I have air bags on my 2004 Hyundai Accent. My question is this: Will my air bags inflate only if I have a front-end crash, or will it inflate if I am hit at the rear, or if I am hit at the sides of my car or what? Thank you. Al Brown
Front air bags are supposed to inflate only in the event of a frontal crash. They should not inflate for a sideways or rear hit, and they won’t do you any good if they do inflate under those circumstances.
When you say that you have air bags on your 2004 Hyundai, it is a given that you have front air bags since those have been required equipment for many years. And, as was said, those are designed to deploy in a frontal-impact collision. They may also deploy in an angular crash involving the front end of the car, but this is highly dependent on many factors, including the angle of impact. They are not supposed to deploy in the event of rear-impact , and they would not protect you in that event even if they did deploy.
Your head restraints are designed to protect you in the event of a rear-impact collision, but they will not do so if they are adjusted to too low a position.
The unanswered question is whether you have side air bags, as those were optional on many 2004 models. If you have that feature, they are designed to deploy in the event of a side-impact collision, but not in other situations.