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Drew,
You are correct about Volvo saying the SRS "bits" are just fine... (and I'll add to it) as long as the vinyl air bag cover in the center of the steering wheel is not split. As far as these Claymores... as I used to refer to them, my opinion about them changed on January 12th, 2002 when my wife crashed our 89 244 at 55MPH. Please note, that car had NO airbag and she was wearing the seat belt as always!
The nose of the 244 was shortened by four feet, the seat belt was fused in the locking mechanism, the seat back broke every weld, the car gave its all, even the floor boards were rippled front to back.
Unfortunately, according to the lack of an air bag, my wife's head slammed forward and broke her neck during the impact, the brain bruising that resulted required two heart restarts from the paddles after she was extracted from the car. By the graces of the good Lord she fully recovered after six months despite a less than 2% probability.
The first time I met her neurosurgeon (two hours after the wreck), he asked if the orthopedic surgeon had seen to her leg injuries, my response was a simple: "No, her legs are fine". He went on to explain that such neck and head injuries in a car crash are normally associated with the need for leg amputation. I showed him the pictures of what was left of the car, and he asked if it had an air bag, I said no (it didn't have one). His response was if it did have one, she would have unbuckled her seat belt, opened the door, and walked away with a bloody nose and black eyes!
Consider this the first time I've taken exception to one of your posts, Volvo is Volvo because of their zeal for safety! If it wasn't for Volvo, my wife and I would not have had the opportunity to enjoy our 26th wedding anniversary together by exchanging gifts and walking around the lake two weeks ago! If her accident had occurred in a lesser car, lets just say I would have been at the cemetery saying goodbye once again.
jorrell
NOTE: The 1973 GM airbags were only installed in Oldsmobile Toronado, the buyer was not aware of that. They were actually inflated from under the dash and the bags inflated upwards over the front of the occupant's legs. No one was killed by them, or even injured, and by all accounts, two peoples lives were saved by that system in a singular crash (not wearing seat belts).
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92 245 278K miles, IPD'd to the hilt, 06 XC70, 00 Eclipse custom Turbo setup...currently taking names and kicking reputations!
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