Airbags failing to deploy

good intentions

Hi All,

I spent 30 grand buying a 05 Audi a4 from a dealer in Offaly in July just past.

Unfortunately, I had a pretty bad crash on Friday, the car flipped onto it's roof and is completely totalled. Luckily, I am fine, and walked away without a scratch (thank God for safety belts). The Gardai were amazed that I walked away without a bother to me.

I am very grateful that I am still alive.

However, I am not too happy with the fact that I spent all of this money on a car with seven airbags and not one of them deployed. I could have had injuries a lot more serious, and I could have died due to the airbags not deploying.

Has anybody had experience of this issue before?

I will be seeking legal advice of course.

Appreciate any constructive comments, thanks

FuzzyWuzzyWazza

Airbags don't just deploy whenever you have a crash, there are sensors that determin if a perticuler airbag goes off, otherwise you would be hit by a bunch of air bags as well whatever other knock you would have as a result of a crash.

As someone who had an airbag go off due to a lateral collision, trust me they are pretty voilent events in themselves, the airbag did nothing for my safety and nearly broke my arm in the process, it did infact cause my fist to shatter the windscreen.

So their may be a reason the airbags didn't actually go off, and it was probably for the good.

FuzzyWuzzyWazza

LIGHTNING wrote: »

... Ie in a side collision it wont deploy the airbag in the steering wheel...

thats what happened to me, and steering wheel bag deployed, was a '95 car so maybe newer cars are better........... remember hearing that broken forearms are quiet commen with steering wheel bag deployments

good intentions

Hi guys, and thanks for the responses.

Just to clarify, I was travelling at 40 mph, the car flipped onto its roof and slid 150 metres down the road.

The front of the car is mashed. The top of the car is mashed. The rear of the car is mashed.

Surely at least one of the airbags would have deployed? If they don't deploy in this situation I fear they would never deploy!

I previously drove a focus, and rear ended somebody at 20mph -it set off both airbags!

I have a mate who's a technician for Honda - maybe he can plug his laptop into it!

Thanks again

-Chris-

Get an independent assessor to look at the car (your solicitor will probably insist on this anyway).

Your airbags will not always go off in an impact - the system measures the G-force of the impact, the angle of incidence, etc. etc.
Airbags will only go off if they'll be of benefit - your passenger airbag will only go off if there's a passenger in the seat, your front airbags will only go off if you're in a frontal impact above a certain speed.
If you're in an impact at an angle, where you're thrown diagonally rather than straight ahead, your airbags won't go off as they'd either miss you or they'd make the situation worse.

It's not always black and white as to whether airbags should have deplyed or not.

That being said, if you were in an impact that was severe enough to roll the car, I'd be surprised if no airbags deployed....

You do mention the seatbelts though, and you're right. At the time of impact, your seatbelts would have tightened you back into the seat before releasing you "gently", in the first moments of the crash.

A way to check if your safety system was active is to see if any of your other seatbelts are pulled tight - if the pretensioners fired but the airbags didn't, I'd say the system was working, but the car decided the airbags wouldn't have aided the situation.


Edit: wow, beaten to it multiple times!!!

geoff29

op, happy that you are with us I'm sure you got quite a fright, it's amazing that you are unscathed!

I'm the same as the others, regarding the sensors, I'm sure audi would be interested or indeed, some safety body like the ADAC or Euro-Ncap etc. If they saw the car, someone would be able to diagnose its electronics, could be very well that the sensors are still in activation and the airbags could still be triggered?

if there is a fault, that's not good. I know some Volvos (previous C70) were recalled because in the event of a side-impact, the opposing side airbags went off..! A big help! Maybe look into any reports or recalls for your audi? A quick google search should tell you if the manufacturer ever recalled the cars for faults. Indeed, there may even be other stories of people in your boat.

Owen

I've seen first hand a 06 car rolled, and no bags deployed. Nothing bizarre about that I'm afraid, I understand it's frightening when something like that happens, but the car will only deploy the airbags when various sensors kick in around the vehicle. If the car was on it's roof, deploying the airbag while you were sliding forward to a stop wouldn't have done much good.

However, for example, if you were sliding on your roof, and you hit a lamppost at speed, then it would deploy.

colm_mcm

you seem to be alive, presuming yourself and any passengers walked away from the crash without injuries, I can't see why you'd have a problem with the way the car performed.
Given that the airbag only stays inflated for under a second, a deployed airbag wouldn't protect you for any longer than that.

maidhc

good intentions wrote: »

I will be seeking legal advice of course.

For what, excatly?

Alun

I agree with some of the other posters .. that very fact that you walked away without a scratch, as you yourself put it, without the assistance of the airbags is probably testament enough to the fact that the airbags in fact didn't need to deploy in those circumstances. Airbag deployment is a complicated matter, and they take all kinds of things into consideration before firing. If the car flipped onto it's roof and skidded along on it, then probably it was the seatbelt tensioners that saved your life, rather than any (non-existent) airbag deployment.

FWIW I survived a similar crash many years ago in a 1964 Mk I Ford Cortina, many years ago, which only just had seatbelts, let alone airbags and walked out without a scratch too.

mickdw

If you were doing 40mph and you managed to slide 150m down the road as you say, then obviously there was no severe deceleration involved and that is why the airbags didnt deploy. the fact that you walked away uninjured surely proves the point that the car acted properly as airbags create a violent explosion and if the car figured you would be ok without them then why risk the violent explosion of the airbag.
You seem to be of the impression that the airbag is a nice soft cushion made to protect you as the car is rolling/sliding on its roof. the fact is that the bag is only inflated for a fraction of a second and therefore it is only effective at the time of impact.

SV

maidhc wrote: »

For what, excatly?

lol..thank you.


You know..he MIGHT have been hurt..he COULD have been injured.


has that personality that would sue a restaurant for having a slippery floor when they never slipped on it..just because they might have.

derossi

I crashed my 03 a4 about 2 years ago. It was late at night in a dark country road. I was going too fast and came to a corner and didnt react quickly enough. The car hit the hedge flipped up into the air and rolled 5 or 6 times in the field. I walked away with a sprained neck. The seat belts tighened up and kept me in place. I walked out through the front window. Every panel in the car was damaged, the roof was crushed but no airbags deployed. I guess the car figured that i didnt need them.

Heroditas

Can I ask the OP how they managed to flip an Audi A4 at 40mph?

SV

Heroditas wrote: »

Can I ask the OP how they managed to flip an Audi A4 at 40mph?

Honestly..hundreds of ways this could happen.

Heroditas

ClioV6 wrote: »

Honestly..hundreds of ways this could happen.

Just curious as to how it happened in this instance.

Owen

Heroditas wrote: »

Can I ask the OP how they managed to flip an Audi A4 at 40mph?

Here's one that happened at about 10mph :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiXunpWEz4s

Savman

good intentions wrote: »

Unfortunately, I had a pretty bad crash on Friday, the car flipped onto it's roof and is completely totalled.

good intentions wrote:

I previously drove a focus, and rear ended somebody at 20mph

Erm....no, I won't go there.

colm_mcm

If I was you I'd be more upset about spending 30k on a 3 year old A4.

pred racer

Heroditas wrote: »

Can I ask the OP how they managed to flip an Audi A4 at 40mph?

interested also??

crosstownk

good intentions wrote: »

I am fine, and walked away without a scratch (thank God for safety belts).

So it's safe to say that airbags weren't required? Your Audi seems to have gotten the calculations right. Just as well as the cost of replacing airbags and control units is mad money. If you ask me your car did all it had to do to keep you safe and uninjured.

Glad to hear you're OK after the prang.

Rowley Birkin QC

crosstownk wrote: »

So it's safe to say that airbags weren't required? Your Audi seems to have gotten the calculations right. Just as well as the cost of replacing airbags and control units is mad money. If you ask me your car did all it had to do to keep you safe and uninjured.

Glad to hear you're OK after the prang.

That would be my thinking on it aswell. The main thrust of it is that you walked away fine from the accident.

If the airbags fired without being needed you could have been injured but they didn't and you weren't. Be thankful for this and see what the assesor says.

Darragh29

good intentions wrote: »

Hi All,

I spent 30 grand buying a 05 Audi a4 from a dealer in Offaly in July just past.

Unfortunately, I had a pretty bad crash on Friday, the car flipped onto it's roof and is completely totalled. Luckily, I am fine, and walked away without a scratch (thank God for safety belts). The Gardai were amazed that I walked away without a bother to me.

I am very grateful that I am still alive.

However, I am not too happy with the fact that I spent all of this money on a car with seven airbags and not one of them deployed. I could have had injuries a lot more serious, and I could have died due to the airbags not deploying.

Has anybody had experience of this issue before?

I will be seeking legal advice of course.

Appreciate any constructive comments, thanks

Did the front of the car impact with anything??? If it didn't, the airbags normally won't deploy because they are triggered by front inertia sensors that detect a very abrupt stop to the vehicle, for example, the vehicle driving into a wall, which causes you to continue moving forward even though the vehicle has stopped, hence the need for an airbag. The same also happens for lateral collisions to the side of the vehicle.

Don't see why you are seeking legal advice on this. Did the seat belt pre-tensioners deploy??? If they did, then maybe this is why you were able to walk away from the crash...

good intentions

Hi All,

Thanks for all of your comments and replies, they were very much welcomed and appreciated.

Update for you all.

I had the vehicle inspected by Audi (my dealer). Surprise surprise he produced a report to inform me that the airbags should not have deployed. I was not happy with this, so got an independent assessor in. He has confirmed that due to the impact taken at the front left hand side of the car, the airbags SHOULD have deployed.

I was very interested to see this report, and have it corroborated, so Audi in Dublin had a look at it. They have confirmed that the airbags SHOULD have deployed due to the speed and angle of impact to front left hand side of car.

Audi have taken the car back to Germany for full analysis, paid for by them obviously. And in the meantime they have provided me with a courtesy A6 3.2 v6 (nice car).

For those of you who questioned as to why I have taken legal advice, I have had a meeting with a Barrister friend of mine, and he believes I have a case against Audi, and should expect a settlement. We are awaiting final results from Germany. I've been advised that they would loathe the negative publicity a case like this could generate, therefore that will explain the settlement.

I'll keep you posted if you like, but can't give too much information as it could jeopardise proceedings.

Glad to see you are ok OP, sounds terrifying!

maidhc

good intentions wrote: »

For those of you who questioned as to why I have taken legal advice, I have had a meeting with a Barrister friend of mine, and he believes I have a case against Audi, and should expect a settlement. We are awaiting final results from Germany. I've been advised that they would loathe the negative publicity a case like this could generate, therefore that will explain the settlement.

Lets face facts, you are uninjured, and it was (presumably) your fault you crashed the car. I'd love to see the statement of claim, and so I suspect would J.K. Rowling...

tin79

I hope it goes well for you, and thank god you were unhurt

The good that will come from you pursuing this is that audi might be able to improve their safety system so that it does save lives in the future.

I must say though, and i dont mean to sound harsh here, but as someone who has been in a serious crash and walked away without a scratch (just like you did) if it was me i would be thanking Audi for having their car save my life and not looking for money from them, when their tensioners are probably the reason you are still here to tell us about it.

I think you are right to bring it to their attention but wrong to have your hand out when you walked away unhurt. legally right maybe but morally wrong IMO.

Anan1

good intentions wrote: »

Luckily, I am fine, and walked away without a scratch (thank God for safety belts). The Gardai were amazed that I walked away without a bother to me.

good intentions wrote: »

For those of you who questioned as to why I have taken legal advice, I have had a meeting with a Barrister friend of mine, and he believes I have a case against Audi, and should expect a settlement. We are awaiting final results from Germany. I've been advised that they would loathe the negative publicity a case like this could generate, therefore that will explain the settlement..

Nice.

SV

good intentions, are you American?


you sound american. just wondering.

galwaytt

good intentions wrote: »

Audi have taken the car back to Germany for full analysis, paid for by them obviously. And in the meantime they have provided me with a courtesy A6 3.2 v6 (nice car).

I've been advised that they would loathe the negative publicity a case like this could generate, therefore that will explain the settlement.

Unfortunately, this is exactly the type of thing that has got our insurance premia to the levels they're at, over the years. Sueing, just becuase........well, just because you can. Your sentiment about the publicity angle shows that this is basically a PR damage limitation exercise, rather than an objective case on technical merit.

I say that because, had the airbags deployed - er, could you be 'more' alive ? You've already posted that you got away without a scratch, to the astonishment of the attending Garda - so how is possible to be 'less injured' than you are ? So what's the point ?

If they had deployed, even if it turns out that bags should have done so, and you had a resultant injury from that...............well, I guess we'd be respoonding to that post on here, too......but with a different title....

I'm not picking on you OP, but I fail to see the merit in your complaint - you are complaining that it's Audi's fault that you are NOT dead, and NOT injured ?

Where's your responsiblity in this ?

-Chris-

+1 on the "well done for investigating this and flagging any potential safety issue to Audi".

As for a settlement, if you have any genuine physical or psychological (or other) impact from the incident, please feel free.
If you don't, then please don't pursue this further. Ireland has enough of a claim culture already.