FAILURE OF DRIVER'S SIDE FRONTAL AIRBAG TO DEPLOY ON A 2004 HYUNDAI SANTA FE. MY WIFE WAS DRIVING HER SANTA FE ON A TWO-LANE COUNTRY ROAD IN WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA. WEATHER AND ROAD CONDITIONS WERE NORMAL, WITH NO ICE, SNOW, OR OTHER SLIPPING HAZARDS ON THE ROAD. AS SHE ROUNDED A CURVE A CAR WAS STOPPED DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF HER AND BECAUSE HER VISION WAS OBSTRUCTED BY LANDSCALE ALONG THE ROAD SHE COULD NOT SEE THE OTHER VEHICLE (A 1988 JEEP TRUCK) BEFORE SHE STRUCK IT. DAMAGE TO THE JEEP WAS MINIMAL (BROKEN REAR WINDOW AND BENT BUMPER), BUT DAMAGE TO THE FRONT OF HER SANTA FE WAS EXTENSIVE, ESTIMATED ABOUT $9,500. I CALLED OUR LOCAL HYUNDAI DEALERSHIP IN MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA TO URGE THEM TO CONTACT THE MANUFACTURER ABOUT A POTENTIAL AIRBAG MALFUNCTION. I WAS TOLD BY THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT THE FAILURE OF THE AIRBAG TO DEPLOY WAS NOT UNUSUAL BECAUSE THE AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT SENSORS ARE LOCATED WELL BACK FROM THE FRONT OF THE CAR. GIVEN THE SEVERE DAMAGE TO THE CAR (THE FRONT IS EXTENSIVELY CRUSHED) AND THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE TROOPERS OBSERVATION THAT HE WAS SURPRISED THE AIRBAG DID NOT DEPLOY, HYUNDAI SHOULD ADDRESS THIS POTENTIAL PROBLEM. *TR