FORD 2013 Fusion Hybrid v.1 - Manual (Page 36)

PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION
WARNINGS
Airbags DO NOT inflate slowly or
gently, and the risk of injury from a
deploying airbag is the greatest close
to the trim covering the airbag module.
All occupants of your vehicle,
including the driver, should always
properly wear their safety belts, even
when an airbag supplemental restraint
system is provided.
Always transport children 12 years
old and under in the back seat and
always properly use appropriate
child restraints.
Never place your arm over the airbag
module as a deploying airbag can
result in serious arm fractures or
other injuries.
Airbags can kill or injure a child in a
child seat. NEVER place a rear-facing
child seat in front of an active airbag.
If you must use a forward-facing child seat
in the front seat, move the seat all the way
back.
Do not attempt to service, repair, or
modify the airbag supplemental
restraint systems or its fuses.
Contact your authorized dealer as soon as
possible.
Several airbag system components
get hot after inflation. Do not touch
them after inflation.
If the airbag has deployed, the airbag
will not function again and must be
replaced immediately. If the airbag
is not replaced, the unrepaired area will
increase the risk of injury in a collision.
The airbags are a supplemental restraint
system and are designed to work with the
safety belts to help protect the driver and
right front passenger from certain upper
body injuries. Airbags DO NOT inflate
slowly; there is a risk of injury from a
deploying airbag.
Note: You will hear a loud bang and see a
cloud of harmless powdery residue if an
airbag deploys. This is normal.
The airbags inflate and deflate rapidly
upon activation. After airbag deployment,
it is normal to notice a smoke-like, powdery
residue or smell the burnt propellant. This
may consist of cornstarch, talcum powder
(to lubricate the bag) or sodium
compounds (e.g., baking soda) that result
from the combustion process that inflates
the airbag. Small amounts of sodium
hydroxide may be present which may
irritate the skin and eyes, but none of the
residue is toxic. While the system is
designed to help reduce serious injuries,
contact with a deploying airbag may also
cause abrasions or swelling. Temporary
hearing loss is also a possibility as a result
of the noise associated with a deploying
airbag. Because airbags must inflate
rapidly and with considerable force, there
is the risk of death or serious injuries such
as fractures, facial and eye injuries or
internal injuries, particularly to occupants
who are not properly restrained or are
otherwise out of position at the time of
airbag deployment. Thus, it is extremely
important that occupants be properly
restrained as far away from the airbag
module as possible while maintaining
vehicle control.
Routine maintenance of the airbags is not
required.
34
Supplementary Restraints System