What does the knee air bag do?I had an accident that resulted in a major injury to my left leg from the knee air bag.Braking on the right leg and continued bruising, but not a terrible problem.
When they were introduced, the feeling for airbags was “the more the merrier.”After all, behind your dashboard is steel, and if we can provide a cushion between your knees and the steel, why not, right?
The problem is that our federal safety regulators are tasked with protecting two different groups of people: those who wear seat belts and those who don’t.
So when a car is “crash tested,” they have to test it with both a belted dummy and a full dummy that isn’t.To pass both tests, automotive engineers must make compromises.
For the knee airbags, engineers found that a knee airbag could help the unbelted dummy stay in a more upright position in a crash so he wouldn’t slip under the steering wheel and be crushed to death.
Unfortunately, this may require a larger, stronger knee pack than just necessary to protect the calves of most belted drivers.
So knee airbags don’t seem to be optimized for people like you and me who take two seconds to buckle up.Therefore, they can be problematic.A 2019 study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety proves this.
IIHS studied real-world crash data from 14 states.They found that for belted drivers and passengers, knee airbags did little to prevent injury (they reduced the overall risk of injury by about 0.5%), and in some types of accidents, they increased Risk of calf injury.
So what to do?It’s a public policy issue that goes beyond the scope of this crash test dummy.But if it’s up to me, I’ll look at the people who wear their seat belts and hand out football helmets to other people, and wish them the best of luck.
What causes the airbag warning light on my wife’s low mileage 2013 Honda Civic SI to occasionally come on?For the past few months, the light has come on after a short period of driving or sometimes when the vehicle is first started.
Local dealers estimate that repairs, including pulling the steering wheel, will cost around $500.I found that pulling on the shoulder belt a few times caused the warning light to go off for a few days, but the light would eventually come back on.
Is the shoulder harness system poorly connected?Is there a quick fix for this problem?- Reed
I think you should ask the dealer for more information before paying more than $500.He wanted to remove the steering wheel, suggesting he believed the problem was with the airbag itself, the clock spring in the steering column, or a nearby connection.
If yanking on the shoulder strap while you’re wearing it makes the light go out, the problem might not be with the steering column.Probably the seat belt latch.The latch near the driver’s right hip, where you insert the seatbelt clip, contains a microswitch that lets the computer know your seatbelt is on.If the switch is dirty or cannot be adjusted, it will cause your airbag light to come on.
The problem can also be at the other end of the seat belt, where it can roll up.There’s a pretensioner there to tighten the seat belt in the event of an accident, putting you in a better position to avoid injury.Your airbag light will also come on if there is a problem with the pretensioner.
Therefore, first ask the dealer for a more specific diagnosis.Ask him if he scanned the car, and if so, what did he learn?Ask him what exactly he thinks is causing the problem and what it will take to fix it.If you don’t believe me, have another Honda-friendly shop scan the car for you and see what information comes up.It might tell you exactly which part is faulty.
If it turns out to be a faulty switch inside the latch – this is something any good mechanic can try to clean for you.But if it’s more complicated than that, I’d put on your kevlar pants and go to the dealer.First, Honda offers a lifetime warranty on its seat belts.So if it resembles a pretensioner, your repair may be free.
Second, airbags are very important.They can mean the difference between life and death.So when you’re dealing with critical security technology, it makes sense to go to a place that has the experience and tools.If your heirs screw up, liability insurance will pay them a huge bill.
Have a question about the car?Write to Ray, King Features, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, FL 32803, or email by visiting the Car Talk website at www.cartalk.com.
Post time: Jun-11-2022