Abstract: An air bag cover door for a steering wheel mounted air bag module includes an inner cover, an outer cover, a horn actuator attached to the inside surface of the outer cover, and one or more protrusions extending between the inner and outer covers about the horn actuator. The protrusions prevent the inner cover from compressing the horn actuator under the pressure exerted by the stored material of the air bag. The outer cover, including its inside surface, is deformable upon hand pressure being exerted thereon and the horn actuator is responsive to such deformation to activate the vehicle horn. The horn actuator can be a transducer, such as a variable resistor, adhered to the inside surface. The inner cover is permanently secured to the base of the air bag module by, for example, rivets, while the outer cover section is removably secured to the base by, for example, screws.

Abstract: A releasable latch (50) is provided for a door assembly (14) having an outer skin member, a foam backing member, and an inner door member. The door assembly conceals an airbag restraint system having a housing, an airbag and a gas generator producing an inflatant for inflating the airbag for deploying the airbag through the door assembly. The releasable latch has a closed U-shaped end that is press fit in an open U-shaped end on a retainer member on the housing to hold the door assembly in a mating relationship to interior trim parts. The inner door member is engaged during initial inflation of the airbag to displace the door assembly so as to bend the inner door member at a hinge joint between the outer cover member and the interior trim part and the press fit between the closed U-shaped end and the open U-shaped end provides easy opening of the door assembly as the airbag is inflated.