Inflatable Seatbelts?

http://money.cnn.com/2009/11/05/autos/ford_inflatable_seat_belt/index.htm?postversion=2009110515

Ford motor company is coming out with, yes, inflatable seatbelts. They will first be introduced in the next generation Ford Explorer. The Explorer has had a bad rap over the years because of it’s all to well known excessive roll over accidents. CNN’s correspondents believe this to be one of the reasons for the Explorer to be the first choice for this new safety feature. The way these new seatbelts work is quite amazing and simple at the same time. What they do is inflate in just milliseconds after impact. Ford claims that they work similar to how front passenger air bags do. They inflate with compressed air and stay inflated for seconds after an accident then releases the air from port holes in the belt. The key for these belts to be safer is to increase the area they cover to damper the impact on such a small area of the passenger. Ford also states that these belts will help to limit injuries to the neck and chest areas. Ford said that they have had numerous crash safety tests to prove this to be fact. Another unique feature about these seatbelt is that they are claiming that they are more comfortable. The target area for these belts is in the back seat where a seatbelt is more apt to be left on the back door and not in use. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that 82% of front passengers and drivers wear their safety belt when driving or riding, but only 51% of backseat passengers do. This is the main reason that they are putting them in he rear passenger seats. Ford claims that there has been a lot of money put into this project and hopes to improve the safety rating of the Explorer and many of their other vehicles in the years to come.

My first thought of these new safety belts was how these things are going to work. I wonder if they might even blow up and cause even more injuries during a car accident, I’m sure everyone reading this knows of someone or heard or someone getting hurt by a passenger airbag. After reading this article though, I do believe that Ford is taking a step to further their quality of vehicles especially their safety features. I believe this to be a positive thing we will see in the future.

I reacted this way because I think that any safety feature added to our vehicles is a good thing as long as they are proven and not outrageously expensive. I’m glad to see our dealerships making these improvements on our vehicles.

I look forward to seeing this product save someone’s life in the future. I too think that there will be a lawsuit to follow though. Isn’t that sad that anyone would ever even think that?