cut and paste from
myCarStats Consumer Notifications <notifications@mycarstats.com>

CONSUMER COMPLAINT: ODI Case Number: 10259790
Component: AIR BAGS
Details: I WAS DRIVING ABOUT 45 MPH ON A HIGHWAY. I HIT THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME FROM BEHIND. THE SPEED OF MY CAR AT THE MOMENT OF THE ACCIDENT WAS ABOUT 45 MPH AS WELL. MY FRONT PART WAS TOTALLY SMASHED, THE BOTH OF THE SEAT BELTS GOT PULL OUT ALL THE WAY AND BROKE. THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME ALSO HAD COMPLETELY SMASHED REAR PART OF THE CAR. MY CAR WAS NOT DRIVABLE CONDITION THAT WAS TOWED. THE AIR BAGS NEVER DEPLOYED. I DO HAVE NECK, BACK AND CHEST INJURY AND MY PASSENGER HAS THE SAME INJURY AS MIND PLUS KNEE INJURY BY HITTING HIS KNEE STRONGLY ON A DASH. MY CAR IS 2008 HONDA FIT, PRETTY BRAND NEW CAR. IT IS VERY SCARY THAT THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. *TR
Occurrences: 1Injuries: 2Fail Date: 02/22/2009Deaths: 0Date added to datbase: 2/24/2009

 

there was a TSB about the airbags in the '08s... wonder if they had that done....

 

I have an 08 and had not heard of this TSB. Is there a recall on it or is the TSB something trivial. Wait, we are talking air bags so that rules out trivial TSB's

Can you post the source of your comment about a TSB on '08's????

 

yeah they had a recall on the fit because of the airbag situation. honda sent me a letter to go in & have it serviced because airbags system wasnt activated on the majority of fits, & my air bag light still till this day comes on sayin its off, must be a defect on the car.
no good. make sure its clear to honda

 

Ho can I tell if mine is one with the issue, without testing the bags or assuming the fact that Honda did not notify me of an issue means I'm good?

 

Something about that consumer complaint does not compute. Note statement:

THE BOTH OF THE SEAT BELTS GOT PULL OUT ALL THE WAY AND BROKE

It would take an absolutely enormous impact to pull the seat belts out of their mountings (think great big fat bolts anchoring to the floor), or to actually exceed the limits of the belts' strength and rupture them (both belts, no less). Why do I suspect that the complaint is either fraudulent or grossly inaccurate? We obviously are not getting proper information.

 

Dang that's scary, I have an '08 Fit too

 

On top of the seemingly inaccurate information as mentioned in the above the story (for lack of a better term) is riddled with spelling and grammar mistakes.

Question:
Were all the '08 recalled? Or only a select few that were known to have the issue?

I have to go to the dealership anyway on an unrelated warranty issue, I'll ask then if mine has this issue which I never heard about.

 

Honda did recall the 2007 and 2008 Fit, but the recall was for cars built between January 2006 and October 2007. Also, the recall was limited to the "salt belt" states. It affected the passenger airbag, not the driver airbag: snow/water mixed with salt could drip on the carpet on the driver's side and could short a wire relating to the passenger airbag system. That could cause the passenger airbags (front or side) to deploy when they should not, such as when a small child is present in a child seat, or is close to the airbag. Honda first discovered the problem in March 2007, and notified the government about the recall in November 2007. So, it doesn't appear the specific recall affected the deployment decision in the above accident. Determining whether the airbags should have deployed in this accident is a complex subject, and depends on a thorough analysis; for a starting point, see Did an Airbag Cause Your Injuries? | The Airbag Blog

The initial post appears to be pasted from a complaint submitted by a consumer to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration tand posted on its website. The spelling/grammar errors are not unusual for complaints on that website. Also, remember that the complaints are usually not written by people with automotive or technical experience. When they say the seat belts "broke", they may simply mean that they failed to restrain the driver, or that it had rip-stitching, or many other potential issues.

 

also when some newb gets into an accident, a little fender bender is A HUGE DEAL!!! so who knows.

the car is suppose to crumple to absorb impact.

 

I can say I've been in an '08 Fit when it was sandwiched between two other cars and totaled... and no airbags deployed.

However, the impact was soft because of the crumple zones so I didn't need any. The impact was around 40mph.

 

if i remember right, the SRS airbag recall was for airbags deploying a split second too late during accidents, not for airbags never deploying at all. if your fit needs the service you should have received mail from honda america, but if you want to make sure, you can just ask your dealership to look up your vin and see if you need it reprogrammed. i don't think it was recalled because of people getting into accidents, but rather from crash-testing (at least i hope so).

also, there are a lot of factors and sensors that go into determining whether or not the it is necessary for the airbags to deploy during an accident. so unless that driver is dead from his face smashing into the steering wheel, i am on the car's side when he complains about his "airbags failing to deploy"