I guess it’s a question of whether you want it to deploy.

In my ‘93 SD I rear ended another car. I was braking heavily so my bumper dipped under the other bumper. The grill took the hit. Driver airbag didn’t deploy. Seatbelt pyro tensioner kept me from the steering wheel. Passenger airbag deployed tearing the dash and shattering the windshield, by design. Passenger seat was unoccupied.

I could have repaired the grill and radiator damage but I walked away from the cabin damage.

A dud passenger airbag would have served me better, but only in retrospect.

FWIW the airbag was right at 15 years installed.

Sixto
98 E320s sedan and wagon
02 C320 wagon