• However, padding and side air bags cannot completely make up for what can happen to the head when the car is hit from the side.
• So the time has now come to introduce the second major new safety feature in the Volvo S80. It is also the third stage in the development of side impact protection.
• The Inflatable Curtain (1C), was presented together with WHIPS as an R&D project in 1997, the first technical system for this type of protection.
• The purpose of the two systems is to further reduce the injuries in a side impact by helping to protect the heads of the occupants. The curtains, one on each side, are woven in one piece and hidden inside the roof lining. They cover the upper part of the interior, from the A pillar to the rear side pillar, thereby protecting the occupants in the front and rear seats.
• The 1C is activated by the same sensors as the SIPS bags. They are "slave" sensors to a central sensor which determines where the impact is and which bag should be triggered in order to protect the occupants. The Inflatable Curtain is only activated on the side that is hit. If only the rear sensor is affected, the 1C is activated but not the SIPS bag.
• The ducts in the curtain are filled within 25 milliseconds by the same harmless gas as is used in the airbag and the curtain slowly starts to deflate after about three seconds in order to provide maximum protection in complicated collisions.
• The ducts do not cover the entire surface of the curtain. Instead, they are concentrated in the areas which are most likely to be hit by the occupants' heads.
• As a result, the need for gas is limited and the activation time is minimal.
• The ducts act as controlled restraints on the head and prevent it hitting the inside of the car. The curtain also prevents the head from colliding with exterior objects which can sometimes be involved in an accident, such as sign posts and similar objects.
• The size of the curtain also helps to keep the passengers inside the car instead of being partially thrown out of the side windows.
• It does not matter whether a side window is open or closed when it comes to the protective capacity of the 1C. When the curtain is activated, it hardly touches the side window but expands inwards, moving closer to the heads of the occupants.
• The folding rear head restraints may appear to be a feature which is only designed for comfort, but this is only partially true. The rear head restraints fold forwards at the touch of a button in order to improve rear visibility.
• However, if they are left folded forwards, it is impossible to travel in the rear seat without folding them back again. This ensures that they once again serve their original purpose as head restraints.
• A long wheelbase and wide track certainly provide plenty of room and a high level of ride comfort, but they also produce size. However, this need not necessarily be a drawback in terms of maneuverability. If the car is easy to park and can turn between most curbs, it has proved the point. The Volvo S80 does so, as previous chapters demonstrate.
• A well-tuned chassis and a rigid body on the right wheelbase, sprung and dampened in the optimum manner, create fine ride comfort, which is further enhanced by well-designed
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