I feel like airbag-era cars are time bombs, so I have to reluctantly pass on a lot of cars I otherwise would enjoy.

You can argue the risk comparison between an old airbag and no airbag, but the thing that sways me is, beyond a certain point, the manufacturer just doesn't care if it works or not. When 95% of the cars have been scrapped, nobody cares if it doesn't work right anymore.

I also consider that on an old car without an airbag, I still have a seatbelt that I will wear, and on an old car with an airbag, I still don't have modern crumple zones and reinforcements.

So I'm sticking with either relatively new vehicles or pre-airbag ones.