Airbag light code identification

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brandon4987
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2018 5:30 pm
Location: Pennsylvania

Airbag light code identification

Post by brandon4987 »

Boy do I feel like a moron. When initially checking this I was using some spare wire to test that was pretty flimsy. This caused me to need to fiddle with the cables under the dash a bit to get the error code to display. I must have missed the initial first blink as I took a video today so I could watch it back and realized I was counting the repeat at the wrong point. It turns out I'm receiving an 18 (B1181), not an 81 lol. Makes sense why I was having trouble looking for a code that doesn't exist! Anyways, it appears this points to something being screwey with the steering wheel airbag system. Found some documentation on testing procedures in the service manual and will give that a go this weekend a report back.
Hey All,

Just recently inherited a 2004 Pontiac Vibe. Before fixing a bunch of other miscellaneous issues, I've decided to take care of the airbag light first. I don't have a scan tool capable of pulling the codes, so I used the procedure of jumping the OBDII pins. I'm getting an 81. This is 8 short blinks followed by a pause, then 1 short blink followed by another pause before it starts repeating. If anyone could help me with tracking down the error code meaning it'd be greatly appreciated. I did a bit of searching online, but having some trouble finding info since I'm not getting the full code (Eg.B1XXX). Thanks!
zbyers
Posts: 1767
Joined: Thu Apr 03, 2014 6:12 pm
Location: Sheffield, Pennsylvania

Re: Airbag light code identification

Post by zbyers »

If anything, I'd suspect the clock spring. They are fairly common to fail on these. One can be picked up, used, relatively cheap. Monkeywrenchracing sells their QRP, which is essentially their version of OEM at a fraction of the cost.
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brandon4987
Posts: 24
Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2018 5:30 pm
Location: Pennsylvania

Re: Airbag light code identification

Post by brandon4987 »

zbyers wrote:If anything, I'd suspect the clock spring. They are fairly common to fail on these. One can be picked up, used, relatively cheap. Monkeywrenchracing sells their QRP, which is essentially their version of OEM at a fraction of the cost.
Yes I'm thinking it' s most likely the clockspring as well. Going to test with a multi-meter this weekend to confirm before buying any parts. I've seen them as low as 20-30 bucks on Ebay. I know their of much lower quality than OEM, but for amount of miles this car has on it, doesn't make sense to spend too much on a replacement. Might check out the junkyard too and see if I can get an OEM for cheap.
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