airbag didn't deploy after colliding with another car. running 65mph in the freeway. should i sue??

Question

i was runnning 65mph in the freeway when the car in front of me suddenly braked. i hit the brakes but my car skid and rear ended the other car. my engine is seriously damaged. the hood, both fenders are dented. fluids leaked from all over. the radiator got smashed. my windshield is damaged too. the adjuster said its gonna cost around $8000 to fix it. i was injured because of the whip effect in my neck and the press on my chest from the seatbelt. i was taken to the ER after accident. its been 3 weeks now and i still cant go back to my work.

i got the car new from the dealer. its a 2004 toyota matrix xr.

Answer 1

1)Your initial impact speed was not 65MPH. You were probably traveling around 15-35MPH. If you collided into a vehicle around 65MPH you would not be writing this blog.
2)It all depends on how you hit the vehicle in front of you. More than likely your front nose dipped and the impact sensor did not get enough force to set the airbags off.
I am thinking that your vehicle went underneath the vehicle in front of you. If you answer "yes" then that is why your airbags didn't deploy.
3)Airbag deploy logic for most vehicles look at vehicle speed, if seat belt is on or off, if seat is adjusted too close to the airbag, and the impact sensor needs to set off. All the combinations has to be correct for the airbag to deploy.
4)You can goto a body shop or dealer to see your deployment history and see if it should have deployed
5)If you airbag control module says that it should have deployed and the airbag didn't deploy then maybe you should hire a lawyer, but if your airbag module says that it didn't deploy then you probably will have a harder time in the court

Answer 2

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO
NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO
That's what's wrong with America today everybody wants to sue everybody for anything LEARN HOW TO DRIVE

Answer 3

No. But an airbag loses a lot, if not all, of it's function if the driver slides or moves out of position, which is possible if the person is unbuckled. There are sensors in the seats of some cars so if no passenger weight is detected, the airbag does not deploy. This function exists only to save money in case of an accident. Why replace an airbag that deployed when no one was sitting there to be protected? They have airbags n Honda Goldwing motorycles now.

Answer 4

Toyota are a respected and responsible motor company. They sell cars all over the planet. Every place that has a road for vehicles, sees a Toyota travel it.

I would first consult a lawyer and have him approach Toyota. (dont let anyone touch the car)

Believe it or not.
If there was a fault in any safety system on a Toyota, they will want to know about it. They have a reputation and they want to maintain it.

They wont be unreasonable. If they give you the run around and later new complaints come in that will look bad for them. Therefor they have an business interest in knowing that your car did as its required.

While yes the accident was your fault the failure of the bag to deploy is not related to whos fault it is.

Answer 5

Great job, Einstein. If you are so close to someone that you can't react soon enough when they hit the brakes...

YOU ARE DRIVING TOO CLOSE

and the accident is completely your fault. The correct distance to drive behind someone is the one that gives you enough time to come to a complete stop without hitting them, if they suddenly apply full brakes.

As for the airbag, if your car is actually equipped with an airbag, and it did not function as advertised, it is possible that either the manufacturer is liable for some damages. Consult a lawyer for more information.

Note that a properly functioning airbag will not trigger unless your speed relative to the car you hit is greater than about 28 mph (Wikipedia).

Answer 6

Most vehicles on the road today have two types of airbags: frontal and side-impact.

Frontal airbags are designed to protect the occupants' heads and chests from hitting the steering wheel, instrument panel, or windshield, experts say.

Side-impact airbags are designed to protect the occupants' heads and/or necks from striking objects inside or outside the vehicle in side impact crashes.

Air bag systems have three main components -- an airbag module, crash sensors, and a diagnostic unit -- that determine if and when the airbags should deploy.

"The airbag system is tuned to deploy when it thinks there's enough energy in the crash to cause harm," says the director of NHTSA's office of data acquisition and the former head of the agency's special crash investigations division. He didn't want his name used in this story.

"You have to look at the energy in the crash. If you're doing 30 mph and you lift your foot off the petal and gradually slow down to zero, do you need you airbag? No.

"But if you're going 30 mph and strike a hard object, like a tree or wall, we'd expect to see your airbags deploy," he says, adding his agency investigates 4,000-5,000 accidents a year.

"If you drive down the road and sideswipe something at 30 mph, you might not have high enough energy to trigger an airbag deployment. The question you have to ask is: 'Is there enough energy from the crash to trigger an airbag deployment?'"


Car experts say frontal airbags are designed to deploy in moderate or severe crashes that equal hitting a solid barrier going about 8-14 mph. NHTSA says that's the equivalent of hitting a parked car of similar size -- going about 16-28 miles per hour. A parked car absorbs some of the crash's energy, NHTSA says.

Some car makers have different "thresholds" that determine when an airbag should deploy, experts say.

Those thresholds often depend on whether the occupants are wearing their seat belts. The 8-14 mph threshold is generally designed for unbelted passengers; it's higher for belted passenger.

NHTSA say the deployment threshold is lower for unbelted passengers because they continue to move forward -- at the vehicle's original speed -- until their movement is stopped by the steering wheel, instrument panel, or windshield.

Car experts also say there's a 30 degree angle -- on either side of a vehicle's front center -- that generally must be hit for the frontal airbags to deploy.

Car experts also say frontal airbags are not designed to deploy in side impacts, rear impacts, or rollover crashes. Also, these airbags deploy only once -- in about 1/20th of a second -- and deflate immediately. That means they offer no protection if the vehicle is hit -- or rolls over -- multiple times in the same accident.

Answer 7

Sue who for what? Airbags don't always go off, only in those circumstances where they would be needed. If your airbags had deployed you would be looking at $3,000 more on the repair bill.

To deploy, airbags need a hit in the front, or not many degrees off the front, and deceleration at a certain rate. It sounds like yours was a rolling hit where you didn't go to zero miles per hour almost instantly.

Answer 8

There are sensors in the front end of your vehicle that, when hit, cause the airbags to deploy.

I would reccomed you ask the body shop where those sensors are located on your specific vehicle. If the vehicle is damaged in the area of the sensors, you may have grounds for a lawsuit.

Answer 9

most definitely! anytime that our vehicle strikes something with the front-end involved, sensors are supposed to deploy the airbags to prevent WHIPLASH.find yourself a good personal injury lawyer and sue the pants off the manufacture.don't waste your time with the moron that braked improperly,he probably doesn't have much anyway.the manufacturer on the other hand is loaded and will pay you to remain quite ,if you know what i mean.if you feel your injuries will hamper your life, you shouldn't "settle",go through all of the trouble and sue for a bunch of money,you will need it.

Answer 10

If it were me I would contact the car manufacture and make sure there are no recalls on the car and if not then if I was the original buyer of the car I would sue but If you bought the car from another person, and not the dealer you may have to go to them.