I remember in 1990 when air bags became common some owners manuals suggested replacing them at 10 years. Now we've shown they age better than that, but a long drive had me thinking about how the collector set is going to deal with them in the future. Take for example a ZR1 Corvette. Eventually it will be 50, 60, 70 years old. Will the airbag stay in it (and for near zero mileage cars, be trusted not to inadvertently pop and destroy the dash, etc. of a survivor car)? In restorations, will they be removed for dash and steering wheel refurbs and then reinstalled? Will there become a new cottage industry to produce blank plates to make it look like they are still there?
Curious about board opinions.
They are safety equipment and I believe they are supposed to be available from the dealer for the life of the vehicle, same deal with seat belts. That may have changed though.
If it were my collector car, I'd likely disable them and remov power to them completely.
Air bag explosives seem to be pretty stable - I haven't heard of any cases of them spontaneously detonating.
Stefan (Not Bruce) wrote:
They are safety equipment and I believe they are supposed to be available from the dealer for the life of the vehicle, same deal with seat belts. That may have changed though.
If it were my collector car, I'd likely disable them and remov power to them completely.
IIRC, the manufacturers are only required to supply parts for something like 10-15 years. I may be mistaken though.
Another interesting tidbit is that while you can remove the airbags from your car, if a business does it its a federal violation (on the business) as it is removal of regulated safety equipment. I dont think it is something that they put a lot of resources to enforcing though, but its still something to have on the radar if you have a business building race cars (still street legal) or a restoration business.
MadScientistMatt wrote:
Air bag explosives seem to be pretty stable - I haven't heard of any cases of them spontaneously detonating.
Are the electrics / wiring going to be stable in 25 years? I guess they do have better grounds etc. than a 40 year old British car? (not to pick on Lucas any more than anyone else of that era, but...). Also will the air bag material itself withstand the rapid inflation if it were to go off 40 years late?
I don't know the answers, just asking the questions.
the original poster does bring up good questions though, and not just about air bags. .....Restoring a classic 2015 car in 40 years will have a whole new set of issues than we have today, No?
You forget that something like a Vette will have a crazy aftermarket, so someone will make one for replacement.
For not so popular cars, well, we may end up having air bag "rebuilders".
I thought this was going to be about airbag suspensions. I suppose there are a number of similar concerns there with the rubber dry rotting, and not a lot of supply for new ones? I'm thinking of an Audi Allroad, Lincoln Towncar, or BMW touring model.
glueguy wrote:
Will there become a new cottage industry to produce blank plates to make it look like they are still there?
It's not a new industry. I've seen them for a few cars such as Mustangs. Heck, Mazda had a factory one in the mid-90's - US Miatas had passenger side bags, Canadian cars did not.
Hmm I had never really thought about the fact that I have a 20 year old air bag pointed at my face
Airbags are pretty well made. I wouldn't be concerned about an unwanted deployment, worst case will be it NOT deploying when called upon. I think the bigger issue will be the covers distorting with age. Read an article some years back about a 70's Cadilliac with optional bags going off properly in an accident. Car was 30+ years old, just a rusty beater, and scared the hell out of the otherwise uninjured driver.
Airbags do deploy with out command. I know for a fact my buddies Volvo wagen had a mis-deployment...Just driving down the street, minding his own business.
Some Volvo engineers came all the way to WV to check out the car.
Leo
In reply to Leo Basile:
Leo,
Boy I bet the Volvo guys encountered some serious culture shock in West Virginia!!
However to be serious, everything is subject to failure. Somethings fail by failing to act, others by acting when not desired.
We who love Classics aren't usually babes in the woods. We should already have a handle on the fact that our rides are not the same as our refrigerators. (Which come to think of it probably have a shorter service life than most of what we drive.) But then again, how often do we fawn over our refrigerator & make sure everything is perfect on it compared to how we treat our Classic rides?
maseratiguy wrote:
MadScientistMatt wrote:
Air bag explosives seem to be pretty stable - I haven't heard of any cases of them spontaneously detonating.
Are the electrics / wiring going to be stable in 25 years? I guess they do have better grounds etc. than a 40 year old British car? (not to pick on Lucas any more than anyone else of that era, but...).
Most safety related wiring/hardware is upgraded pretty nicely. I think most connectors are gold plated, preventing corrosion.
You'll find this in any SRS, ABS, traction control, and electronic throttle stuff.
I would think the wiring will be the real problem. It will an interesting process non the less.
Leo
Interesting idea for a new business
