Looks to me like the left rear tire actually caught on fire... I guess from all of the spinning if the car was revved a full throttle for a long time. Its a wonder it had not exploded. Glad all was OK.
This car held up extremely well... not many cars made in 1990 would have held up in a crash like this. We have an 88 300SEL and I dont even think the airbag would work either (the light dont even come on anymore), it says replacement date is 1998 and we have never had it replaced, so its passed that service date twice already as the car is over 20 years old. Its probably good though since its my moms cars now and she is 4'11", weighs 81 pounds and sets close to the steering wheel.
In 1990, passenger side airbag was optional on these cars.
I think another reason it MAY not have deployed was the fact is that it seems like the car took the hit more in the "A" pillar and door pillar area, rather than the front end of the car, which is even more impressive of how well the passenger cage held up considering it looks like the impact centered around the A pillar and door area and probably bypassed much of the "crumple zone" areas. Impressive indeed. Glad no one was hurt. I know this post is old, so I guess everyone has recovered by now hopefully.