Air Bag light came on, can I fix it?

nine times out of ten it is the earth on the sensor try cleaning the conectors with a good switch cleaner and then take the battery off and then reconect the battery and this should solve the problem if not then it is the actual sensor at fault regards j.s autos

Thanks John. I fixated on where he said "no reason"

You guys crack me up.when it's something so trivial and unimportant,like and airbag light,oh just do blah blah .Do you realize that if you do something wrong or touch the wrong connector you run the risk of deploying the bags?Ever seen one go off?this is not something to be trivialized,not an area for a DIY go to a shop that specializes in VW and get it scanned,airbag systems set and store codes same as the engine ,trans,if it's an automatic or the abs system.I have it on very good authority that an eeriences VW mechanic was working on an airbag system reached in to turn the key on the bag deployed and broke his wrist,if you are comfortable messing around with this go for it.It has taken me a lot of years to get comfortable working on airbag systems,but I still respect them.

Thank you garageman...You have answered my question fully. gunny40

Gunny you are most welcome,I just do not want to see any body hurt,or causing a really expensive mistake.

"You guys" garageman?? There were only two of us responded so that means you are addressing me. I offered no advice about air bags and/or how to work with them. I know better. I know nothing about them. I just wanted to point out to gunny40 there was a reason, not "for no reason" Glad we could crack you up and have you around to keep us safe from those killer air bags

i am a mechanic in the uk and air bags are not trivial things to mess around with if you disconect the battery to start off with then the risk is minimised as no current is being passed into them the advice i gave is what we do in the workshop on a regular basis and not for a novice to mess arround with as the explosive force of an airbag can seriously hurt and may even kill a person if not treated with care

John I can tell in a heartbeat you know what you are talking about. It's obvious. It's just that I didn't make any suggestions about how to fix them and I do not think it's trivial. This garageman insulted both of us, he could have posted his response, which actually is good, I grant that, but without the sarcasm and direct insult, especially to you John

i agree david the advice i give on here is to assist those that need help and as i am uk bassed and without the car infront of me it is mostly guesswork but i have a 92% accuratacy and if im right then it saves people being ripped off by dealerships and rogue mechanics why pay dealership prices when you can do the job yourself safely by usuing common sense and following a few basic insructions those that want to have a go at those who try to help can find a hole and crawl into it as thats not helping people

The "you guys" was a generality of my frustrations in how a lot of the questions are worded in this site,and the handling of potentially dangerous systems,if I come across as being sarcastic that is not my intent,I do not want to see any body hurt ,Either by poor/ bad advise that is all.You can make light of airbag systems,fact is ,yes they are dangerous and can seriously hurt somebody,I will be the bad guy if that makes you happy.I make my living as a professional technician primarily on European cars,and have been doing so for thirty six years,I have been told by people working at the technical hotlines for VW to check airbag systems with an ohm meter,what??if you check an airbag system with an ohm meter the small voltage that the meter puts out is enough to set the bags off,this from a person giving advise to other professionals,so I take what I dispense seriously.All others that come onto these type of websites,and give advise need to heed what you are telling people the consequences can have a more serious note.

Understood garageman. And I could not agree more, many answers thrown out by people are wrong, and a wrong answer can be dangerous. That is why, when I see a question, for example, when somebody says "I smell gasoline very strong coming from under my hood" or one was "I have automatic transmission fluid leaking on to my catalytic convertor" my first response is warning them of the danger of a fire. Another was 'my brake petal suddenly went all the way to the floor and I had to pull the parking brake lever to stop, is it OK to drive to work with it like that?" All I said to them was 'no, it's not allright",, I do NOT trivialize airbags and have never, ever offered suggestions on how to work on them. For a very simple reason: I don't know anything about air bags. I answer questions when I know the answer. Or sometimes simply Google a spec for somebody. I fully understand your frustrations, and I also now know why you reacted like you did. I hope to see you around here, you have much to contribute........David

i agree garageman and i understand your frustration there are to many horay henries that think they know what they are doing and cause a headache for a&e services and mechanics alike if there is a diagnostic problem 9 times out of ten the advice given is only a guide line to help probable solutions if in doubt then go to an expert in that field to rectify it i only have 22 years in the trade and with the technical advances that are going on daily with modern vehicles we are no longer mechanics but fitters. i specialise in mgs and early rovers the ones with proper engineering and nut and bolt mechanics so i can appreciate your concerns and it doesnt make you a bad guy hope that you remain on this site and if you would like add me on skype my name is john.sturman2 im sure we as old school mechanics could have a lot of interests and im also very usefull as you work on european cars and i have a very good spares network here in the uk so the offer is there hope to chat to you soon

Thanks to all of you guys for the advice on airbags. I will not touch it. gunny40

Check the wire and connector going to the module under the front passengers seat. Back seat passengers with big feet kick the F%&* out of that connection. Apply common sense in your inspection.

It seems to me the sensor/wiring in the seat would not have the actual capability to deploy the airbag, but only tell the system if someone was in the seat. Deployment would depend on an additional condition being met: an impact signal from a different location in the vehicle/ Is this not correct? My daughter’s airbag light came on after she put something heavy in the passenger seat. Now it won’t go off. Will the bags deploy in an accident anyway, if the light is on? Could it just be a loose connection under the seat – fixable by wiggling - as Pontiacac said? But would the light stay on anyway, once being lit? Thanks, Dennis

this looks like a tv show in stead of help for stupids. haha

Chingon, Thank you for your insightful and helpful reply. With your response, I now know fully how to diagnose an air bag problem. You're a life saver!

I found this discussion helpfull with some simple ideas on what I can check myself before dumping a bunch of money at the dealership. As far as working safley on the air bag system my trusty Haynes Repair Manual explanes how to do that. No big deal. It's always helpful to get some tips from people that are familar with a particular problem and what may be some simple solutions. Thanks guys.

Opinions are like people, There all different. And most importantly they are opinions by personal experience. Everybody has a different experience. In no way should we take someone else's experience or opinion literally. We should take it as a suggestion. It is up to the person taking the suggestion on whether he wants to take it literally or not. there is a reason why it is a forum. Cause it is advice.

go to YouTube and search "turn off air bag light" it worked on my 2005 Hyundai -- saved me $1500.00 the dealer wanted.

I made the mistake of turning the key on when I had the front seat removed and this turned the airbag light on, even after reconnecting. the sensor in the seat determines if someone is sitting in it, and cannot set the airbag off by itself, quite the contrary. Once the airbag light goes on for any reason, it will not turn off, even if the condition that turned it on has been corrected, it must be cleared using an airbag reset tool, you can find them on Amazon they are cheap

He gave you advice not to take your heads of urrr