Airbag Warning Car Dashboard Light
Airbags are only triggered when the ignition switch is switched to the ON or Start positions, and they are designed to protect the passengers of a vehicle from severe bodily harm in the event of an accident. As soon as the ignition switch is switched to the “ON” position, the Airbag Warning light will glow for a brief period of time before turning off. If the Airbag Warning light does not illuminate when the ignition switch is turned to the ON position, does not illuminate after the initial 6 seconds, blinks, or comes on and stays on while driving, there may be a problem with the airbag and/or SRS systems (Supplemental Restraint System). To get the system examined as soon as possible, contact your closest dealer as soon as possible .
The Most Common Reason for Airbag Lights Turning On
1) The airbag has been deactivated.
The most frequent reason for the airbag light to illuminate is because the airbag system has been disabled or turned off. There may be a few causes for this that you have no influence over.
There may be a problem with the crash sensors or another airbag component. Alternatively, the sensor in the passenger seat that decides whether the airbag is activated or not may be defective.
2) Seat Belts
As previously stated, failure to use your seat belt may cause the airbag light to illuminate. However, other seat belt problems may also cause this light to illuminate.
Perhaps your seat belt does not clasp firmly into the buckle and remain in place. Perhaps there is an issue with the sensors in the buckle, and they are not properly informing the computer that you have tightened your seat belt.
3) A Minor Accident
It is possible to be involved in a minor vehicle collision (sometimes known as a fender bender) that does not cause your airbags to deploy but still causes the crash sensors to activate. This means your airbag light will remain on until you visit an auto repair shop and have it reset by a specialist.
A minor accident may occur if you collide with anything with the front of your car while traveling at less than 8 mph. Crash sensors are sensitive to any kind of collision, no matter how large or little.
4) Water Damage
If the interior components of your car suffer water damage for any cause, rust may develop on the crash sensors of your airbag system. Corrosion will impair their capacity to operate correctly and may cause the airbag light to illuminate.
5) The airbag system has not been reset.
When an accident occurs that causes the airbags to deploy, just replacing the airbag is insufficient. Crash sensors, seat belt pretensioners, and other SRS components must also be changed. In addition, the airbag monitoring unit (the brains of the airbag system) must be reset.
You will need to have a trained technician or dealership reprogram the computer so that the airbag system may be utilized again. Alternatively, some businesses will enable you to send the airbag monitoring device to them, they will reset it for a charge, and then ship it back to you ready to install.
6) Airbag Battery Backup is drained
The battery backup of your airbag is one of the most frequent causes for your airbag light. The recent drainage of the vehicle battery may cause this.
This issue may often be dealt with when the battery is completely charged, but you may require a scan tool to remove a soft-code fault from the airbag control module.
7) A clock spring needs to be replaced
The airbag clock spring’s primary purpose is to maintain consistency between the driver’s seat airbag and the electrical wiring by entwining in and out in relation to the steering wheel.
The thin circuit bands may get worn or brittle, causing the driver’s seat airbag to send a Soft-code error to the airbag control module, causing the airbag light to flash. The regular usage of the circuit bands is what causes them to wear down.
Without the use of a good OBD2 scan tool to assist identify the problem, you won’t be able to figure out what’s wrong with the clock spring. Even if you’re certain you have a broken clock spring, we suggest having it replaced by a professional.
If you try to replace components of an airbag system on your own without taking the proper safeguards, you risk serious harm.
Thank you -Erwin