Airbag light

Tiny
BECKY HARRIS
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 JEEP WRANGLER
  • 4.0L
  • 6 CYL
  • 4WD
  • MANUAL
  • 158,000 MILES
The airbag light on the dash goes on and off intermittently as I am driving.
Thursday, October 5th, 2017 AT 7:36 PM

3 Replies

Tiny
BECKY HARRIS
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
It does not have cruise control, but I just went out and the horn works.
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Thursday, October 5th, 2017 AT 8:14 PM
Tiny
STEVE W.
  • MECHANIC
  • 13,573 POSTS
Take it to a dealer or good shop and have them scan the SRS system for the codes it will have. The likely suspects are a bad clockspring connection behind the steering wheel, bad air bag actuator or a bad SRS module.

Get this done ASAP. The reason being, the system is turned off while the light is on, but as yours does not just stay on all the time, it keeps going on/off/on/off it is possible that the system could get a power pulse on at the wrong time and deploy the air bags as you are driving.

Do not bother with the "hey we do free scans" at the auto parts stores, they only scan the engine computer which will not help you. The dealer/shop can scan it and give you options for repair.

You could disconnect the negative battery terminal. Wait at least two to three minutes. Now go to the fuse box and remove fuses numbered 5 and 9 (10 amps). Those are the airbag/SRS fuses. Removal of those fuses will deactivate the system. Now reconnect the battery cable.
Just be sure to tell the shop what you did and have them replace the fuses before they test the system.
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Thursday, October 5th, 2017 AT 8:29 PM
Tiny
HARRY P
  • MECHANIC
  • 2,292 POSTS
Well, there are a lot of potential problems that can cause this. The light is coming on because a fault is being detected by a computer. The computer stores a code number and turns the light on. The fact that the light comes and goes means it is some form of intermittent problem. This is often caused by a loose wire/bad connector/faulty switch or sensor somewhere. Unfortunately, that is as specific as I can get without any diagnostic trouble codes.

Those trouble codes can be accessed with a scan tool. Take it to the nearest dealer and have them scan it for you. Write the code(s) down and let us know.
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Thursday, October 5th, 2017 AT 8:37 PM

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