General Motors announced a recall of more than 675,000 Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire vehicles from the 1996 and 1997 model years for an airbag sensor defect.  Those vehicles use a Sensing and Diagnostic Module (SDM) that also serves as a “black box” for the airbag system.  Unfortunately, GM did not calibrate the software inside the SDM properly.

This safety sensor defect could result in the airbag sensor interpreting non-accident events as crashes requiring deployment.  In this kind of failure, even an impact to the underside of the car (such as from a rock) can fool the air bag sensor into thinking it was a serious crash and deploying the airbags.  There have also been reports of the airbags deploying without any significant impact at all.  If the airbag deploys while you are driving, it can shock you and even knock you out, causing an accident.  Of course, since the airbag already deployed, it is not there to protect you when you get into that accident.  The result can be serious personal injury or a wrongful death.

In such a case, you have to be prepared for GM’s argument that the air bag deployed during the accident, rather than before the accident.  There are ways to determine this by analyzing the internal (hexadecimal) data within the crash sensor and forensic marks from the accident, but it is a complicated process requiring engineering skills.  If this happened to you or a loved one, it would be helpful to hire an airbag lawyer who also has airbag engineering experience.  You need someone who can understand the complex issues in interpreting the black box data in General Motors vehicles, including the Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire.

The government’s recall number is 98V-146.