Blow airbags on snowdrifts?

RustyA · Mar 6, 2023

Disregard the Ford info then

Rockbadchild · Mar 6, 2023

let me say this, if the air bags deploy while trying to go through a snow drift it was hard pack, very steep, you where going crazy fast and there is zero chance you will go throught it.

Dftodd · Mar 6, 2023

I had the air bags blow when I hopped a Curb. Curb was pretty steep, so I eased up on it so I wouldn't break my teeth.

Granted I was moving the truck out of the road after rearending a mini van at about 20 mph

It was an interesting conversation with the cop when he asked if I was wearing a seat belt when the air bags tripped. Especially since I had the remnants of a bloody nose and my eyes were blackening up.

I said "No, I wasn't wearing a seat belt at the time. But they didn't trip till I moved the truck onto the sidewalk"

I was palming the steering wheel when the air bag tripped, so I pretty much punched myself in the nose

stumblinhorse · Mar 6, 2023

I have seen the drive fast thru drifted snow so many times I have lost count. 99.9% of the time it ends up with a high centered vehicle that takes hours and hours to recover. Never seen a deployed airbag tho, thats a new one.

I have heard of a son or daughter saying “I was just driving and the xyz happened, not anything I was doing Dad!”

IndyIan · Mar 6, 2023

Maybe some cars put the sensor on a flexible part of the lower plastic bumper cover? I could see one of those getting quite a jolt hitting a hard drift fast, and fooling the sensor.

MTGreen · Mar 7, 2023

fidowanttobe said:
Pretty sure a video wouldn't work. Wipers and defrosters on full, pedal to the metal, and hold it steady and straight and hope for the best till I can see again.
It's equipped. For a winter beater anyway. Lift kit, taller pizza cutter tires, skid plate, grill is re-re-attached with fender washers and zip ties, full recovery and clothes kit in the back.
It's a '97 so I don't think it has accelerometer switch. Don't know about fuel cut-off either.
Poor thing is in a heated garage now with fans on it and it looks like a sprinkler is under it!

That's what a tripod 25 yards off to the side is for!

fidowanttobe · Mar 7, 2023

stumblinhorse said:
I have seen the drive fast thru drifted snow so many times I have lost count. 99.9% of the time it ends up with a high centered vehicle that takes hours and hours to recover.

Yup, it happens, but definitely not 99.9% of the time. Apparently not fast enough.
It's a straight shot at the bottom of a hill where the wind lays it in for 150-250 feet or so, so the downhill helps with the "run at it".
My choices are
1)Take the chance and run it and make it or stick it and walk back to get the tractor to get it out or,
2) Get up stupid early, blow it out then proceed.
So far my luck has been holding. Just would be pizzed if I blew the bags and was dead in the water when I was forewarned. (With a broken nose too!) Gonna have to research the airbag sensor system. And soon. 30 MPH winds and 3-8 more inches forecasted.

Rockbadchild · Mar 7, 2023

One of my friend with a ford 250 gas hit a washout in a bush road, he was hauling his goose neck and it was loaded well, the truck shut down hit the brakes and called the cops by itself saying they occupant had a accident... airbags never went on... truck was fin other then bend rims... he had to explain the whole situation but luckily the cops understood and didn't respond.

stumblinhorse · Mar 7, 2023

fidowanttobe said:
Yup, it happens, but definitely not 99.9% of the time. Apparently not fast enough.
It's a straight shot at the bottom of a hill where the wind lays it in for 150-250 feet or so, so the downhill helps with the "run at it".
My choices are
1)Take the chance and run it and make it or stick it and walk back to get the tractor to get it out or,
2) Get up stupid early, blow it out then proceed.
So far my luck has been holding. Just would be pizzed if I blew the bags and was dead in the water when I was forewarned. (With a broken nose too!) Gonna have to research the airbag sensor system. And soon. 30 MPH winds and 3-8 more inches forecasted.

The option that works for me is go a couple of feet slowly then back up. Pack down a track pushing thru. Over the last 15 years seen at least 100 vehicles stuck in drifts around my places. Some for hours some for days. Luckily road tips towards the other side of the road so neighbors fence takes most of the “hold my beer” people. And the Neighbor’s house is a lot closer to the road. So he is constantly out there pulling people out.

Funny thing is it is a lot of the same people over and over again…

Dftodd · Mar 8, 2023

stumblinhorse said:
The option that works for me is go a couple of feet slowly then back up. Pack down a track pushing thru. Over the last 15 years seen at least 100 vehicles stuck in drifts around my places. Some for hours some for days. Luckily road tips towards the other side of the road so neighbors fence takes most of the “hold my beer” people. And the Neighbor’s house is a lot closer to the road. So he is constantly out there pulling people out.

Funny thing is it is a lot of the same people over and over again…

I witnessed similar 2 years ago when we had a big snow storm roll through. Some places ended up with 2ft. We had around 16" at our house.

That's a huge storm for central Arkansas where the average is 3" of slush and ice with an inch or so of snow on top.

First day of the storm, i took my wife to work in the truck. Going the route she normally took, most cars were getting belly hung when turning off onto secondary roads.

Not one of those people out traveling, thought to put a shovel in the trunk of their car.

I lost all faith in humanity the next day when I was coming home from taking my wife to work and the plow truck sanded and salted 8" of snow without once dropping his snow plow