. 3rd accideent on a turn going pretty fast around 70 not sharp like 10-15 hours after rain lost control hit right side curb or dirt mound i dunno into , big of flower field on right car flipped twice passenger side smashed in car totaled I only got abrasion no airbag should i sue? e-mail asap thanks AutobotVu@gmail.com sorry if my grammer is bad
Old 01-03-2006, 04:41 PM
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I emailed him with some info about airbags and how in 2/3 of the scenarios he described, they wouldn't have been useful. If you're uninjured in a crash, then the airbag was obviously not needed.
Old 01-03-2006, 05:23 PM
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Originally Posted by HJIN25
I was stopped waiting to make a left turn and a lady rear-ended me..
good thing cop was there to witness it....
but why didnt air bag deploy??? i called Acura and said someone from Legal Dept will contact me soon... I wasnt hurt bad, but neck and back pain is starting to come up slightly.

Sue? sue? sue?


http://www.fotothing.com/hjin25
Air bags woudl rarely deploy in a rear impact. What helps in a rear impact is the head restraint and any whip lash protection in the seats. Most people never raise the head rest on their seat, it is there to protect from whiplash. It shoudl be raised to a height so that is closest to the back of your head. Everyone pays attention to front and side impact test lately, but neglects the rear impact protection.
The IIHS ran story on Dateline a few weeks ago and they explained the 3 elements that make a safe car, and that the highest claims today are from whiplash and poor protection from rear impact. I suspect as the manufacturers are getting so good at front and side crashes the next area will be rear impact and the seat designs.

http://money.cnn.com/2005/12/04/Auto...fety/index.htm
Old 01-03-2006, 05:43 PM
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Originally Posted by Autobot
in past 5 years i got in 3 car accident none air bags came out in 2002 acura rsx: 1st accident rear end truck front got pushed in. 2nd accident was 1 lane street I thought it was bigger made right in wrong lane and tried go back to the one im suppose go in lady hit me front right side no air bag front bumper tore off lights broken. 3rd accideent on a turn going pretty fast around 70 not sharp like 10-15 hours after rain lost control hit right side curb or dirt mound i dunno into , big of flower field on right car flipped twice passenger side smashed in car totaled I only got abrasion no airbag should i sue? e-mail asap thanks AutobotVu@gmail.com sorry if my grammer is bad

....wow... i don't know what to say in response to this post.
Old 01-04-2006, 05:31 PM
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Originally Posted by HJIN25
I was stopped waiting to make a left turn and a lady rear-ended me..
good thing cop was there to witness it....
but why didnt air bag deploy??? i called Acura and said someone from Legal Dept will contact me soon... I wasnt hurt bad, but neck and back pain is starting to come up slightly.

Sue? sue? sue?


http://www.fotothing.com/hjin25

This guy must be TLLUVA!
Old 01-04-2006, 07:49 PM
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you have zero liability. if you sue, you will get paid. so do it. if you don't it could be interpreted as :gheyfight:
Old 01-05-2006, 12:10 PM
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All vehicles now come standard with either front, side, roof air bags. The air bags system includes front and side Air bag sensors which in order for the air bags to deploy they need to be impact. Also the computer moniters the rate of decleration which also determins weither the air bags need to deploy. Air bags are very tricky. I work as an insurance adjustor and see it all the time. Customers want to sue the Car companies cause the bags did not deploy. The reps come out and scan the computer which only they can scan not your dealer which tells them the speed of impact, time of when brake was depressed and if seat belts were used, etc.

On a rear impact the system will not deploy unless your vehicle was pushed and an impact accured in the front of the vehicle. My best bet is to place a claim against the insurance company of the other person.

Car really doesn't look to bad. i've seen alot worse. And the only way a vehicle is totalled is if the repair is more then 85 percent of the value on the car
If you need any other info with your accident just ask since i'm in the field
Old 01-05-2006, 03:30 PM
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calm down... i was rear ended by a Red Integra... and i asked my insurance why my airbags didnt deploy and the reason what he had said was that i wasnt hit hard enough.. i was driving an 03TL and still am. but what had sucked was that the car was in the shop for 1.5 months after i got the car back the collision shop screwed up my HU also my Navi and had to get both replaced... but glad your ok..
Old 01-05-2006, 08:03 PM
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Originally Posted by AZN.M3NACE
calm down... i was rear ended by a Red Integra... and i asked my insurance why my airbags didnt deploy and the reason what he had said was that i wasnt hit hard enough.. i was driving an 03TL and still am. but what had sucked was that the car was in the shop for 1.5 months after i got the car back the collision shop screwed up my HU also my Navi and had to get both replaced... but glad your ok..
Your airbags are not supposed to deploy in a rear end collision.

Physics say that when you are rear ended your body is forced backwards, not forward towards the dash where the airbags would help you from hitting the dash or steering wheel.

You believe what your insurance company told you? Riiiight! They give people an answer to stop them from asking questions even if it's not true. You've never had that happen to you, or do you believe everything everybody tells you?

I don't know why people expect their airbags to deploy when they are rear ended?? The only thing they could do in a rear end collision is cause you additional injury.

Newton's Three Laws of Motion
Old 01-05-2006, 09:18 PM
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Originally Posted by Pure Adrenaline
HJIN25 --

Sue Acura, by all means. We'll all be here to laugh at you.
I suggest he read Rule 11 (or his state courts' equivalent of Rule 11) before doing so.
Old 01-06-2006, 01:31 PM
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No airbag...you were rear-ended. Sue the woman who hit you...not Acura.
Old 01-06-2006, 02:43 PM
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First of all, I hope you quickly recover from any injuries. I'm sorry about your car. I'd sure be pist at the other driver (hopefully, she wasn't hurt, either).

The only time the airbag should deploy when you're hit from behind is if your car is pushed into another obstacle that causes you to rapidly decelerate. Essentially, the airbag would then be protecting you in a front-impact crash like it's supposed to.

Many people assume airbags are soft little pillows that protect them from all harm in any crash. Many people are injured by them, though. Sure, the injuries probably aren't as bad as they'd be without the SRS, but they're not completely benign, either. I knew a guy who's hand was broken by his airbag deploying (he tended to drive with his hands on the center hub of the wheel). My sister's face got all bruised up and scraped (looked like rug burn LOL) when her airbag deployed in her old Del Sol. In both those cases, though, things would've been much worse without the airbags. The point is, you don't want it deploying unless it's really going to make things better; not worse.

And for pete's sake, don't go suing Acura for your failure to RTFM.
Old 01-06-2006, 02:52 PM
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Originally Posted by bluenoise
First of all, I hope you quickly recover from any injuries. I'm sorry about your car. I'd sure be pist at the other driver (hopefully, she wasn't hurt, either).

The only time the airbag should deploy when you're hit from behind is if your car is pushed into another obstacle that causes you to rapidly decelerate. Essentially, the airbag would then be protecting you in a front-impact crash like it's supposed to.

Many people assume airbags are soft little pillows that protect them from all harm in any crash. Many people are injured by them, though. Sure, the injuries probably aren't as bad as they'd be without the SRS, but they're not completely benign, either. I knew a guy who's hand was broken by his airbag deploying (he tended to drive with his hands on the center hub of the wheel). My sister's face got all bruised up and scraped (looked like rug burn LOL) when her airbag deployed in her old Del Sol. In both those cases, though, things would've been much worse without the airbags. The point is, you don't want it deploying unless it's really going to make things better; not worse.

And for pete's sake, don't go suing Acura for your failure to RTFM.


What I've been saying all along.
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