Is this safe? '96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

[Edward 96GTS]

Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

no airbag shutoff on the 1996 GTS. I thought only rear facing child seats in the front seat is dangerous. Can I safely drive my daughter in the passenger seat if she is facing forward in a car seat?
TIA,
Ed

 

[jcaspar1]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

Just pull the airbag fuses. I have been giving my daughter rides since she was 6 months old.

 

[phantred]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

They're just kids, you can always have more.


But seriously, if the child gets thrown forward enough when secured in the car seat to hit the airbag, the seat or belt has failed, and the airbag is probaby the best thing to be hitting.

^ Opinion of course, not advice.

 

[viperrt96]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

96RT10 No air bags at all ! LOL!

I take my 4 and 2 year old out in mine all the time! I say take your daughter with you. She'll love it and so will you!

 

[propsail]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

Pull the fuses if that's what it takes (of course, I don't know if that disables the driver's side bag as well. If it does, you won't have the tensioners in the seatbelt in event of a crash.)

An airbag will seriously injure your daughter, if not worse. I saw a training video of the effects of an airbag deployment on a rear facing child seat. The seat was utterly destroyed. You have to ask yourself if you're confident that the crash you're in won't force the dashboard toward your daughter, or that the seat anchors won't shear and be forced forward toward dash. Are you confident you secured the seat properly (over 80% aren't)? Are you confident that you secured her properly? Remember, you may be the best driver in the world, but the person that hit you at 60mph isn't. It's not worth the risk, my friend.

Sorry to be a bummer, but I chalk oulines of bodies in car crashes for a living.

Educated fact. Not opinion. People should strive to never become the subject of a training video.

Best,
~Craig

 

[Ron]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

While pulling the fuses should work (not positive), I have been told that while installing or pulling them you have to be careful not to have anyone in the seat as even a static charge generating by manipulating the fuses could set them off.

I have the Dodge factory airbag retrofit switch kit which includes the dash panel and the wiring harness to update 1996 & 1997 Vipers to the 1998+ airbag passenger switch style. Brand new OEM, never installed. No longer in production or available from Dodge.

Was hesitating selling it, but now that my kids are old enough finally willing to let it go. Please PM me if interested.

Tx

 

[jcaspar1]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

I always pull and replace the fuses with the car off. I think that should prevent them from accidently discharging. I have done it at least 50 times without a problem. It does, at least per my reading of the wiring diagram, disable both airbags.

 

[AviP]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

I always pull and replace the fuses with the car off. I think that should prevent them from accidently discharging. I have done it at least 50 times without a problem. It does, at least per my reading of the wiring diagram, disable both airbags.

Thanks for the info. I always used to stress on the issue but now I know what to do.

 

[SilverSnake]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

Ron PM sent.



Thanks,

Robert

 

[2002_Viper_GTS_ACR]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

Pull the fuses if that's what it takes (of course, I don't know if that disables the driver's side bag as well. If it does, you won't have the tensioners in the seatbelt in event of a crash.)

100% FALES/INCORRECT. That is so ridiculously false its not even funny. The belt tensioners work COMPLETELY independent of the Airbags. Tensioners always work even with fuses removed, airbacks working properly, or airbags malfunctioning/not working at all. You can not easily defeat tensioners, unless you physically go into the mechanism itself and destroy/modify its ability to do so. Its entirely mechanical, nothing electrical about it at all.

Jon

 

[QUICKV10]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

Jon's correct, all seat belts are mechanical usually a pendalum style weight. It swing's to lock or unlock the seat belt

 

[Edward 96GTS]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

I think propsail may have been referring the the hi tech type belts found in Mercedes where the belt tightens as the computer(dynamics) senses a collision? Can anybody elaborate on this?

 

[propsail]

Re: Is this safe? \'96 GTS + 5yr old child in front facing child seat +

QUOTE:
"I think propsail may have been referring the the hi tech type belts found in Mercedes where the belt tightens as the computer(dynamics) senses a collision? Can anybody elaborate on this? "

Exactly. Thank you. Sorry if I wasn't clear, Jon. I wasn't referring to the mechanical locking of the seatbelt. The airbag control module fires pre-tensioners for the seatbelts just before airbag deployment to snug you in further. It is this way in all airbag equipped vehicles from GM, Ford and, I believe, DC.

~Craig