Ford has announced that it is expanding the availability of its inflatable rear seat belts to the 2014 Fusion.
Ford has announced that it is expanding the availability of its inflatable rear seat belts to the 2014 Fusion. Ford originally introduced the new seat belts on the 2011 Explorer and the inflatable seat belts are now available on six Ford and Lincoln models: Ford Explorer, Fusion, Flex, Taurus and Lincoln MKT and Lincoln MKZ.
Rear inflatable safety belts combine the attributes of safety belts and airbags. The shoulder belt developed for the outboard rear seats contains an airbag. During a crash, sensors determine when the inflatable belt should deploy and signal the belt’s tubular airbag to rapidly inflate with compressed gas.
“The inflatable belt is designed to help reduce head, neck and chest injuries for rear-seat passengers, often children and older passengers who can be more vulnerable to such injuries,” said Srinivasan Sundararajan, safety technical leader with Ford’s research and advanced engineering group. “This is another unique family technology that builds on our safety leadership.”
Source: Ford
