can I disconnect the flashing airbag light?

falling-out-with-my-car · Post by **falling-out-with-my-car** » 27 Jul 2009, 16:49

it all sounds great fellas but I dont have to worry about firing the seats or belt tentioners because they are disconnected, maybe I could disconnect the steering wheel and passenger dash airbags first or would the circuit need to be complete to fool the computer?

I am keeping my Xantia til she runs into the ground like my BX did, so its not going affect anyone else's saftey. unless you coun t my passengers but they seem tom understand once told the reason why.

when you have been in a pretty serious RTA in a 1979 Morris Mariner estate car with a 120 mph impact with a vauxhall Vectra and walked away after being cut out of the car, and your mate in a ford escort dies because he had a steering wheel airbag but his drivers door window was open, he bumped into a concrete parking pillar the airbag fired pushing his head out of the gap in the window and broke his neck.

Illnes /medical condition or no it does make you wonder what the heck air bags are for when these things happen.

I have acheived basically what I wanted to do and disconnected the pull down lap belts which would make my condition much worse if the lap belts fired, putting the light out would have been nice if it was easier.

Many Vauxhalls have the option to turn off the passenger airbag with an ignition key to put a child seat in the front of the car, why the hell dont they manufacture into the car designs like this so people can make their own chioces? ( not that I agree with putting a baby on the front seat).

regards Nigel.

Post by **myglaren** » 27 Jul 2009, 17:32

falling-out-with-my-car wrote:Many Vauxhalls have the option to turn off the passenger airbag with an ignition key to put a child seat in the front of the car, why the hell dont they manufacture into the car designs like this so people can make their own chioces? ( not that I agree with putting a baby on the front seat).

You will find that most recent cars have that option - my C5 has, as do many others.

Krede · Post by **Krede** » 27 Jul 2009, 19:06

when you have been in a pretty serious RTA in a 1979 Morris Mariner estate car with a 120 mph impact with a vauxhall Vectra and walked away after being cut out of the car, and your mate in a ford escort dies because he had a steering wheel airbag but his drivers door window was open, he bumped into a concrete parking pillar the airbag fired pushing his head out of the gap in the window and broke his neck.

Very sorry to hear about your mate.

I guess it all comes down to luck...

My Old Honda CRX was written off by a 306 estate who caught it (and me) clean in the "A" pillar at very high speed just as I was turning left.
I smashed the side window with my head, but was able to walk away.. though be it pretty shaken up.

It could very well have been different... had I turned just a fraction of a second later he would have missed the A pillar, and instead hit the poor Honda right in the side.. JUST where I was sitting!... and from what I have seen of car accidents that's pretty much "Game Over".

, or at best, some serious head/neck injuries and most likely some form of disability.
I am also painfully aware that, had I been in another car, like say, a Xantia , I would have hit my head on the "B" rather than smashing it through the side window... and again.. though my skull sometimes seem rather "thick"

.. I'm not sure it would have stood up to that kind of treatment.

.. I have heard the same stories about seatbelts, that you mention about air bags.... that some poor bloke would have survived a crash had he NOT been wearing his seatbelt because some odd circumstances at that particular crash.
But, the fact of the matter is, that seatbelts, air bags etc, have proven to reduce injuries time and time again, and the odd incidence where they actually hurt people, are luckily few and far between.

Xaccers · Post by **Xaccers** » 27 Jul 2009, 19:28

Krede wrote: But, the fact of the matter is, that seatbelts, air bags etc, have proven to reduce injuries time and time again, and the odd incidence where they actually hurt people, are luckily few and far between.

Indeed, one of the reasons for the shortage of donor organs is the number of people surviving car accidents due to the improved safety features of their cars.
The only two deaths that I know of in the UK due to airbags have been where the driver (in both cases women) have been sitting dangerously close to their steering wheels.
Had they not been driving cars with airbags they'd have been seriously injured if not still killed by impacting the steering wheels anyway.

Krede · Post by **Krede** » 27 Jul 2009, 19:51

Indeed, one of the reasons for the shortage of donor organs is the number of people surviving car accidents due to the improved safety features of their cars.

Guess we will have to rely on the bikers then... plenty of those around.. and they drop like flies in this weather...

Post by **CitroJim** » 27 Jul 2009, 21:21

A bit OT for this thread but I almost certainly would not be here typing this had I been wearing a seatbelt in a Hillman Avenger in 1976. I was a front passenger and went through the screen (the old "triplex" type that shattered into many small fragments so no laminated layer to stop you) when the car careered out of control and hit a telegraph pole hard. Where I had formerly been sitting was crushed right to the seat. I escaped with cuts and grazes..

That said, it was a lucky fluke and I'm convinced that seatbelts are a lifesaver in the vast majority of cases. I'm sure if the Avenger had a modern laminated screen the outcome would have been very different as it would have held me in the car.

In the crash, there were five of us in the car. The worst injuries were a broken collarbone (driver) and whiplash suffered by one of the rear seat passengers. It was a miracle we all got off as lightly as we did, especially when we saw the wreckage...

wheeler · Post by **wheeler** » 27 Jul 2009, 22:06

You should never try to check the resistance of the pyrotechnic components, an ohmeter sends out a small current to check resistance which can be enough to detonate the charge. The safest way to get rid of the flashing light is to take out the bulb or disconnect the airbag ECU.

falling-out-with-my-car · Post by **falling-out-with-my-car** » 28 Jul 2009, 03:10

ahh but would disconnecting the airbag ECU disable the engine by cutting power to the starter or in the case of a diesel the fuel cut off solenoid, thus fooling the cars computer into thinking there has been an accident.

maybe it wont start again after disconnecting the ECU?

jim it sounds very much like your inertia saved your life then? and back in the days when seatbelts alone saved your life the collarbone injuries were quite common.

I was stopped in a dark country lane warnning lights on with a white horse in front of me there was a black horse on the other side of the road and a vectra came round a very long blind bend at 120mph and swerved to miss the black horse and hit me head on. my O/s front wheel was never seen again and both horses managed to avoid getting hit.

perhaps it's time for a sly stallone type futuristic car that fills with liquid polystyrene foam seconds before impact. just dont go near it with a test meter..lol

regards nigel.

addo · Post by **addo** » 28 Jul 2009, 09:37

I recently started an Alfa with no airbag module. Soon as we put it in gear and tried to move, it shut down - never to restart. Mate's theory was, the lack of a dash meant one or more of the feedback loops for vehicle speed was open - he didn't seem to think the airbag module's absence was our culprit.

falling-out-with-my-car · Post by **falling-out-with-my-car** » 28 Jul 2009, 11:27

there could be a saftey feature to stop a recently knocked out driver from trying to restart the vechicle and driving off again only to pass out at the wheel causing an even bigger pile up.

when you think about it, it does make sense to do this doesn't it.

regards nigel.

wheeler · Post by **wheeler** » 29 Jul 2009, 22:48

falling-out-with-my-car wrote:ahh but would disconnecting the airbag ECU disable the engine by cutting power to the starter or in the case of a diesel the fuel cut off solenoid, thus fooling the cars computer into thinking there has been an accident.

maybe it wont start again after disconnecting the ECU?

Not on a xantia it wont, The airbag ECU has no connection whatsoever to the injection ECU etc to cut of the fuel in an accident. Thats all done by the inertia switch. You will have no problems if you disconnect the airbag ECU.

falling-out-with-my-car · Post by **falling-out-with-my-car** » 30 Jul 2009, 13:38

so lets check this again unplugging the airbag ECU will put out the light and do no damage to the car whatsoever is that what is being said?

if so the next question is where is the Airbag ECU plug please? on a Mk2 xantia estate S reg 1.9 Turbo diesel.

Regards Nigel.

Krede · Post by **Krede** » 30 Jul 2009, 13:41

Beneath the small tray at the front of the centre console. just below the switches for the seat heating.

wheeler · Post by **wheeler** » 30 Jul 2009, 17:17

falling-out-with-my-car wrote:so lets check this again unplugging the airbag ECU will put out the light and do no damage to the car whatsoever is that what is being said?

if so the next question is where is the Airbag ECU plug please? on a Mk2 xantia estate S reg 1.9 Turbo diesel.

Regards Nigel.

Absolutely correct, no damage can occur, the airbag ECU earths the bulb in the dash to make it illuinate so will stop the light flashing & the front airbags & seatbelt pre tensioners will be disabled because they are not connected to anything. if you ever want the airbags back in the future just plug it back in. Do you have side airbags in the seats ? these have seperate ECU's.
Airbag ECU is under centre console, just make sure the ignition is off & the battery is disconnected for at least 2 minutes before unplugging it as a precaution.

falling-out-with-my-car · Post by **falling-out-with-my-car** » 30 Jul 2009, 20:50

wheeler,

thanks for that, Ive been trying to find this out for ages, brilliant.

No I dont have any airbags in the sides of the seats.

do you have any clues as to the size and location of the airbag ECU under the centre consul please and then I'll definately give it a go.

I do hope its the same for the Mk1 VSX because My dad wants to turn his off to.

Nice to know we as human beings can take back control when we want to and make these decissions for ourselves .

best wishes Nigel.