Remove or Repair Airbags
- Thread starter garyl62
- Start date
That didn't help Dale Earnhardt, RIP.
Plus Nascar has the 5 point racing seat belt, and seats that pretty much limit any movement you can take. The average car has none of that. Which is why new cars today have side impact bags to help protect, as well as ESC and a whole sort of sensors to warn you the driver of stuff.
For a '99, 1 airbag is better than none, especially for a younger driver.
All the crunched parts, appear to be bolt on pieces. Go pull them and bolt them on.
For my kids I'd still fix the air bags. Since it's a '99 painting to match would be what I would opt out on.
Mis matched body parts are a sign I use to determine they need extra room on the road. Also I'd never park next to it.
Pics pretty funny, crunched car, big grins, all dressed for prom, and squad behind them.
granted - If it was a car I was the only one using. I wouldnt worry about not having airbags fixed.
But high school age, and all the friends that will be riding with definately would fix them.
For my kids I'd still fix the air bags. Since it's a '99 painting to match would be what I would opt out on.
Mis matched body parts are a sign I use to determine they need extra room on the road. Also I'd never park next to it.
Pics pretty funny, crunched car, big grins, all dressed for prom, and squad behind them.
granted - If it was a car I was the only one using. I wouldnt worry about not having airbags fixed.
But high school age, and all the friends that will be riding with definately would fix them.
I would fix the car . To make a good choice tear the car down and make a good list of all damaged parts .You can fix the car with aftermrkt parts use keystone automotive. Replace the air bags with used ones if you want . make sure you check the seat belts make sure they still function properly . tear it down lets see what we got.
polarisrider1
New member
it's a 99 driven by a teen. colors do not need match, be happy he has a ride. Keep cosmetics to a minimum and fix the bags over the "pretty" if the frame is straight bolt on what ever you get at the salvage yard that will work and have a pro do the bags. Safety is a better way to spend the alotted money you have over vanity. Besides every time he sees his mismatched color car it will remind him of the crash. (front end damage, well we know who is at fault). Repairs should be worked off by your son good time for a learning experience. (love the pics). she is a keeper.
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I looked for a cheap car not too long ago and $3500 doesn't go very far these days. I think you're better off keeping the car you have since you know it's history and know that it hasn't been abused. Nissan's seem to be well-built vehicles and you don't have too many miles on it. I think you need to find a way to fix the airbags. Cut corners somewhere else. Yes, there are cars on the roads without them, but it just doesn't make sense to go without them for a teenage driver for $1500. Teen drivers are just statistically very dangerous on the road - even the most mature ones just simply lack the experience and wisdom that they (most at least) will gain over time.
One bag is better than none - the driver needs one more than the passenger for at least 2 reasons - first the steering wheel, and second, the fact that most vehicles only have the driver in them most of the time.
One bag is better than none - the driver needs one more than the passenger for at least 2 reasons - first the steering wheel, and second, the fact that most vehicles only have the driver in them most of the time.
Ohh, let's see now, there is that steering wheel thing that the passenger doesn't have. And I'm just guessing that there is a significantly better probability that a vehicle will be driven with just a driver rather than just a passenger! I mean, I may have fallen off the turnip truck, but I've never seen a vehicle drive down the street with just a passenger. So, if I want to play the percentages I may want to be sure every vehicle has at least a driver side air bag since every vehicle going down the street has SOMEBODY SITTING IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT!
There are no air bags in airplanes
No air bags at my desk
No air bags on my bar stool
No airbags on my sled
No airbags on my buddy's excavator
Why? Not needed, won't help.
NASCAR drivers are professionals in cars designed to be safe in a controlled environment. There are no 85 year old men running stop signs at right angles, no drunks coming at them the wrong way on the track, and no high school kids going to prom running into them! They are driving vehicles with full roll cages, impact barriers, strapped in, tightened down, wearing a helmet with a Hans device, fire suit and boots, a radio connected observer telling them what's ahead on a track, going one direction with no stop lights or intersections, safe barriers on the track, and everyone on the track is a professional they drive with all the time.
Considering putting your kid's car back together without air bags is unconscionable, you can't even contemplate doing this. Fine, so the bags went off and they didn't make contact with the kids. So what? Accidents are random occurrences, they are not things you cross off a list once they happen. Just because he had one gimme doesn't mean they all will be gimmes. Accidents are random, the complete set of odds resets after each one.
You also need to see that your son has now had an accident where he ran into the back of another car. For whatever reason (cute date, cell phone, radio, whatever) he has now done this. In the field of risk management this would be a yellow flag, as you now know that your son has a propensity to run into the back end of other cars (two groups of drivers...those that have, those that haven't). Since this is a behavioral accident, there is at least some probability that he may be prone to this type of accident in the future.
OK, here we go
Air bags are very effective in front end accidents
Your son has had a front end accident
There is a probability, no matter how small, that this behavior could re-occur in the future
Your son needs air bags more than the driver who has not had this type of accident
Not putting air bags back in his car increases his risk of serious injury exponentially vis-vis the average driver
Therefore, you need to put airbags back in the car
QED
You also need to see that your son has now had an accident where he ran into the back of another car. For whatever reason (cute date, cell phone, radio, whatever) he has now done this. In the field of risk management this would be a yellow flag, as you now know that your son has a propensity to run into the back end of other cars (two groups of drivers...those that have, those that haven't). Since this is a behavioral accident, there is at least some probability that he may be prone to this type of accident in the future.
OK, here we go
Air bags are very effective in front end accidents
Your son has had a front end accident
There is a probability, no matter how small, that this behavior could re-occur in the future
Your son needs air bags more than the driver who has not had this type of accident
Not putting air bags back in his car increases his risk of serious injury exponentially vis-vis the average driver
Therefore, you need to put airbags back in the car
QED
polarisrider1
New member
Very well written. I would go with with this. Makes a ton of sense.
garyl62
Active member
Wow, dcsnomo while I appreciate your opinion and concern I'm not sure I can agree with the strength of your conclusion. You say the odds reset, but then you say because something happens once, he suddenly has a "propensity" for this and the probablity of it re-occuring increases and his risk level is now "exponentially" greater than the "average" driver? Sorry but while I may say some things are behavioral, I can't say there is any greater chance of him doing this again, just as I can't say there is any greater chance he learned from this mistake and will pay more attention to prevent this from ever happening again. Only time and experience will tell if he learned to be a better driver, or if he has an attention problem.
In the past few days since this thread started I have been doing a lot of research about repairing the car. I'm the type of person that reviews all the options, no matter how unlikely or "out there" an option is I want to think it over so that when I move forward with my final decision I usually don't look back and wonder what if. That was my purpose in posing the question. So far it's been a good exercise. I haven't made my final choice yet, but I will say the more knowledge I'm getting the less sense it makes to not replace the bags if I fix the car. In fact the first question I even raised was do I put as much or even more into the car than its worth or do I look for a $3,500 car. Thats still where I'm at today, but the more I learn, the less likely it is I'd fix it without fixing the air bags.
Hope to have it figured out in a couple days.
skeeter2010
Member
The car doesn't look that bad head to the junk yard and buy the parts you need and put it back togeather the best you can it not that hard let him drive the car without the airbags, and take his cell phone away so he doesn't run into the back of another car, I sure he will be just fine without the air bags.
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Gary- Guilty as charged. My opinion was strong and overstated. I got your attention, which is what i wanted to do. Please, I implore you, do not send your child out in a car with no airbags.
garyl62
Active member
See thats the great thing about this board. Neither of us got hostile or into a heated debate, just respectful dialogue. Like I said, I doubt I'll fix it without doing the airbags, and I appreciate your concern.
I also have to say, I've been thinking of posting another comment as a spoof just to see how people fall but don't want to come across as a fake. So having let the cat out of the bag and saying this isn't really going to happen.....
Did just look at a 1978 Vett for him, its in my budget and has no air bags. Would the opinons be as strong about letting him drive a car if the air bags were never there to begin with?
I also have to say, I've been thinking of posting another comment as a spoof just to see how people fall but don't want to come across as a fake. So having let the cat out of the bag and saying this isn't really going to happen.....
Did just look at a 1978 Vett for him, its in my budget and has no air bags. Would the opinons be as strong about letting him drive a car if the air bags were never there to begin with?
Good question...
People make decisions based upon their needs. My needs are not the same as yours. In the marketing world this is called a Consumer Decision Tree. As an example, if some people pick "economical to drive" as their primary attribute in a car, then they won't buy a pickup.
Safety is a purchasing attribute for cars, one of many. If that is high on your list then you would not consider the '78 Vette to begin with as there are safer cars available. You need to decide what is important in the vehicle you choose.
Buying a 78 'Vette where airbags are not an option is different than actually making the decision to take them OUT of the car that already has the added safety feature. I would not make the decision to reduce the existing safety of my kid's car.
But then, I don't have kids, and I drove a 67 'Vette when I was 19!
garyl62
Active member
LOL! That was great! Did not expect that experience, but you are absolutely right with your other comments, peoples choices are all about their personal priorities and opinions, while he would love the Vett, the insurance rates would be killer, and I'd be pulling him out of the snow with my truck all winter long. In that case the air bags have nothing to do with my choice, but if I lived down south, and money wasn't a factor I might just let him have that car.
Yup. My dad had a 69 Nova SS350, my brother had a 63 Vette, I had a 69 GTO and a 67 Vette. Of course, we kept none of them. I sold the Vette for $1100 to go skiing in Utah for the season, and gave the GTO to my brother for free.
OK, all together now..."Dumb ***!"