How difficult is it to fix wiring problems?

missdior

I've just bought a 03 Mini Cooper. I got a mechanic to check it and he said a lot of the wiring is gone in it (airbag wiring and seatbelt wiring). The dealer said he would fix it for me, but my question is: does it take long? Can I wait for my car at the mechanics or would I need to leave it with him? Is wiring a big job? Thank you.

dirtydiesel

Airbag and seat belt wiring? did he explain what exactly is wrong? Just wondering what exactly seat belt wiring is?
Was this car an accident damaged and repaired car by any chance?
Not many wiring jobs can be carried out while you wait.

corktina

If its the dealer who sold it to you who is fixing it for you, ask for a courtesy car.

(It SOUNDS like a couple of warning lights arent working perhaps and may be an issue with fuses or relays.)

xt40

the airbag warning light is a very common fault on bmw's and rover 75's so chances are the same cause and fix applies to minis as well.
The issue is that the drivers seat moving forward and backwards cuts through one of the wires located under the seat. it should be ease to find the broken wire(s) and if you join em up, the problem goes away.

listermint

xt40 wrote: »

the airbag warning light is a very common fault on bmw's and rover 75's so chances are the same cause and fix applies to minis as well.
The issue is that the drivers seat moving forward and backwards cuts through one of the wires located under the seat. it should be ease to find the broken wire(s) and if you join em up, the problem goes away.

True its very common. have it on my E46 as does a mate of mine. Simple fix, just have to find the time.

langdang

If it's just flakey connectors under the seat (probably passenger) then it's not a big deal to fix. But hardly a "fix while you wait" job all the same - no point pressuring a guy working on airbag wiring! Just be sure he knows what he's doing - I've seen piss poor repair jobs that gave as much trouble as before the "fix".

In fact he may not have to cut or rejoin anything. There is a knack to bend the cables/connectors in an S shape and cable tie or tape everything back onto itself to prevent movement causing a bad connection. ( Hard to describe. I saw this in an official MINI TSB document describing how to fit replacement connectors and change the way the cables connected, I seem to have misplaced the document tho!) That might be enough, or he may have to get new connectors.. (or maybe get rid of them and join directly from main car wiring to seat wiring)

Fairly common on hatchbacks where the seats fold and move to leave passengers in the back. I presume the MINIs, BMWs and Rovers with the same issue all have the same connectors.

missdior

dirtydiesel wrote: »

Just wondering what exactly seat belt wiring is? Was this car an accident damaged and repaired car by any chance?

As far as I can tell, the seatbelt wiring refers to the light that comes on when you aren't wearing your seatbelt. Sometimes the light will come on periodically then switch off, but the airbag light is always on.
Yes it was damaged and repaired. I bought it because I got a great deal on it and these were the only problems the mechanic could find.

missdior

xt40 wrote: »

the airbag warning light is a very common fault on bmw's and rover 75's so chances are the same cause and fix applies to minis as well.
The issue is that the drivers seat moving forward and backwards cuts through one of the wires located under the seat. it should be ease to find the broken wire(s) and if you join em up, the problem goes away.

This makes a lot of sense, thanks! A friend of mine who also drives a Mini (one) had problems with her airbag light so I'd well believe it's a common problem.

mickdw

If its damaged repaired, I would be more wary of those lights. It is true that the airbag light is a common fault across bmw based cars among others but due to your car having been damaged, I would wonder if all the required components in the crash systems have been renewed. Dont dream of completing the sale on foot of a promise to fix this issues next week. Dont take it til its fully sorted. If there are components that need to be replaced, the bill could be huge & dealers will try everything to get out of paying for it.
For example if the bags went off in the accident, they will have to replace airbag units, complete dash on some cars, airbags sensors, seatbelt pretensioners etc. You can imagine the bill!

langdang

In fairness OP, the fact that it's crashed/repaired changes things a lot.
I had assumed the usual fault in the seatbelt pretensioner connector or seat occupancy (or maybe it's the actual airbag) connector - but those lights could also be telling you the seat belt pretensioner or airbag has been used and the units need replacing $$$

listermint

mickdw wrote: »

If its damaged repaired, I would be more wary of those lights. It is true that the airbag light is a common fault across bmw based cars among others but due to your car having been damaged, I would wonder if all the required components in the crash systems have been renewed. Dont dream of completing the sale on foot of a promise to fix this issues next week. Dont take it til its fully sorted. If there are components that need to be replaced, the bill could be huge & dealers will try everything to get out of paying for it.
For example if the bags went off in the accident, they will have to replace airbag units, complete dash on some cars, airbags sensors, seatbelt pretensioners etc. You can imagine the bill!

+1

dirtydiesel

mickdw wrote: »

If its damaged repaired, I would be more wary of those lights. It is true that the airbag light is a common fault across bmw based cars among others but due to your car having been damaged, I would wonder if all the required components in the crash systems have been renewed. Dont dream of completing the sale on foot of a promise to fix this issues next week. Dont take it til its fully sorted. If there are components that need to be replaced, the bill could be huge & dealers will try everything to get out of paying for it.
For example if the bags went off in the accident, they will have to replace airbag units, complete dash on some cars, airbags sensors, seatbelt pretensioners etc. You can imagine the bill!

Yes I agree with you, I would be asking who repaired the damage and exactly what was done.