ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, March 31, 1997 TAG: 9703310097
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: THE BALTIMORE SUN
Automakers and safety advocates say a proposal to disconnect air bags is generally a bad idea.
Motorists planning to disconnect their air bags - if the government allows it - may be left with something they didn't anticipate: less-effective seat belts.
The seat belts on some newer cars were designed to work with air bags, automakers say. Alone, they will not protect a person as well as an older-style belt in serious crashes.
The newer belts allow a person to travel forward a few more inches than older belts, since automakers installed air bags to cushion the person. If the air bag is removed, the person faces a greater risk of head or chest injuries from the steering wheel or dashboard.
Although it is difficult to tell how many vehicles have the looser belts, General Motors Corp. - the largest U.S. automaker - says more than half the vehicles it has produced in the past two or three years have them, as do a few Ford and Chrysler models. Some foreign automakers also use the looser belts.
Federal transportation officials are considering letting motorists disconnect air bags in response to five dozen deaths related to air bags. But automakers and safety advocates say disconnecting the air bags is generally a bad idea.
``It's like the human body: If you go out and take out a vital organ, you've disrupted the entire balance,'' said Mitchel Scherba, director of safety integration at General Motors.
``It's important for customers to know that if they choose to have an air bag deactivated, the overall effectiveness of their vehicle's restraint system will be diminished,'' he said.
Chrysler Corp. and Ford Motor Co. use the redesigned belts in less than 5 percent of their fleets, including the Dodge Avenger, Chrysler Sebring, Eagle Talon, Ford Probe and Ford Escort.
None of the auto or safety officials interviewed could quantify the effect of these belts on driver and passenger safety. ``It will still provide valuable occupant protection,'' said Dave Giroux, a Ford spokesman
In minor or moderately severe crashes, the redesign of the belt won't make a difference, auto and safety officials say. In severe crashes, however, a person is more likely to be thrown forward far enough to hit the dashboard or steering wheel, they said.
``In a high-speed crash, the belt would provide somewhat less protection,'' said Chuck Hurley of the National Safety Council.
A larger person would be more likely to be hurt in those circumstances than a smaller one, said Scherba, the GM safety official.
When used with an air bag as designed, the newer belt has definite advantages over the traditional one, said Barry Felrice, director of regulatory affairs at the American Automobile Manufacturers Association.
Because it is looser, it is less likely to break a rib or collarbone in a severe crash, he said. ``That is particularly of concern for elderly people.''
In older cars without air bags, the work of restraining an occupant falls solely on the belt, said Phil Frame, spokesman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The newer belt can ``give way a little bit so that the air bag takes up some of the force of the crash and spreads it out over a broader section of your body,'' Frame said. The result: fewer belt injuries.
NHTSA is deciding whether to allow motorists to have their air bags disconnected on demand. The proposal, unveiled by the agency in November, is the most controversial of its responses to the air bag dilemma.
Air bags have killed 38 children and 24 adults, mostly short women, in low-speed accidents that would not otherwise have been fatal. However, the bags have saved an estimated 1,750 lives since 1986, federal officials say.
LENGTH: Medium: 74 linesby CNB