Hi guys, can anyone shed light on this issue for me please?
I took out my drivers seat to have the leather bolster repaired and ever since ive had the airbag warning light on, im sure i reconnected everything inside the seat and just thought it would go out by its self but it hasnt, ive tried a basic code reader to read for a fault and nothing is showing up, is this a case of sending it to the main $tealer so they can take 30 seconds to plug it in and turn off the light for silly money or is there another way?


Ive found that being a 1998 XJR non dealer code readers dont work, ive read the list of ones that are supposed to on a listing on here, i think it was posted by Jim but ive tried 3 off of the list and they will still only read the basics..


Thanks guys.

 

Go over what you've done carefully and check the pins aren't bent in the plugs. If it worked before then it will be something that you have done.

 

Yeah, i know it will be because ive had the seat out, my question was more about HOW to turn the light out as with things like the ABS sensors they go out by them selves when you have driven the car, but some lights will only go out after a reset even if every thing is put back together correctly, as im sure mine is, will the light go out by its self if everything is put back correctly?

 

If everything is as it should be then 1. the light wouldn't have come on in the first place and 2. when you remove the fault the light will go off, no need for anything to be reset.

 

I need for you to check and get the code for the airbag warning and we can trouble shoot from there.
Turn on the ignition switch and start the car as you normally would. The air bag light should start flashing. You need to count the flashes and that will give us the code for the problem. The flash sequence repeats itself about 5 times and then the light goes to steady.
For instance it will flash stop for 2 seconds and flash again. Then it will wait about 5 seconds and repeat the flash sequence. If it were to say flash 3 times and then flash 5 times the code would be 35. I have a list of codes. If you need to you can always shut off and restart the engine and the sequence will start all over again.
As stated before once the fault is cleared the light will go out by itself. OBD scanners can not read air bag faults.

 

thats all i was asking,...............will the light go out without a reset..

 

the light doesnt flash, its just on, resetting, disconnecting the battery etc does nothing............this is my question.....will the light reset by its self or does it need to be reset?

 

Again, the light will reset itself once the problem has been rectified.

 

I had an intermittent airbag light on the dash(not flashing). It turned out to be the connector beneath the seat. The connector had slipped out of the clip on the frame of the seat so when I adjusted or moved the seat, the connector could get in a bind causing the light to come on. After securing the connector the light went out.

 

The airbag system self tests each time it starts and is looking for about 1.5 Ohms resistance of each air bag. The airbag plugs are shorting, in that when they are unplugged, they short the two pins.
So unplugged, or not fully seated, will not remove the short.
Other fail point is the clock spring in the steering wheel.

 

+1 on checking for bent pins. My system did the same thing (light on, no flashing or codes) until i realized the guy had sold it to me without a passengers seat controller module. Putting a module in fixed the light. You could also run a trace thru the seat control module if you figure out which pins correspond to the airbag leads. Also, spray them down with some deoxit or other contact cleaner if all else seems to fail.

If pins are disconnected, they should be an open circuit, they'd only short if the pins are bent and touching each other. Unless there's something I'm missing here..

 

The air bag plugs are special and have a special segment that shorts the pins when unplugged, when working normally. Air bag safety systems and plugs are different.

 

I fitted new front seats to my 1998 XJ8, the Airbag light was on (no flashing) so I sprayed the connections with some WD40, reconnected and bingo, light went out? Hey, it can't do any harm to try can it?

 

once the fault is fixed the light will go out next time you start up. If there is a fault and it is corrected, the light stays on until the next initial power on self test. Auto Enginuity code reader with the jaguar enhancements can read SRS. Less than an dealer visit, but not cheap.

 

Learn something new every day. A quick google mentions a "shorting bar" on other euro makes, which sounds like what you're describing. I guess it makes sense for keeping integrity of the rest of the srs incase a plug comes loose.