The Airbag Light And You: A Guide To Restraint System Safety
Today’s cars are equipped with numerous safety innovations designed to save lives and provide protection for occupants. Seat belts impact sensors air bags and side air bags are all tied together through your car’s computer into a single system. There are literally hundreds of components in this system and they must all work together flawlessly in order to provide protection. However monkeying around with your car’s interior can set off your air bag light SRS light in some vehicles. Knowing what this can imply is the first step in dealing with it.
While you may not be bothered by that annoying light on your dashboard remaining lit forever the problem may be more than just an annoyance. That simple little light can signify numerous things. For instance most automakers have their system setup with seatbelt sensors. If one of these sensors fails the light in your dash will come on. Likewise if an impact sensor fails or is disconnected the light will come on. If your air bag control unit SRS unit for some cars fails or experiences an interrupted signal the light can come on. So with all these possible meanings what’s the first thing that you should do?
The first thing to do is think about what you were doing in the car before the light came on. At least 50 of air bag light occurrences are due to something the car’s owner did inside or outside the vehicle. For instance if you installed a new racing seat or had your seat out for any reason you would have had to disconnect the wiring harness under the seat as well as the sensor at the seatbelt. This is probably the number 1 cause of air bag light occurrence. Just check behind you and ensure that you connected all the harnesses correctly. In addition starting the car or even turning the ignition on when there are SRS components disconnected can trigger the light on your dash. Reconnecting at this point may or may not reset the light.
Many cars come with front and side impact sensors today. These sensors are mounted in the bumper and front trim pieces of your car. If you have installed or had someone else install a body kit that included front bumpers or trim one of these sensors may be disconnected. Some body kits do not include mounting locations for these sensors; leaving them out will keep that light on permanently.
Many times the only way to determine what’s set of the light is to take a trip to the dealer. Most aftermarket mechanics will not be able to tell you what’s wrong. That’s because automakers still make their restraint systems proprietary that means you need special tools and software to read the codes and find out what’s going on. If your vehicle is under warranty you may not be charged for the check and repair. However if damage resulted from something that you did or installed you can expect a hefty bill.
About the writer: Andy’s Auto Sport offers a full line of aftermarket automotive parts including body kits carbon fiber hoods and more. For more information visit Andy’s Auto Sport online.
Related posts: