SRS Airbag being disconnected on GU

[CWBYUP]

Not being a smart arse, But I would check that with Vic roads before you do it.

I have spoken to NSW RTA and an Engineer about this and both came back with the same answer. Not without an engineers report and only if there was a model that came out with out SRS.

Must be differant in Vic, Just make sure the engineer nows what hes on about.

And the 4.8L in to a 3L its only if they have the same braking system / tyres etc.

Nick

[bj on roids]

it is illegal to disconnect an airbag from an airbag equipped vehicle. I also think it maybe illegal to put a non air bag compatible bar onto an air bag vehicle as you are in effect rendering it ineffective.

The bullbar basically has a crush section which absorbs some impact, it does not interfere with the airbags as the sensors are all on the body. If you have a hard enough impact to push the bullbar into the body the bags will fire regardless.

Having said that the airbag bar is designed to hit the body of the vehicle a little easier to fire the bags sooner...

I would be personally looking at my usage and so on.

On my 100 series I removed the airbag fuse when I was going to be driving like a hero, because its over $4k to do the seatbelts and airbags again from Toyota.

[bj on roids]

Ditto beadlocks - LJextreems beadlocks were on his insurance policy but aren't road legal.

It MIGHT be possible to get approval for the airbag disconnected.

My Cooper S has the driver's side bag removed as I have changed the seat. This is technically illegal, but BMW have ADR approved the car with the side bag deactivated to allow for the sparco seats fitted as part of the JCW performance package.

As such, I contacted BMW, they reprogrammed the body computer to not see the bag, issued a warning sticker with "Airbag Deactivated" and provded supporting paperwork indicating the car still meets the applicable ADR's with the airbag removed.

Nissan may be able to issue a document supporting that t he DX model meets all the same ADR's as the ST and so an ST woudl still meet ADR's with the bag removed/deactivated.

Alternatively, an engineer might issue a cert for this as.

I vote with contact nissan. Failing that, go to an engineer.

Without supporting ADR paperwork, it is illegal to remove/disable any safety equipment.

Just my 2C

Sorry if anyone thinks this is unhelpful, but I don't think many people have legally removed a bag, regardless of car.

Steve.

nice answer!

[bj on roids]

Not being a smart arse, But I would check that with Vic roads before you do it.

I have spoken to NSW RTA and an Engineer about this and both came back with the same answer. Not without an engineers report and only if there was a model that came out with out SRS.

Must be differant in Vic, Just make sure the engineer nows what hes on about.

And the 4.8L in to a 3L its only if they have the same braking system / tyres etc.

Nick

there is a model that came without SRS, the DX!!

[tweak'e]

Buy an airbag compliant bar. It amazes me that anyone would want to disconnect a truly life saving device. What is your life worth in an accident? I see the lives saved and watch people walk away from horrendous accidents daily at work, spend the extra.

its a shame its not switchable ie like ABS etc where you have a button on the dash to turn it on/off.

the reason for not having the airbag is offroad they can cause more injures than save them. you usally bang into things which can set them off and if your not sitting properly in the seat (not wearing seatbelt) it can slam you back into the seat and cause a few nasty injures.

thats also why you want a non-airbag rated bars as the cushions part will get crushed every time you push a tree, gate, building etc.

[LOCKEE]

Or you want to put a real winch (M8274) on your Airbag Equiped vehicle?

No Airbag compatible bars, so have seen many people hack up an SRS compatible bar. Of course not lagal but people are looking for legal ways hence the original question.

[bj on roids]

Buy an airbag compliant bar. It amazes me that anyone would want to disconnect a truly life saving device. What is your life worth in an accident? I see the lives saved and watch people walk away from horrendous accidents daily at work, spend the extra.

its a shame its not switchable ie like ABS etc where you have a button on the dash to turn it on/off.

the reason for not having the airbag is offroad they can cause more injures than save them. you usally bang into things which can set them off and if your not sitting properly in the seat (not wearing seatbelt) it can slam you back into the seat and cause a few nasty injures.

thats also why you want a non-airbag rated bars as the cushions part will get crushed every time you push a tree, gate, building etc.

Thats why its an SRS Airbag, becuase if you are not wearing your seatbelt it can cause serious injury or death.

(Secondary Restraint System)

seatbelt = Primary restraint system

[grimbo]

Or you want to put a real winch (M8274) on your Airbag Equiped vehicle?

No Airbag compatible bars, so have seen many people hack up an SRS compatible bar. Of course not lagal but people are looking for legal ways hence the original question.

but why not give as much detail in the first post explaining why so you then get back the answers that are relevant. rather than half info and a whole range of answers that are somewhat correct. More info at the start means more info in the answers

[CWBYUP]

there is a model that came without SRS, the DX!!

Now go and read the rest of what i said.

Yes the DX can out without airbags, So its possible to change it,

But in NSW you still need an Engineers Certificate not

they can be disconnected without affecting roadworthiness and without needing an engineers report.
.... It's just a matter of going to Vic Roads to change the engine numbers.

As Alison has said here.

So your problem is ?

[holeyhardtop]

Thats why its an SRS Airbag, becuase if you are not wearing your seatbelt it can cause serious injury or death.

(Secondary Restraint System)

seatbelt = Primary restraint system

Ok so its a secondary system and i now have a better understanding surrounding the issues people are having with their airbag cars etc. I agree it would be good to have it switchable so when off road you can turn it off etc if your use is as stated thats also why you want a non-airbag rated bars as the cushions part will get crushed every time you push a tree, gate, building etc.

I still maintain that for onroad use you can't go past the safety benefits of an airbag. In one week i attended two car crashes, both VR/VS commodores with very similar crash mechanisms, both head on's, the difference between the two was one had an airbag the other did not.

The occupant with the airbag sustained minor grazes to their nose and cheeks from the force of the airbag inflating and was able to be cleared at scene for spinal injuries.

not disagreeing with you totally, but the other day we let one off (out of the car) and man id rather get whiplash... it lifted the steer wheel off the ground about 2 feet.. massive explosion... i wouldnt want that in my face... Yeah they are violent but i am yet to meet someone who is not happy to be alive, they don't tend to complain about a few grazes etc. and generally don't get whiplash.




The other crash with out the airbag suffered serious head injuries due to the steering wheel crash pad popping off and the steering column nut opening up his head in a nasty way. The primary restraint system "seatbelt" is not always enough to prevent secondary injuries. This person received a ride courteousy of the ambo chopper due to seriousness of his injuries.

As a side note, if you are involved in any accident and there is doubt regarding spinal involvement you will be collared (neck brace) and immobilised on a board for transport even though you probably feel fine.

The bonus of this for those of you who are into it, is that one of the first things to happen to you when you arrive at hospital is to have a lovely doctor stick his finger up your a#se to check you still have sphincter muscle control, a technique used to determine the level of spinal involvement. Me personally i'd rather not have to go through that.

My 2c has well and truly been spent.
Dave

[tweak'e]

on road air bags are great, off road they are not.

also i think fire crews don't like them that much, a few have been killed by airbags going off while they are cutingpeople out of a car.

they really do need an off switch and markings so firecrews know where the bags are located so they don't set them off.

[manno74]

Sounds like there are plenty of people out there with info for you Alison, legal, mechanical, medical and morally... They all seem to go the same way as I see it too - If you're going to drive it on road, airbags are a good thing. If you have a reason though, so be it...

It's none of your business why I'm asking the question, just wanted to know if anyone had experienced this.

I would appriciate if everyone who had an opinion of the situation to keep it to yourselves and stop wasting your own and my time by posting.

All I asked was a question wanting an answer, I don't need to explain why, where, who and for what purpose expecially on a forum.

but this is a forum! You asked and people have wasted their time in answering honestly. I have learnt from this discussion, so maybe it isn't a "waste" for all of us, even if you are ungrateful. If you don't want to put all the info out there, you can't expect to get an accurate answer.

To the rest, some great answers here... I think I'll leave mine fitted, as it suits my use of the vehicle, others may have alternate uses.

[mkpatrol]

on road air bags are great, off road they are not.

also i think fire crews don't like them that much, a few have been killed by airbags going off while they are cutingpeople out of a car.

they really do need an off switch and markings so firecrews know where the bags are located so they don't set them off.

I would be surprised if an airbag killed anyone, they are only inflated for a millisecond & wont kill a passenger if they are inflated inadvertantly.

All airbags are marked as per tha relavent ADR which applies to them (this is why you can see SRS or AIRBAG written on the dash).

Fire crews have accsess to the airbag disablement guide which is contributed to by all manufacturers and is availaible free from DOTARS. If they dont have this then the powers that be need to get it so the bags do not activete while a person is being extracted from a vehicle.

Most airbags deactivete when the battery is disconnected anyway & cannot go off without an electrical source. I know for a fact that the fireies hare in the ACT disconnect the battery first to prevent any chance of a fire during a rescue.


BJ: you are right about the SRS bit but they are not to be used in place of a seatbelt, they are to be used in conjunction with a seatbelt. If you have an accident without one, the airbag will not hold all your body weight nor stop it from bouncing all over the place, the seatbelt does that.

The seat belt actually has a thing called a pre-tensioner which tightens the belt on the occupant in the event of a crash to reduce the force applied to the airbag so it still does most of the work. The airbag is really only designed to stop your head from whacking things hard.