> VWnut@smus.bc.ca wrote:
> > 
> > Did anyone hear about an incident in Idaho where a one year was
> > killed by the air bag in the passenger seat of a new Jetta?
> > 
> > A very tragic story, made even more maddening because airbags were
> > legislated into place with seemingly little research into their
> > overall effect on safety.
> 
> Oh no, I'm a climbin on a soap box on this one, I feel it to be funny
> in a very sick perverse sort of way.  VW in their current infinite lack
> of wisdom has to design this monster $1000 fills the whole car passenger
> side airbag and TAKES OUT THE DAMN GLOVEBOX to do it when for everybody
> else a little in dash thing is enough only to have this happen. 
> Hillarious, I'm a kill all the laywers type but I hope these people take
> VWoA to the cleaners on this one.
> 
It's not just VW, John. I'd like to cite more actual examples, but in 
Canada, it is now well known to avoid placing infacts in ANY seats 
with airbags. (By "well known" I mean I have heard this comment 
recently from various sources, none of them "car-types"). So are you 
going to sue VW for a small child killed after being placed on the 
seat without a child seat? How about about an accident caused by a 
moronic driver assuming daytime running lights can be used all the 
time in place of headlights/taillights? (Or even drivers confusing 
gas with brake...)
My point was car makers will bear the negative effects of poorly 
enacted safety legislation. It has nothing to do with VWs airbag 
design, since government crash tests obviously do not take into 
account infacts in front seats, hence the majority of air bags today 
would fail such a test.

Shawn & Janis Wright
'88 Westy (336k) '85 Jetta TD (361k)
VWnut@smus.bc.ca (swright@smus.bc.ca)
http://www.islandnet.com/~swright/vw.html