Miata Mailing List: January 1995, Message #210
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   From: Mac 
Subject: (none)
   Date: Fri, 6 Jan 1995 02:00:47 -0500


>6.  The contacts and steel ball are gold plated;  gold being a noble metal does
>not corrode. This is to ensure that, even after years have elapsed, the
>contacts will still work when they have to.

	In fact Lexus had a problem with this their contacts on their
trigger sensors were corroding and their air bags were not firing.  
Lexus actually granted a bounty for pictures of Lexi that had been in major
accidents with air bags deployed or not.  This was advertised to emergency
medical servivces, police, and fire departments.  It think it was $30
a picture.  I remember finding the Lexus ad and giving it to a friend of
mine that sells Mecedes Benzs, Saabs, Volvos, Austin Martins, and Lotuses.
He loved it and I think used it as a selling tool.  Mercedes contacts are
made of platnum he would say, never corrode.
	Yes airbags will deploy in either front or rear collisions. The
new Volvo side airbags will deploy in side ways collisions.  These are
still under developement.
	Also air bags are being developed foro race cars as well.  The
Mercedes Benz AMG German Touring Car Championship Team was experimenting
with SRS systems.  I do know that Ellen Lohr's car always had one and
Keke Rosberg's and Klaus Ludwig's car would have them sometime.  They used
a higher setting for the impact sensor since a lot of bump drafting occurs 
in the GTCC.
	Here in Houston especially in the Sugarland area there have been
a number of cars broken in to for their air bags.  Seems to be a racket
going on.  Gotta have some beans to steal what essentially is explosives.
"Hmmm is it the red wire or the green-white one?"  Yes some bags can
deploy up to 15 minutes after power has been disconnected.  BOOM!!
					-Mac. (Not an EOD specialist)
				'95 Montego Blue - Leather