Hello All,

I just got my V-Checker from ECS today. Hooked it up, works great, cleared codes, etc. Was hoping that it was going to show me the code for my AirBag light and why it is on.

Reason it came on.... Replaced the cruise control / turn signal switch and forgot to unhook the battery before I disconnected the AirBag. Finished the job, turned the ignition on and the AirBag light was on....Damn!!!

Solutions that I've tried and to no success at getting the light to turn off.
1- Double checked connector on the steering wheel
2- Zip tied the connectors under the drivers seat
3- Unhooked battery for hours at a time, even over night once
4- Pulled and checked every single fuse in the car
5- Pulled the ECU for reset
6- V-Checker- Reset all codes

Having done all that, the light is still on and bugging the crap out of me.

Anybody got suggestions of something to try?

 

Does the "v-checker" scan for airbag codes, if so you should post he code. If not it probably doesnt have the capability to reset the light either (and btw disconnecting the module or battery wont reset the light no matter how long you have it disconnected as far as I know).

 

Most code readers/clearers like that only work for basic OBD-II functions. The airbag module doesn't interface with OBD-II to my knowledge (at least on a higher level).

Like Dallas09 said, you need the appropriate tool (like VAG-COM) to properly diagnose/reset the airbag light. Airbag codes don't auto-clear.

 

I have the same problem. I don't want to resetit. I want to turn it off forever!! and please no safety talk. I'm an old man and would rather eat the windshield than be injured for any amount of time.

 

^^Thats contradictory. But, to each their own, if you prefer the feel of steering wheel, dash or glass instead of a bag of air on your head that's cool. Just pull out the cluster and desolder the led for the airbag light.

 

[QUOTE=Dallas09;1338607]^^Thats contradictory.

You are right of course. It's just that I have already spent a bunch of money at my local Audi dealershipm and they wanted more. I took them to the CA Auto Repair Bureau and they had to refund me 2K dollars. I don't think I want to go back there. It's a clockspring or something. My Vag-com says the ignitor is out. Also, they don't want to work on it cause it's got a Super charger.

Anyway, thanks. Is it difficult to pull the instrument cluster?

 

http://www.audiworld.com/tech/elec106.shtml shows how to removal the cluster.. Thats the easy part, though. Almost all of the bulbs in the cluster are actually leds so you cant just pull the bulb, you have to remove or destroy the led that backlights the airbag light.

 

JFYI I have been strolling the net looking for others with my problem. On one other site a "fixxer" said to pull the front drivers seat and hard wire the wires from the yello connector. Then a bunch of guys opined that this worked for them. One of them, who had been to a dealer, said "They tried to sell me a clock sptring," just like the local Audi told me. So it may be the wiring . I'm gonna try that first.

 

You can hardwire the connections under the seat, but that wont turn the light off, even if that was the problem. The system has to be cleared with a scan tool after the problem has been fixed, otherwise the light will stay on (it will NEVER reset itself).

So, since you need a scanner to turn off the light, you might as well use it to scan and see what the actual code is before you try to fix anything. The most common problem IS the wiring underneath the seats for cars with seat airbags, but airbag ECU failure on newer models is also very common, and clockspring failures arent unheard of. There's also about 30+ other less likely reasons the light is on (pretty much count each airbag and seatbelt tensioner in your car and multiply by 4 each component can have a code of: resistance too high, too low, short to b+, short to ground).

 

Yeah, sorry I didn't clarify. The fault code is 00588. Airbag igniter; driver side
32-00 resistance too high

I have the Vag Com setup and I can clear the code. At this time it just keeps coming back on. Just can't get into the clock spring BS the dealer kept telling me after I had already replaced the airbag. Just a rip off. I'mm gonna try the hardwire deal. I'll let you know.