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airbag light

Yahoo Message Number: 10442
Hey all,
Our airbag light has been coming on intermittently and now is staying on. The local fix-it guy reset the sensor (as well as the ABS sensor) and it stayed off for a few starts. Now it's back on and the local fix-it guy says it could be corrosion in the sensor. Anyone else encounter this issue? Thanks and Happy New Year!

Re: airbag light

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 10443
The airbag system is pretty complex. There are many components that make up an airbag system. The airbag light being on tells you, the driver, that there is a fault in the system and the airbag system is disabled. In order to repair the problem, you would need to narrow it down to a specific circuit/sensor, and then follow a flow chart to determine the cause. The "fix-it guy" should have connected a hand held scan tool to the vehicle and retrieved a diagnostic trouble code to determine which "sensor" was causing the problem. Resetting the computer doesn't fix anything. It "might" turn of the light for a while till the vehicle's airbag computer performs a self-diagnostic check and determines a fault still exist; then turns the airbag light back on. Did this "fix-it guy" tell you about a diagnostic code that he retrieved from the vehicle's airbag computer? Without that, we could guess all day long.

Some vehicles have common problems, that when you see the symptoms or retrieve the code, there is a pretty good chance that a certain something will fix the problem.

The most common airbag failure I have seen with vehicles that have NOT been in a prior accident, is with the "airbag clockspring", only because the airbag clockspring is the only part in the airbag system that has a moveable part, which fatigues over time, causing an open in the system, which is a fault that turns on the airbag light. The airbag clockspring is not "sensor" though; it is the wiring circuit that connects the wiring harness from the airbag module to your driver's side airbag, which allows you to turn the steering wheel without binding up wires. (Google "airbag clockspring to see a picture.) BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN WORKING ON AIRBAG SYSTEMS. Accidently deploying an airbag could kill you! There are certain precautions that must be taken when working on airbag systems. I am not trying to scare you; but I would hate to find out that you died from a deployed airbag after reading my post.

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