Toyota Develops the World's First Rear Window Airbag

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Toyota has developed the world’s first ever rear window airbag that will be featured on Toyota’s upcoming iQ minicar.

The rear airbag is stored in the headliner above the rear window and unfolds rapidly during a rear impact to protect the rear passenger. The bag is designed to protect the rear passenger’s head and neck during a rear impact. Judging by the amount of metal between the rear seat and the rear of the iQ this looks like a much needed safety feature. Hopefully other small cars will adopt a similar safety feature.

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PRESS RELEASE:

TOYOTA DEVELOPS WORLD’S FIRST REAR WINDOW CURTAIN SHIELD AIRBAG

Toyota announced today that it has developed the world’s first* SRS (Supplemental Restraint System) rear window curtain shield airbag to protect rear passengers’ heads in the event of a rear-end collision.

The innovative airbag deploys from the roof lining above the rear window in the form of a curtain-like barrier. Together with the headrests, the airbag minimises impact to the head from a colliding vehicle or parts of the hit vehicle, thus helping to reduce the severity of injuries. Its use in the soon-to-be launched “iQ” ultra-compact four-seater is expected to approximately double the car’s rear passenger head protection performance.

Toyota has continued to actively develop and make available its collision safety technologies – resulting in such achievements as the swift market introduction of SRS curtain shield and knee airbags – to enable its vehicles to better respond to a greater range of accidents.

As a part of its efforts to realise sustainable mobility, Toyota intends to strengthen its traffic safety initiatives in the future through: 1) the development of even safer vehicles and technologies; 2) participation in the creation of a safe traffic environment and 3) activities designed to educate people on traffic safety, thereby contributing to the complete elimination of traffic casualties, which can be viewed as the ultimate hope of a society that values mobility.

*According to TMC research, as of September 2008