Ford F-550 (2017 year). Manual — part 10

PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION

WARNINGS

Airbags do not inflate slowly or
gently, and the risk of injury from a
deploying airbag is the greatest close

to the trim covering the airbag module.

All occupants of your vehicle,
including the driver, should always
properly wear their safety belts, even

when an airbag supplemental restraint
system is provided. Failure to properly wear
your safety belt could seriously increase
the risk of injury or death.

Always transport children 12 years
old and under in the back seat and
always properly use appropriate

child restraints. Failure to follow this could
seriously increase the risk of injury or death.

Never place your arm over the airbag
module as a deploying airbag can
result in serious arm fractures or

other injuries.

Airbags can kill or injure a child in a
child seat. Never place a rear-facing
child seat in front of an active airbag.

If you must use a forward-facing child seat
in the front seat, move the seat upon which
the child seat is installed all the way back.

Do not attempt to service, repair, or
modify the airbag supplemental
restraint systems or its fuses as you

could be seriously injured or killed. Contact
your authorized dealer as soon as possible.

Several airbag system components
get hot after inflation. To avoid risk
of injury, do not touch them after

inflation.

If the airbag has deployed, the airbag
will not function again and must be
replaced immediately. If the airbag

is not replaced, the unrepaired area will
increase the risk of injury in a crash.

The airbags are a supplemental restraint
system and are designed to work with the
safety belts to help protect the driver and
right front passenger from certain upper
body injuries. Airbags do not inflate slowly;
there is a risk of injury from a deploying
airbag.

Note: You will hear a loud bang and see a
cloud of harmless powdery residue if an
airbag deploys. This is normal.

The airbags inflate and deflate rapidly
upon activation. After airbag deployment,
it is normal to notice a smoke-like, powdery
residue or smell the burnt propellant. This
may consist of cornstarch, talcum powder
(to lubricate the bag) or sodium
compounds (for example, baking soda)
that result from the combustion process
that inflates the airbag. Small amounts of
sodium hydroxide may be present which
may irritate the skin and eyes, but none of
the residue is toxic.

While the system is designed to help
reduce serious injuries, contact with a
deploying airbag may also cause abrasions
or swelling. Temporary hearing loss is also
a possibility as a result of the noise
associated with a deploying airbag.
Because airbags must inflate rapidly and
with considerable force, there is the risk of
death or serious injuries such as fractures,
facial and eye injuries or internal injuries,
particularly to occupants who are not
properly restrained or are otherwise out of
position at the time of airbag deployment.
Thus, it is extremely important that
occupants be properly restrained as far
away from the airbag module as possible
while maintaining vehicle control.

Routine maintenance of the airbags is not
required.

DRIVER AND PASSENGER
AIRBAGS

WARNINGS

Never place your arm over the airbag
module as a deploying airbag can
result in serious arm fractures or

other injuries.

Airbags can kill or injure a child in a
child restraint. Never place a
rear-facing child restraint in front of

an active airbag. If you must use a
forward-facing child restraint in the front
seat, move the seat upon which the child
seat is installed all the way back.

E151127

The driver and front passenger airbags
deploy during significant frontal and near
frontal crashes.

The driver and passenger front airbag
system consists of:
•

Driver and passenger airbag modules.

· Crash sensors and monitoring
system with readiness indicator.
See Crash Sensors and Airbag

Indicator (page 52).

Passenger Airbag On and Off
Switch

(If Equipped)

WARNINGS

Even with advanced restraints
systems, properly restrain children
12 and under in a rear seating

position. Failure to follow this could
seriously increase the risk of injury or death.

The front passenger airbag is not
designed to offer protection to an
occupant in the center seating

position.

Your vehicle may have an airbag
deactivation switch. Before driving,
always look at the switch to make

sure it is in the appropriate position. Failure
to put the switch in the proper position can
increase the risk of serious injury or death
in a crash.

E181984

High-series vehicles (if equipped)

The front passenger airbag on and off
switch has indicators that illuminate,
indicating that the front passenger frontal
airbag is either on or off. The indicator lamp
is near the center of the instrument panel.

Note: The passenger airbag status indicator
OFF and ON lamps illuminate for a short
period of time when you switch the ignition
on to confirm it is functional.

Passenger airbag

Passenger airbag status

indicator

Switch position

Disabled

OFF: Lit

Off

ON: Unlit

Enabled

OFF: Unlit

On

ON: Lit

E229376

Low-series vehicles (if equipped)

The front passenger airbag on and off
switch has an indicator that illuminates
and stays lit to remind you that the front
passenger frontal airbag is off. The
indicator lamp is near the center of the
instrument panel.

Note: The indicator lamp illuminates for a
short period of time when you switch the
ignition on to confirm it is functional.

Turning the Passenger Airbag Off

WARNINGS

If the light does not illuminate when
the passenger airbag switch is off
and you switch the ignition on, have

the passenger airbag switch serviced
immediately by a qualified technician.

To avoid switching on the airbag,
always remove the ignition key with
the switch in the off position.

WARNINGS

If your vehicle has rear seats, always
transport children who are 12 and
younger in the rear seat. Always use

seatbelts and child restraints properly. Do
not place a child in a rear facing infant seat
in the front seat unless your vehicle is
equipped with an airbag on and off switch
and the passenger airbag is turned off. This
is because the back of the infant seat is
too close to the inflating airbag and the
risk of a fatal injury to the infant when the
airbag inflates is substantial.

The passenger airbag on and off switch is
in the glovebox.

E181522

1.

Insert the ignition key, turn the switch
to OFF and hold in OFF while removing
the key.

2. When you switch the ignition on, the

passenger airbag off light illuminates
briefly, momentarily shuts off and then
turns back on. This indicates that the
passenger airbag is deactivated.

Turning the Passenger Airbag Back On

WARNINGS

The seatbelts for the driver and right
front passenger seating positions are
specifically designed to operate

together with the airbags in certain types
of crashes. When you switch off your
airbag, you not only lose the protection of
the airbag, you also may reduce the
effectiveness of your seatbelt system. If
the passenger does not meet the
requirements stated in the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration or
Transport Canada deactivation criteria,
switching off the airbag can increase the
risk of serious injury or death in a crash.

If your vehicle has rear seats, always
transport children who are 12 and
younger in the rear seat. Always use

seatbelts and child restraints properly. Do
not place a child in a rear facing infant seat
in the front seat unless your vehicle is
equipped with an airbag on and off switch
and the passenger airbag is turned off. This
is because the back of the infant seat is
too close to the inflating airbag and the
risk of a fatal injury to the infant when the
airbag inflates is substantial.

If the passenger airbag off light is
illuminated when the passenger
airbag switch is on and the ignition

is on, have the passenger airbag switch
serviced immediately by a qualified
technician.

The passenger airbag remains off until you
turn it back on.

E181521

1.

Insert the ignition key and turn the
switch to ON.

2. The passenger airbag off light will

briefly illuminate when you switch the
ignition on. This indicates that the
passenger airbag is operational.

The passenger side airbag should always
be on (the passenger airbag off light
should not be illuminated) unless the
passenger is a person who meets the
requirements stated either in Category 1, 2
or 3 of the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration or Transport Canada
deactivation criteria which follows.

The vast majority of drivers and passengers
are much safer with an airbag than
without. To do their job and reduce the risk
of life threatening injuries, airbags must
open with great force, and this force can
pose a potentially deadly risk in some
situations, particularly when a front seat
occupant is not properly buckled up. The
most effective way to reduce the risk of
unnecessary airbag injuries without
reducing the overall safety of the vehicle
is to make sure all occupants are properly
restrained in the vehicle, especially in the