Intermittent airbag light


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Old 01-10-04, 05:24 AM
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Intermittent airbag light

Good Morning all. My wife's car is a 1999 Chevy Venture. It has a 3.4 L engine.

THe problem we are having is that the airbag warning light keeps coming on. But, not everytime that you start the car. It just seems to be at random. But, once it does come on it stays on until you restart the car again, and then it may or may not come back on.

My question is, is this something that can be repaired by yours truly or do I have to take it to a dealer to have it looked at? And is this something that I should be concerned about or is it just a flaky sensor and the system is probably alright? Thank you for your advice.
 
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Old 01-10-04, 10:21 AM
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Definitely NOT a d-i-y job. An airbag can kill you if you don't know what you're doing. Get it checked professionally, and soon.
 
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Old 01-10-04, 06:22 PM
mike from nj
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exactly what tow guy said

when the light is on, the system can not operate.

does your wife want to be in an accident without functioning airbags?

it sounds like you have an intermittent problem, the airbag computer is constantly monitoring the system, when the problem goes away, it immediately shuts the light off.

without a scan tool, your chances of accurately fixing it are nil. sorry

(does the horn work when the light is on?)
 
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Old 01-11-04, 01:53 AM
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Yes, you guys have kind of echoed my feelings. In fact the manual I have says pretty much the same thing. Outside of a fuse related problem, its a dealer check.
I'm not sure on the horn. The next time I'm driving and the light comes on I'll give it a try and let you know.
Thanks for the input though.
 
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Old 01-11-04, 04:12 AM
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Every time the key is cycled on, the SRS module goes through a self test sequence. If it fails that test, the light goes on and the system is disabled for the duration of that key cycle.
 
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Old 01-11-04, 05:15 AM
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I agree better left to a pro on this,some tests use special tools to simulate the air bag being hooked up after it's diconnected.It is possible to deploy an air bag if you do something incorrectly.Trust me the price of an air bag far outweighs the price of a pro checking it for you.I checked for bulletins and campaigns for this problem and there are none listed.
 
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Old 01-11-04, 09:58 AM
mike from nj
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mr desi--- i can't speak specifically about GM's systems, so you may be right about this problem. however, on any dodge product, the second the system is repaired, the light will go off. a common problem is a bad clockspring on caravans. the light goes on and off as the person is driving, as the system is always monitored, and reset the instant it checks OK.

with a scan tool hooked up, car running, reading 'active' codes, i unplug the clockspring---get a code for "open clockspring", plug it back in, and the screen changes to 'no' codes. it moves to 'stored' codes and the light goes off.


just so you know
 
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Old 01-11-04, 12:33 PM
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Originally posted by mike from nj
mr desi--- i can't speak specifically about GM's systems, so you may be right about this problem. however, on any dodge product, the second the system is repaired, the light will go off.
GM, along with many other makes run a self test at key on. I'm sure your right about Chryslers but they were always oddballs.
 
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Old 01-11-04, 12:34 PM
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I forgot to mention it's not just air bags there are seat belt pretensioners involved.Be forewarned both of these devices are operated by explosive charges and need to be dealt with as such.They are great for the intended use during an accident but could inflict serious pain if discharged during service.
 
 

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