Passenger side airbag warning light came on. Dealership wants $1500 to replace a broken sensor in the passenger seat. I have done a ton of searching and not sure what to do. The car is an 05 MCS and the dealer said the is no extended warrant for it. They also said this is not something they can recall seeing. I just can't see paying that much for something like this. Any help would great. Thanks in advance.
Thomas

 

I had my light come on, the dealer fixed free, there was a TSB on it,. The pass side wire was too short, maybe thats your problem?

 

Do you have a bit more information? Maybe you can scan the document the dealer gave you that shows what they wrote up for an estimate and problem. Do you have a part number, picture or parts diagram that shows which part is bad? Do they give you a breakdown for labor? Is part of the charge for reprogramming after the part is replaced. Which parts do they list and how much do they want for them?

The early cars had a TSB out on the passenger side wiring harness. But this was corrected in later models at the factory. So your 2005 is not covered underneath the extended warranty the TSB covers.

Depending on the part that is being replaced you many be able to replace the part yourself. If that is the case then you will still need to have the airbag light reset and you will either have to have the dealer do that or find someone who has the right tools to do it.

 

Thanks for the reply,
I will have more info when my wife gets back into town with the car. She was in Charleston for work and had the car looked at when she was there(no local dealer). I asked her to get a printout with a cost breakdown so I could go from there. I will post the info when I have it in hand. Thanks again for the time.
Thomas

 

Info from dealer:
Ran diagnostic. Found passenger seat occupancy mat internal short. Fault occurred 250 times. Estimate to replace $1565/ part number 52.10.6.961.324

 

OK, Here we go....It looks like the part you are looking at is essentially part of the seat cover. Here is what the part itself costs....make sure you are sitting down.

Item Number MSRP Price
52106961324 $1,151.21 $978.53
That is from minipartsmass.com.

Here is a diagram from realoem.com that shows the part:

Looks like an easier solution would be just to replace the seat.

 

I'm surprised, because it seems to be a common problem that is discussed regularly on this forum. I myself had the problem, but fortunately it was covered under warranty at about 30K miles. Here's just one (of many) threads on the topic: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-question.html

Member firehawk618 figured out how to disable the warning light in software: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...t-no-more.html

Actually, the sensor pad isn't available separately. They swap out the entire seat bottom uphostery. That's partially the reason for the high cost.

 

I meant the entire seat, not just the bottom. Sometimes people sell pairs here on NAM for around 400. For that price you could use the passenger side and sell the drivers side and still be way ahead of the game.

 

So far it looks like finding a used seat is the way to go. Since this looks like a common problem I may look into getting a new warranty after I fix it?

Anyone selling their seats?

 

Specifically you'll want 2005 or 2006 seats. '02-'04 don't have the passenger seat sensor or its connector (it was added in 2005 to meet new federal safety regulations).

 

And not all 2005's have the sensor...
my model year 2005, but 2004 production car has the old air bag system...no pesky airbag weight sensor....so be careful about what you buy....

 

Good info thanks, haven't found seats yet.