In a modern day motor car, there are not just active safety features that work to keep the occupants inside the cabin safe. Active safety features include things like Dynamic Stability Control, ABS braking and Traction Control. Active safety features are always working when the motor vehicle is on the move.

However, these days there are plenty of passive safety features, in the form of supplementary restraint s, inside a motor vehicle that are at the ready to act in the event of a serious accident. Supplementary restraints include things like airbags and belt pre-tensioners which are passive safety features provided over and above the conventional seat belts.

Initially car designers viewed the airbag as a seat belt replacement. It did not take long for that view to dissipate and for an agreement that the airbag would be best used as a supplementary restraint alongside the conventional seatbelt. Automobile airbags are now designed and sold as Supplemental Restraint Systems (SRS) airbags.

Features like anti-whiplash head rests, pre-tensioning seatbelts and airbags upplement the safety belt by reducing the chance that the occupant’s head and upper body will strike some part of the vehicle’s interior. They also help reduce the risk of serious injury by distributing crash forces more evenly across the occupant’s body. Many lives and dollars have been saved by a supplementary restraint, and they should be a must in any new car.We hope that helps answer the question ‘What is What is a Supplementary Restraint?’!

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