Help.

I just spent the last two days, putting in my new system. Got it all done and my air bag light is now staying on when I start the car.

Kenwood X859 head unit.
Polk Momo 6.5" Seperates in the doors.
(2) 8" Rockford Fosgate HE Subwoofers in the 6x9 speaker locations
Kenwood 650D 5 channel amp in the boot on a custom board above the battery.
( I will post some pics in the future)

During the install, I removed the Head Unit, the front passenger seat, the rear seats, the rear side panels, the battery cover and the battery.

The only factory wires I cut were the four pairs leading from the stock HK amp to the front doors. I spliced into them at the rear stock amp location and wired them to the new amp. (I could not figure out how to run new wires to the doors...) Other then that, I left all the stock wiring, and ran new RCA's, and speaker wire to the subs around the existing. I used a wiring harness adapter for the head unit and did NOT cut any wires in the dash.

I have the checked the wiring connections for the front passenger seat several times. I have a good connection. Other then that, I have thoroughly checked all the rear wiring in case I disconnected, ripped or pulled a sensor out of place. I did not. All wiring is as it should be.

I have unhooked the battery to reset the computer twice. No luck. The center Air bag light, comes on when I insert the key, goes out for maybe half a second when I start the car and then comes back on.

Any ideas what this could be? Maybe I need an airbag reset at the dealer? If so, why?

Thanks in advance.

:???:

 

It's not malfunctioning - you caused it by disconnecting one of the front seats and then turning the ignition key.

You have to bring it to a dealer to have them reset it.

 

^ What he said. If you unplug the underseat connectors (while the battery is connected, I believe) the airbag system goes into fault mode and simply reconnecting the connectors does nothing to reset things. Gee thee to a dealer (after Christmas).

BTW, your entire airbag system is DISABLED until the system is reset. So, drive carefully!

 

That is, to put it simply, lame!

But, I have an appointment setup for Tuesday morning.

Thanks for the responses.

I never had this issue with my GTI, so it never occurred to me. Very much a pain to have to put the seat back in to test an install.

I usually get all the audio hardware and wiring installed, then test it to make sure it actually works, then put carpet, panels, seats, etc.. back in.

But I will certainly keep this in mind in the future.

Does anybody know what the dealer will charge for this service?

Thanks,

 

Sorry, don't know how much the dealer will charge you.

This advice is too late for you, but for anyone else reading this, here's a tip. Whatever you're hooking up for an audio upgrade (HU, amp, etc) temporarily use battery power instead of accessory power while testing and adjusting. This way you won't have to turn the ignition key. Even if your upgrade doesn't include replacing the head unit, it will still work without the key in the ignition for a good amount of time (15 min?).

After you're satisfied with the adjustments, then use accessory power where appropriate.

 

>>
>>This advice is too late for you, but for anyone else reading this, here's a tip. Whatever you're hooking up for an audio upgrade (HU, amp, etc) temporarily use battery power instead of accessory power while testing and adjusting. This way you won't have to turn the ignition key. Even if your upgrade doesn't include replacing the head unit, it will still work without the key in the ignition for a good amount of time (15 min?).
>>
>>After you're satisfied with the adjustments, then use accessory power where appropriate.

Good advice, Scooter! I'll keep that in mind when I upgrade my audio system. :smile:

 

This is one issue I hate with all BMW built cars. When I worked as an installer, I would forget about this all the time and we'd have to send the car to service to be reset.

 

You could also use a temporary 4 ohm resistor loop in the plug.

 

The exact thing happened to me. I removed both the seats to install the amps in the cavities under there. When it was all finished, the airbag light was on...all the time. It happens when you disconnect the seats.

The dealer is going to charge you about $115 just to reset the light.
You can buy your own reset tool on the ebay or even MiniMania for $80-$100.
The bonus of that is that you get to keep it and use it again if you ever decide to remove the seat again.

Or, all you need to do (after you reset it) is disconnect the battery before you remove the seats. That is what I do now. Anytime I am modifying my stereo, I disconnect the battery. Then I do what I need to do, put the seats back in or whatever, then reconnect yhe battery....no airbag light.

Good Luck.

Post some pictures. I will post more pictures of mine next week after I get my new head unit. I will never stop adding to my system it seems.

 

Hey bud...if you are under warrenty...THEEEEEEN! Don't tell them you took the seats out....just play dumb..."I don't know why it came on" Telling them would be quite possibly the stupidest thing I can think of...unless you have tons of cash you woul like to throw away...LOL

ofcorse it also depends on how freindly your dealer is...

my light has just come on before while driving...I turn the car off and turn it back on...it goes away...so it was just a glitch...my point is...if that happens...must be what happend to you....just driving minding your business and POP...air bag light.. ...wink wink nudge nudge

just my two cents

 

Chris, that is what I planned on doing. When in doubt, "I don't know".

The problem with that idea is that you will be without your car for 2 -3 days.
Why? (This is what the told me) Because they need to go through all the sensors on the car to be sure none of them have been activated. They have to go through the entire car and check each one by hand to be sure if they have not been activated, that they are not faulty.

Next, they most likely are going to ask you about your new stereo system. They will see it no doubt. They will have an idea of what you did if they look hard enough. So you might be held up and forced to pay the labor for checking all the airbag sensors on your car.

That was what I was going to do....but it was obvios that I put a system in.

He (Mike Reeves my MINI advisor) thanked me for telling him what I did because it saved them a day + of labor checking all the sensors out.

So you can do that.....I hope it works....but be prepared.

 

right on...heh...I hear ya