Owner-reported complaints naming the airbag system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Reports naming the air-bag system — deployment behaviour, inflators, sensors and warning lights. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 1998 Pontiac Sunfire submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 11 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
CARS BATTERY CONSTANTLY RAN DOWN. BATTERY WAS CHECKED AND WAS OK AS IT WAS THREE MONTHS OLD. REPAIR STATION SAID THE HORN WAS SHORTED AND THE AIR BAG IS PART OF THE HORN SWITCH AND MUST BE REPLACED.
WHILE DRIVING ON A RURAL TWO LANE ROAD. CONSUMER LOST CONTROL OF VEHICLE AND WAS HIT BROADSIDE ON DRIVERS SIDE DOOR BY ANOTHER VEHICLE. NONE OF THE VEHICLES AIRBAGS DEPLOYED RESULTING IN A FATALITY. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. PLEASE DESCRIBE FURTHER. TS
WHILE TRAVELING AT 30 MPH ON A GRAVEL ROAD BOTH PASSENGER'S SIDE AND DRIVER'S SIDE AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. CAUSE UNKNOWN. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY FURTHER INFORMATION.*AK
AIRBAG LIGHT ILLUMINATES ON THE DASHBOARD. CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED DEALER. DEALER STATED AIRBAG MAY NOT DEPLOY WHEN NEEDED. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER DETAILS.*AK
WHILE DRIVING 25-30 MPH THERE WAS A PASSENGER'S SIDE FRONT IMPACT, AND NEITHER AIRBAG DEPLOYED. $ AMOUNT OF DAMAGE UNKNOWN. *AK
VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A FRONTAL COLLISION OF 25 MPH IN WHICH PASSENGER'S SIDE AIR BAG HAS DEPLOYED AND SHATTERED FRONT WINDSHIELD. ALSO, DAMAGED DASHBOARD. DEALER WAS NOT NOTIFIED AT THIS TIME. FEEL FREE TO PROVIDE ANY FURTHER INFORMATION ON THIS MATTER.*AK
DEALER(TAYLOR CHEVROLET, LANCASTER, OH; PHONE# 740/653-2091) HAD INSTALLED AN AIR BAG ON/OFF SWITCH ON WRONG SIDE, VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT DURING WHICH AIR BAG ON DRIVER'S SIDE DEPLOYED WITH SWITCH ON THE OFF MODE. DEALER NOTIFIED, AND REIMBURSED CONSUMER. *AK *SLC
VEHICLE INVOLVED IN A REAR END COLLISION, VEHICLE WAS TRAVELING AT 50 MPH BEFORE DRIVER APPLIED BRAKE AND HIT REAR BUMPER OF OTHER VEHICLE. BOTH AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO PROVIDE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
CONSUMER WAS IN A FRONT END ACCIDENT THAT CAUSED NO DAMAGE TO NEITHER VEHICLE GOING ABOUT 10 MPH AND THE AIR BAG DEPLOYED AND SHATTERED THE WINDSHIELD. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
VEHICLE WAS RENTED FROM ENTERPRISE. VEHICLE DRIVEN ON INTERSTATE HIGHWAY AT NIGHT WHEN IT RAN OVER SOME DEBRIS FROM PRIOR ACCIDENT ON THE ROAD. DEBRIS STRUCK UNDERCARRAIGE AND THE AIRBAGS ON BOTH SIDES DEPLOYED. INJURY CAUSED TO PASSENGER WHO WAS LOOKING IN THE GLOVE BOX AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT. ALL OCCUPANTS HAD SEAT BELTS ON AT THE TIME. CAR VELOCITY AT TIME OF AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT WAS 70 MPH. AFTER BAG DEPLOYMENT THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND STOPPED BY DRIVER WHOSE VISON WAS BADLY OBSTRUCTED BY THE AIRBAG. NO DAMAGE EXCEPT TO UNDERCARRAIGE AND INTERIOR OF THE CAR WAS DONE. BELIEVE THIS ISN'T THE WAY AN AIR BAG IS SUPPOSED TO WORK. I REPORTED THIS TO YOU EARLIER ON A NON STANDARD FORM AND WHEN I REVIEWED YOUR COMPLAINT LIST I DIDN'T SEE IT SO I AM RESUBMITTING IT ON YOUR OWN FORM. I WAS A SECTION HEAD OF SYSTEM SAFETY AT NWC CHINA LAKE FOR 5 YEARS AND MY PROFESSIONAL OPINION IS THAT A SINGLE POINT FAILURE CAUSED THE AIRBAGS TO DEPLOY AND THAT THE CAUSE IS VERY CLOSELY ASSOCIATED WITH THE ACCELEROMETER SYSTEM. I HAVE DONE SOME RESEARCH INTO IT AND HAVE FOUND ACCELEROMETER PROBLEMS NOT ONLY ON THIS MODEL BUT OTHERS. MATTERS OF THE ACCELEROMETER DELAMINATING UNDER ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS AND THE PROBLEM OF STICTION IN THE ACCELEROMETER ELEMENTS ARE JUST TWO ADDITIONAL PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED WITH ACCELEROMETERS PUT INTO AUTOMOBILES BY INDUSTRY. COMPOUND THAT WITH AN INCOMPLETE TEST/INSPECTION AND YOU HAVE A DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN. I TOOK THE MATTER UP WITH THE CURRENT HEAD OF SYTEM SAFETY AT NWC, KEN CHIRKIS, AND HE AGREES. IN ADDITION HE SUGGESTED THAT WE INFORM SATO OUR TRAVEL PEOPLE ABOUT THE HAZZARD SINCE THE GOVERNMENT RENTS THIS STYLE OF VEHICLE EXTENSIVELY AND THE 'FIX' IMPLEMENTED FOR THE 96 & 97 MODELS APPARENT DOES'T WORK FOR THE 98. THE NAVY HAS A REQUIREMENT THAT FOR SAFETY FEATURES A FAILURE RATE OF 1X10E-6. THIS ONE FAILURE ALONE WOULD ELIMINATE THIS VEHICLE. HOWEVER IT'S ALSO COMBINED WITH ANOTHER
THE VEHICLE REAR ENDED ANOTHER VEHICLE AT 65 TO 70MPH AND DRIVER SIDE AIRBAG DID NOT DEPLOY. *AK
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
Data on this page last refreshed .