My 16 year old son has just gotten his license and is driving my old 1992 Camry with a quarter of a million miles. I think I read somewhere that the airbags need to be changed every 10 years–should I be worried? Or should I, god forbid, take the camry and let him drive my volvo suv with 100,000 miles?
Looking at the title of the post, I thought this was going to be a mother-in-law question. ;0}
Check your owner’s manual. If Toyota recommends periodic replacement, that’s where the info would be. But I’ve never seen this recommendation for any car I’ve owned.
Early in the history of airbags some manufacurers recommended testing or even replacement every 10 years. They just didn’t know (or maybe their lawyers were trying to keep everyone covered). More recent data indicates this precaution is unnecessary. Keep your current old bags (those in the car, not your relatives).
Don’t bother changing the bags.
I’d also like to add that a 1992 Camry with 250,000 miles is almost the perfect car for a new young male driver. It isn’t large, fast or powerful enough to get into too much trouble. Just be careful on allowing friends in the car. The stupid actions of teenage boys rise exponentially when friends are around and go off the chart if there are any girls involved.