therandall

Hello everyone.

I'm new here, with a pressing question to ask y'all.

Has any of you ever been involved in a car accident with airbag deployment, or know of anyone who did?

A buddy of mine was involved in a car accident a few months back. He drives a second generation GS, just like I do. The driver side airbag deployed, causing him burns and cuts to his face and a broken wrist. I knew airbags could be potentially hazardous, but I didn’t know to what extent. What I didn’t know either is that an airbag deploying generates between 165 to 175 decibels. In order to appreciate such magnitude of sound, consider this: a very loud rock concert generates a measly 115 decibels. A shotgun barely generates 145-155 decibels. Imagine then what 165-175 decibels must be like, in a small, closed compartment such as the interior of your car. He is now permanently deaf in his left ear, and retains about 40% of hearing in his right ear, according to his doctor. To make matters worse, he is stuck with a constant, loud, annoying ringing in both ears that make it difficult for him to relax or even sleep. His accident was a minor fender bender. He hit a parked car at approximately 10-15 mph. His car suffered minor damage. His face, wrist, and very specially his hearing, suffered a lot of damage, all caused by the airbag, not the accident itself.

My friend's experience scared the crap out of me, so much that I’m considering disconnecting all the airbags in my car. Sound and music are very important to me. I asked other people, but I got so many different answers that I’m now confused. Someone told me he doesn’t even remember the sound of the airbags deploying. Someone told me the noise wasn’t “that loud at all,” and her hearing was perfectly fine. Someone told me his hearing was shot and his ears were ringing loudly for a few hours, but everything went back to normal afterwards. Someone told me her hearing was shot for about a month, but it gradually came back and now she’s fine. Someone told me he had to start wearing hearing aids after his airbags deployed.

I noticed something interesting. The people involved in the more serious accidents were the ones who either didn’t remember the sound of the airbags, or didn’t think they were that loud. The ones who suffered the effects of the sound were the ones involved in minor accidents.

A lot of ENT doctors seem to agree that airbags do cause hearing damage. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration apparently disagrees.

So what’s your experience with airbags? Someone you know?

Thanks.

ShaneC

i dont have an answer.. but getting me scared !

thetopdog

Damn, that is scary. Hopefully your friend will somehow get his hearing back, since it's only been a few months. Stranger things have happened

I would be interested to know if anybody has any more information about this kind of thing

LexFather

Airbags are not perfect. While your friend may have some sad issues b/c of the airbag, possibly without it, he could be dead.

I wrecked my first GS 400 and not one airbag went off (oh, going like 80mph +) and 4 people walked out the car with no issues.

There has to be a video somewhere of an airbag deploying and the sound it makes. Youtube? Not sure but that might help you find out how loud it is.

gserep1

I was involved in a high speed collision in my first GS400 in April 2005. I hit the center retaining wall on the Coronado Bridge in San Diego, and I got no airbag deployment either. Judging by this story, I appear to be very lucky indeed.

My wife and kids were involved in a collision in 1994 with a 1993 Ford TaURUS SHO, and my wife survived an airbag deployment with no lasting ill-effects. She was hit in the face full force, and she burned her left arm slightly from the powder. The kids were in the back seat, and suffered no damage whatsoever.

That is enough drama for my family. I don't need anymore.

therandall

Well, I don't know if being legally deaf at the age of 26 is just some "sad issue." And like I said, it ws a minor fender bender, he hit a parked car at about 15 mph, hardly anything that could cause death or even injury.

There are plenty of videos on YouTube showing deploying airbags, but it's impossible to fully appreciate 165 decibels of sound from a home made video.

therandall

Your and 1SICKLEX's experiences tell me that seat belts may be more than enough to keep me safe if I'm meant to walk away from an accident. According to research, airbags increase chances of survival by a mere 15%, not a lot if you ask me, especially when you consider the fact that that 15% carries the potential for permanent deafness.

Personally, I can deal with burns and bruises from an airbag, I am even perfectly fine with the possibility of a broken wrist or arm, those things don't bother me at all. Deafness, that's a different story.

You mean to tell me your wife suffered no hearing damage whatsoever? From what I hear, airbags up until 1998 were even louder and nastier.

Let me know.