Airbag q...

[sna77]

Hi all,
Question about airbags... I saw the airbag for the e30 is ELA:
https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...diagId=32_0876

That had me thing... how reliable is a 31 year old airbag? Is it more dangerous than say, not having an airbag? As I am contemplating the steering wheel choices, I was thinking no airbag may be safer that a 31 year old piece of electronics... As I recall, first generation airbags weren't the safest things in the world anyhow...

I don't know enough to be intelligent here and was looking for thoughts from others...

thx

[roguetoaster]

I think the airbag units are quite reliable having gifted a fair number to be detonated for the benefit of education, all of which worked well once powered. However, the crash sensors are extremely suspect at this time, and I would expect a failure rate exceeding 50%, if for no other reason than leakage from the boxes themselves. That's before even considering the actual SRS controller.

At the end of the day, it's an SRS, or secondary restraint system, so even if you have not airbag you should just wear your belt, don't have any narrow front overlap crashes, and you'll probably be fine. It's all moot if your seat belts are old or damaged, or you don't have your seat adjusted correctly, or if you fall outside of the body size range envisioned by the original design.

[sna77]

I think the airbag units are quite reliable having gifted a fair number to be detonated for the benefit of education, all of which worked well once powered. However, the crash sensors are extremely suspect at this time, and I would expect a failure rate exceeding 50%, if for no other reason than leakage from the boxes themselves. That's before even considering the actual SRS controller.

At the end of the day, it's an SRS, or secondary restraint system, so even if you have not airbag you should just wear your belt, don't have any narrow front overlap crashes, and you'll probably be fine. It's all moot if your seat belts are old or damaged, or you don't have your seat adjusted correctly, or if you fall outside of the body size range envisioned by the original design.

If crash sensors fail, do they fail off (i.e not to detonate the airbag)... Good info here. Given the probability of the airbag not working I wouldnt feel as bad about swapping the wheel for a non-airbag wheel.

Seat belts work, I fit in the seats, and I plan to wear the seat belts while driving...

[roguetoaster]

If crash sensors fail, do they fail off (i.e not to detonate the airbag)... Good info here. Given the probability of the airbag not working I wouldnt feel as bad about swapping the wheel for a non-airbag wheel.

Seat belts work, I fit in the seats, and I plan to wear the seat belts while driving...

If crash sensors do fail they would clearly fail to register a crash, rather than to detonate the airbag. If made the other way around there would be endless litigation.

[sna77]

If crash sensors do fail they would clearly fail to register a crash, rather than to detonate the airbag. If made the other way around there would be endless litigation.

Makes perfect sense. Thanks for the help.

[Vincenze]

The E30 crash sensor is available new 65771394113

If you connect a sensor to an oscilloscope and then push it swiftly, shouldn't you see a spike if it works correctly?

It seems a sensor has copper terminals and a pendulum that makes them contact during an impact.

[Vincenze]

The E30 crash sensor is available new 65771394113

If you connect a sensor to an oscilloscope and then push it swiftly, shouldn't you see a spike if it works correctly?

It seems a sensor has copper terminals and a pendulum that makes them contact during an impact.
If the terminals are covered with gold, they should be good for decades.