collapsible steering columns and airbags

[restoman]

Do all modern cars with steering wheel airbags still have collapsible steering columns ?

[tristancliffe]

Yes.

No point having an airbag save your face, only to have the column skewer you in the chest or head milliseconds later.

[anonymous-user]

The "collapsable" part of the steering column is NOT designed to prevent occupant injuries by deforming when the steering wheel is hit by the occupant. It is the lower section of the steering column torque tube that collapses in a frontal impact, to allow the front subframe, and the steering rack that's attached to it, to move backwards and downwards as the chassis rails crumple. This prevents the whole column moving backwards and hitting the occupant. hence, in a car with air bags, the column is as normal, attached stiffly at a point close to the handwheel, and in such a manner as to "uncouple" and collapse at the lower end.

In actual fact, the driving force for steering column mounting stiffness has not been the adoption of airbags, but the general requirement for suppresion of structure born vibrations in order to enhance NVH and handling. (i.e. steering and upper dash mountings have got a lot stiffer anyway)