Important Airbag Information!  Airbags have been saving lives for 50 years!  While airbags were first introduced in the 1970s, driver-side airbags became a federal law in 1992 and passenger-side airbags were made a federal law in 1997.  Since their introduction, frontal airbags have saved over 50,000 lives, and have reduced driver deaths by 29 percent and passenger deaths by 32 percent.  When a crash occurs with enough force, sensors in the front-end of the car will inflate the airbags very quickly and forcefully: the airbag will inflate in 0.05 seconds (on twentieth of a second) at a rate of 200 mph.  Therefore, it’s important to respect the force of the airbag.  For example, the driver should not sit closer than 10 inches from the steering wheel (measured from the sternum to the center of the steering wheel) and passengers should no ride with their feet up on the dashboard of an airbag-equipped vehicle.  Newer cars add side-curtain airbags to protect occupants when impacted from the side.  You can check vehicle safety at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) website.  Furthermore, be aware if your car has experienced an airbag recall, and know the vehicle history when purchasing a used vehicle.      Read more at the Consumer Reports website.