Urgent - Airbag light, fiat punto.

Shelli

Hi All,

After having my last pre-test lesson this morning, (test is at 2pm today), my instructor tells me that they wont let me sit the test with the airbag light on, it's been on since I got the car and passed it's NCT with it on, but anyway, he told me to take out the airbag fuse as a short term solution just for my test and then get it seen to.

Now get this, i can't find my manual and I don't know which fuse to take out, can anybody help me please??????

kaizersoze123

is there a fuse card in the fuse box? it should label them all for you

Shelli

Not that I can see, I called my friend, she has the 1999 old model and she said her manual says fuse number 03, but there is none labeled 03 in my car, it's also a 1999 but it's the newer model.

Mr.Diagnostic

Hi,

Taking the fuse out will not kill the light. The fuse layout will be different between the two models too. You need to get this diagnosed (plugged into a scan tool).



Sorry not to be more help.

You need to get it reset at the dealers

colm_mcm

alternatively, you could take the dash cluster out and find the airbag bulb (which won't be removable) and cover it with something, re-assemble the cluster

I must point out that this isn't a solution to your airbag problem!

colm_mcm

colm_mcm wrote:

alternatively, you could take the dash cluster out and find the airbag bulb (which won't be removable) and cover it with something, re-assemble the cluster

I must point out that this isn't a solution to your airbag problem!

That won't work as the tester will look for the light coming on on the turn of the key.

Biro

Does the tester even look at the dash? What would he do if you were sitting the test in an alfa or something like that where the passenger can't see squat?

colm_mcm

hellboy99 wrote:

That won't work as the tester will look for the light coming on on the turn of the key.

no he won't! that's just silly.

colm_mcm

colm_mcm wrote:

no he won't! that's just silly.

Yes they do and I know of two people over the past two weeks that went to do the test and were refused as the light did not come on.

Tester said that under section 6:12 that he would not conduct the test due to "health and safety grounds that the test vehicle was not in a sufficiently roadworthy condition to conduct the test".

bazz26

hellboy99 wrote:

Yes they do and I know of two people over the past two weeks that went to do the test and were refused as the light did not come on.

Tester said that under section 6:12 that he would not conduct the test due to "health and safety grounds that the test vehicle was not in a sufficiently roadworthy condition to conduct the test".

Surely if the car has a valid NCT certificate then legally it is classed as being road worthy?

Gregor Samsa

bazz26 wrote:

Surely if the car has a valid NCT certificate then legally it is classed as being road worthy?

So you think that if you pass your NCT, then put 4 bald tyres on your car, remove all the bulbs and smash the windscreen that your car is still legally road worthy? :eek:

The NCT isn't the be-all and end-all of roadworthiness.

JHMEG

hellboy99 wrote:

Yes they do and I know of two people over the past two weeks that went to do the test and were refused as the light did not come on.

What are the odds of that!? Two cars with dodgy airbags, owned by 2 people you know, both doing their tests in the last 2 weeks, and both being failed because the driving instructor was looking for the airbag light to come on when they turned the key, in both cars.

Sounds like a tall story.

hellboy99

hellboy99 wrote:

Yes they do and I know of two people over the past two weeks that went to do the test and were refused as the light did not come on.

Tester said that under section 6:12 that he would not conduct the test due to "health and safety grounds that the test vehicle was not in a sufficiently roadworthy condition to conduct the test".

Sorry going to call BS on this.

There is no way they know the location of the AIRBAG lights or if they even the exisitance in them in each of hundreds of makes and models of cars out there.

bazz26

phutyle wrote:

So you think that if you pass your NCT, then put 4 bald tyres on your car, remove all the bulbs and smash the windscreen that your car is still legally road worthy? :eek:

The NCT isn't the be-all and end-all of roadworthiness.

Nobody said the NCT was the be all and end all of roadworthiness but it is the standard test that is carried out in this country to class a car as roadworthy at the time of testing.

JHMEG

JHMEG wrote:

Sounds like a tall story.

Believe what you want but what i said is true.

The airbag light staying on is a common problem, especially with Fiat Punto's, VW (mostly the Golf) and Opel Astra G 1998 - 2002 models. With the VW Golf & Opel Astra you will find that 9/10 the cause of this is due to repeated movement of the front seats back & forth, but with the Golf it can sometimes be caused by a low battery. Usual fix is to get it reset at the dealers but a lot of times with the Astra you will have to get the squib & sensor replaced.

colm_mcm

there is no way they would check for an airbag light coming on and going off.

I also doubt that two people you know disabled the airbag lights and the tester noticed that the airbag systems self check flash of the airbag light didn't happen.

colm_mcm

colm_mcm wrote:

there is no way they would check for an airbag light coming on and going off.

I also doubt that two people you know disabled the airbag lights and the tester noticed that the airbag systems self check flash of the airbag light didn't happen.

The two I know had the lights disabled, one of the guys I got talking to that evening of the day of test goes to me that he was refused test, I ask why and the reply I got was "you wouldn't believe me, I didn't believe it myself".
He had no reason to lie to me, as for the other guy he was down in the garage with me the following week looking to get the light fixed as he was refused the test.

johncm

a quick question for ya why did you buy a car with a warning light on?

Wertz

hellboy99 wrote:

Tester said that under section 6:12 that he would not conduct the test due to "health and safety grounds that the test vehicle was not in a sufficiently roadworthy condition to conduct the test".

lol and we wonder why the waiting list for tests is so long? It's a flipping warning light not an engine fire. The car might have 1/2 a millimetre left on it's brake shoes or a big dirty crack in it's axle that would never be apparent to the tester...

"I'm sorry, due to the lump of birdsh*t on your windscreen, your view of the road ahead might be partially obscured so you can't take your test, see you in 8 months!"

It's gone mad alright, least when you go for the test they're not sticking an NCT fee on top. (Not be long before they jack the test fee up )