What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
The IIHS in the USA has found that airbags should remain serviceable for the life of the vehicle.
I have some information about the long-term reliability of airbags. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in the US has crash-tested a rusty 1972 Chevrolet Impala, the oldest vehicle that they could find with airbags. Apparently they worked perfectly. They say that, provided the electronic control system is satisfactory, and the vehicle has never been immersed in water, the airbag's explosive charge should be reliable for the life of the vehicle. Hope this helps.
Asked on 30 August 2010 by Dr Alan F. Avery
Answered by
Honest John
That is good, and a great relief to anyone with a nine-year-old car that has 12 airbags and who has been told they all need replacing at 10 years old.
Similar questions
Back in May you had this article which revealed a problem with potentially exploding airbags affecting certain Toyota, Honda and Nissan cars. http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/news/miscellaneous/2015-05/huge-number-of-uk-cars-involved-in-exploding-airbag-recall/
That...
In 2010 you stated that "You only ever turn off the passenger airbag when fitting a rear-facing baby carrier in the front passenger seat." However, this advice is wrong. Please see here: www.cdc.gov/features/passengersafety/...
My wife drives a Toyota but it is not affected by the airbag recall. That said, I felt that all airbags need an examination after 10 years. So I think that the manufactures recalling cars for a potential...
Elsewhere on 
.jpg)
