Hi all, tonight annoyingly I’ve had the airbag warning light come on so first question, any ideas on that? Guessing a sensor somewhere under the seat? 

   Secondly .... is it an mot fail?? Many sites say no as the airbag is not checked as part of mot .... mot.com say yes it is a fail??? 

  Thanks 

It might be a connector under a seat that's loose, a VCDS scan or similar will confirm.

 

As for the mot, I don't think the airbags are checked but the warning light might be enough for a fail...

Anyone know if this is suitable for skoda and good enough to detect where the fault is and clear codes? 

No idea if that tool is any good.

 

Might be worth asking a local member with VCDS if they can read/clear the code for you. Couple of threads that might help you find one:

- https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/224376-vcds-owners-map/

- https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/262215-list-of-vcds-owners-previously-known-as-vag-com-vcp-owners/

 

Having had the exact same fault with both my previous and current Skodas, owning VCDS and also that cheaper tool I can tell you confidently that it will bring up a generic code saying something like "fault in airbag/SRS system" without telling you any more, if it was intermittent and has gone away it will delete the code and put the warning light out, if you find and repair the fault yourself, probably by removing all the connectors and soldering them then ditto.

 

VCDS will tell you which airbag is showing as faulty or what seat belt pretensioner which makes your life much easier, it will probably be a case of the connector rather than the module, VCDS will also tell you if the module itself is faulty or not communicating.

 

You pays your money you takes your choice, VCDS everytime for me now, the generic one if I want to check another vehicle, a girlfriends Clio has an airbag fault amongst others, I would probably buy the Renault equivalent before working on it as there are loads of lights lit up.

 

VCDS will also show you loads of other non mission critical or developing faults which a generic reader will not, off the top of my head on my new vehicle it revealed glowplugs faulty or failing, aircon pressure sensor, heater flap motor, door mirror not heated, wrong bulbs fitted, alarm horn failed, interior ultrasonic sensor no communication etc, none of these showed up even on an expensive Snap-On multi-marque garage test module.

Just found this handy device on fleabay; it's an "airbag simulator" and can be temporarily connected in place of an airbag to determine of the airbag is reading as faulty.

All you need is one resistor.

On 28/01/2019 at 17:14, StickyMicky said:

Just found this handy device on fleabay; it's an "airbag simulator" and can be temporarily connected in place of an airbag to determine of the airbag is reading as faulty.

What does this tool actually do? Turn off all airbags? 

On 27/01/2019 at 21:17, J.R. said:

Having had the exact same fault with both my previous and current Skodas, owning VCDS and also that cheaper tool I can tell you confidently that it will bring up a generic code saying something like "fault in airbag/SRS system" without telling you any more, if it was intermittent and has gone away it will delete the code and put the warning light out, if you find and repair the fault yourself, probably by removing all the connectors and soldering them then ditto.

 

VCDS will tell you which airbag is showing as faulty or what seat belt pretensioner which makes your life much easier, it will probably be a case of the connector rather than the module, VCDS will also tell you if the module itself is faulty or not communicating.

 

You pays your money you takes your choice, VCDS everytime for me now, the generic one if I want to check another vehicle, a girlfriends Clio has an airbag fault amongst others, I would probably buy the Renault equivalent before working on it as there are loads of lights lit up.

 

VCDS will also show you loads of other non mission critical or developing faults which a generic reader will not, off the top of my head on my new vehicle it revealed glowplugs faulty or failing, aircon pressure sensor, heater flap motor, door mirror not heated, wrong bulbs fitted, alarm horn failed, interior ultrasonic sensor no communication etc, none of these showed up even on an expensive Snap-On multi-marque garage test module.

I’m guessing visiting my local garage would be a lot cheaper than VCDS? 

Not so sure about that, my local independant wanted £100 to do a diagnostic, could not book me in for a couple of weeks, VCDS was £225 and I have used it loads of times since.

On ‎27‎/‎01‎/‎2019 at 18:10, Shacky13 said:

 Secondly .... is it an mot fail??

Yes. 7.1.6a :

Defect	Category
An SRS malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) indicates a system malfunction	Major

From here: https://www.mot-testing.service.gov.uk/documents/manuals/class3457/Section-7-Other-equipment.html#section_7.1

1 hour ago, Shacky13 said:

What does this tool actually do? Turn off all airbags? 

 

It pretends to be an airbag so you can remove them without a fault code/warning light. It's unlikely to help in your situation as it can't clear the code that's already present.

 

1 hour ago, Shacky13 said:

I’m guessing visiting my local garage would be a lot cheaper than VCDS? 

 

A genuine 3 VIN VCDS lead is about £225 so probably.

 

A local VCDS owner might be free or a few beer tokens. I'd suggest doing that first as it'll confirm why the airbag light is on and also give you chance to clear the fault as it's likely intermittent.