vans, passenger airbag question
- Thread starter LDB
- Start date
Not for sure but believe you are driving a chevy. On my ford I just unplugged the two wire connection under the seat and removed. I have not found a way to get the airbag light to go out on the dash. I am going to try to put a jumper across the two wires and see if it works. I have had my seat out all summer and no problem except the dash light. Many of those vans are shipped with drivers seat only so I don't feel that you will have any problems. Good luck. You will appreciate the added storage space.
chefdennis
Veteran Expediter
05 GMC.. i simply did as you asked Leo..pulled the seat and turned the key switch off...but then i also disconnected the drivers side air bage also...
shame on you....rebel...
I'm calling the airbag police
I think all the air-------bags are in the soapbox...*LOL*
Leo,
Turning the passenger side disable switch off actually tells the Airbag Control Module (ACM) not to deploy the passenger airbag. The module still monitors the electrical current to the bag. On every system I've worked on, disconnecting the airbag connector under the seat will turn the airbag light on at the instrument cluster as it did on Skip432's. The light indicates that the entire airbag system is disabled. No airbag will deploy when that light is on.
If you remove the seat and disconnect the wiring connector, you will have extra storage space but no airbags. If you do disconnect the wiring connector, DO NOT put a jumper across the connector. It could deploy the bags, so I hope Skip432 reads this before he does it.
Sprinters are the only vehicle I am aware of that you can remove the passenger seat without causing an air bag problem. Their system is designed to deploy both bags regardless, so there is no wiring connector under the passenger seat.
Dakota
Veteran Expediter
greg334
Veteran Expediter
Leo,
Talk to a good dealer who will dig around for you, and will take the time to research it for you. They make a "delete passenger seat" kit for cutaways and export vehicles. This kit should include two pieces, one to remove the seat and one for the airbag which is disconnected and can be removed.
It is not easy to find or get, you will have to have the dealer special order it for you.
You may also check a Canadian dealer by the way.
As Wolfeman68, DO NOT PUT A JUMPER THERE.
AND for the Ford part, I have to make a trip to the glass house next week for those part numbers, I am dealing with in-law nightmares.
Talk to a good dealer who will dig around for you, and will take the time to research it for you. They make a "delete passenger seat" kit for cutaways and export vehicles. This kit should include two pieces, one to remove the seat and one for the airbag which is disconnected and can be removed.
It is not easy to find or get, you will have to have the dealer special order it for you.
You may also check a Canadian dealer by the way.
As Wolfeman68, DO NOT PUT A JUMPER THERE.
AND for the Ford part, I have to make a trip to the glass house next week for those part numbers, I am dealing with in-law nightmares.
Greg334 is right about a disable kit, but a US dealer won't sell it to you. They will probably deny it even exists. The dealer I worked for didn't have the part number listed at all.
It has to do with Federal Law and NHTSA. Your vehicle has the cut off switch because it has no rear seat. If you disable the air bag without a permission letter from NHTSA in the vehicle and there is an accident where air bags deploy, you can be fined as the owner, and that's not counting any insurance problems that may pop up.
I disabled the entire air bag system on a couple of Cadillac XLR's that were being shipped overseas. The customer had to sign a waiver, and a permission letter from NHTSA had to be secured before GM would even ship the parts. The VIN numbers were tagged to prevent the cars from coming back into the US and re-sold before the air bag system was restored.
My advice is to leave the seat where it is.
It has to do with Federal Law and NHTSA. Your vehicle has the cut off switch because it has no rear seat. If you disable the air bag without a permission letter from NHTSA in the vehicle and there is an accident where air bags deploy, you can be fined as the owner, and that's not counting any insurance problems that may pop up.
I disabled the entire air bag system on a couple of Cadillac XLR's that were being shipped overseas. The customer had to sign a waiver, and a permission letter from NHTSA had to be secured before GM would even ship the parts. The VIN numbers were tagged to prevent the cars from coming back into the US and re-sold before the air bag system was restored.
My advice is to leave the seat where it is.
skip432 said
if the light on the dash is causing all this discussion, just pull the bulb out or just black tape over it. I wouldn't spend any money just because of an idiot light on...
if the light on the dash is causing all this discussion, just pull the bulb out or just black tape over it. I wouldn't spend any money just because of an idiot light on...
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Some of you older drivers out here will remember the first cars that were built using the black boxes (computers) to control the basic functions of the engine. Electronic ignition etc. I'd say 70% or more of the cars and trucks at that time had a yellow light that stayed on on the dash and displayed something like Check Engine. Some of them were bright at night time and yes I have used the black tape to cover it up. As long as the engine ran good we paid no attention to these lights.
Getting old........that was 35-40 years ago.
Thanks for the up an up on jumping out the air bag. Whew! My wife would of really ragged me about that. She never remembers the good things I do. Mind of an elephant when it comes to the mistakes that I make though.
Getting old........that was 35-40 years ago.
Thanks for the up an up on jumping out the air bag. Whew! My wife would of really ragged me about that. She never remembers the good things I do. Mind of an elephant when it comes to the mistakes that I make though.
Skip432 said
haha...welcome to the "husband club" Where our motto is...."Do it right the first time or you will hear about it forever"
haha...welcome to the "husband club" Where our motto is...."Do it right the first time or you will hear about it forever"
I could've sworn it was more like, "do it right the first time and somehow it'll still not be good enough."
If I were to fool with an Air Bag I would wear a good Football helment & face guard.
Dakota
Veteran Expediter
Well I am old enough to remember my 1980 Chevy MonteCarlo Landau(had a beautiful two tone paint job white and gray and a vinyl top
)That light was so annoying and yes I did put tape over it.
I have a 2008 Ford e150. Passenger seat is removed. Light always on. Contacted service at dealer at home. Told me should only disable passenger airbag. Driver side should still operate.
He told me the bags work independent from each other. The light is just indicating something isn't right within the system. No way to defeat the light except to remove the sensor from the removed seat and plug it back in, fooling the system into thinking that seat is there, and in the event of a crash, that bag would deploy.
Don't know if he was right or wrong. Have just ignored the light, and don't have an accident. (That's easy, right?)
He told me the bags work independent from each other. The light is just indicating something isn't right within the system. No way to defeat the light except to remove the sensor from the removed seat and plug it back in, fooling the system into thinking that seat is there, and in the event of a crash, that bag would deploy.
Don't know if he was right or wrong. Have just ignored the light, and don't have an accident. (That's easy, right?)
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Your plan of not having an accident is a good one. As far as the dealer's statement, he's wrong. The drivers bag won't deploy. The Airbag Control Module doesn't know what is wrong, just that the system has a problem and it disables everything. The module sends out an electronic pulse, usually about .5 volt. The pulse returns to the module in the form of Ohm resistance. If the resistance is within specs for the system, everything stays active and the dash light stays off. Since the pass sensor is unplugged, the resistance pulse returning to the module is out of spec.
Don't plug the pass sensor back in unless you put the seat back in. Some sensors are grounded at the seat, so you could ruin your day by just plugging it in.
One final thing. If you remove the bulb from the airbag light on the instrument cluster, another light will come on, usually the check engine light. If the Body Controller doesn't read output voltage at the airbag light socket, it turns the other light on. This was mandated by the government to force you into a shop to find out what is wrong.