LPM911

Took my car to the dealer this morning to get this airbag light thing looked at and this is what the description on my service ticket says:

“Checked car, pulled code of ignition circuit pill resistance excessive. Need to perform diagnostic procedure on air bag unit itself and clock spring to determine which is defective.”

They also told me that it was only for the driver’s side airbag. Then they gave me an idea of what the price would be to replace the air bag and the price for the clock spring. After I heard that I started thinking, what about getting a new 3 spoke steering wheel? I think that might only solve the problem if this is an airbag issue, meaning the clock spring would still need to be replaced. I was wondering if anyone has experienced this and if so, what you elected to do? I was also thinking of trying to do some of this myself (the dealership is far away and pricey) but I’m a little worried about accidentally setting off the airbag.

Thanks,
LPM911

Marc Shaw

If you disconnect the battery for at least 20 minutes (over night for safety), you can remove the airbag without setting it off.

I was always told, unless you know exactly what you are doing, under no circumstances should anyone try to service an airbag - blindness/disability/death have been know to occur.

Marc

Indycam

Hiya LPM911
If you get in a crash and your bag is disabled , known to be non working , or missing , your insurance people can make a stink .
The 89 964 steering wheel is very nice , I think . Looks real good , matchs the car , no air bag .

JasonAndreas

If your ignition pill circuit 1 has too much/little resistance you don't need to worry about setting off the airbag because you will have to remove it to diagnose the problem further. The problem you will have is the need for a Bosch hammer AND special tool 9516 AND 9516/1 (basically a box with a resistor in it) that you plug inplace of the airbag unit. To figure out what the exact problem is you plug 9516 in, erase the airbag control unit fault codes and then check if the faults are still there. If the faults are no longer present than the airbag is the problem and if the faults are still there you plug in 9516/1, erase the fault codes and check again. If the faults are gone than the contact unit is the problem and if the faults are still there than the problem is with the wiring harness. If you can't find any problems with the wiring harness than there is an problem with the control unit $$$.

I've never heard of a clock spring but an issue (and repair procedure) for the clock airbag problem is documented HERE but you will still need a Bosch Hammer to turn off the warning light.

LPM911

That makes it sound like I'm not going to be able to diagnose if it is the clock spring or airbag unit myself. From what the dealer told me, the clock spring is the floating wire to allow the computer to communicate with the airbag. If it was a fixed wire, it would be broken when you turned the wheel. The clock spring allows the connection even when the wheel is turned. I've seen that post on the clock seatbelt/airbag warning light. But I don't think that is the issue for me, only my airbag light remains active.