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Airbag emulators and the NCT

  • 05-01-2013 9:19pm
    #1
    monkeypants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,386 ✭✭✭


    Was chatting to a colleague at work about car related things and the subject of the NCT came up. He had a airbag light on due to a passenger seat sensor not working and was looking at a substantial bill to get the seat replaced. So he went online and purchased some sort of emulator that plugs in under the seat. Now the light is off and the passenger airbag will go off in the event of a collision regardless of whether the passenger seat is occupied or not.

    I took a look through the NCT manual here, but I can't see airbags mentioned at all. Would his car pass the NCT?


Comments

  • #2
    Atlantic Dawn
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 84,761 ✭✭✭✭Atlantic Dawn
    M


    Light needs to come on when ignition is turned on, must then turn off when car starts, otherwise NCT fail.


  • #3
    keithclancy
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,208 ✭✭✭keithclancy


    Atlantic Dawn wrote: »
    Light needs to come on when ignition is turned on, must then turn off when car starts, otherwise NCT fail.

    It does ... that's why its called and emulator.


  • #4
    Atlantic Dawn
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 84,761 ✭✭✭✭Atlantic Dawn
    M


    keithclancy wrote: »

    It does ... that's why its called and emulator.

    Then it passes, whether it will work in a crash is another story.


  • #5
    keithclancy
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,208 ✭✭✭keithclancy


    Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

    Then it passes, whether it will work in a crash is another story.

    It will ... it just makes the car think there's someone in the seat all the time.

    Pretty much the same effect as having a sack of spuds in the seat.

    Airbag will go off regardless


  • #6
    monkeypants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,386 ✭✭✭monkeypants


    Atlantic Dawn wrote: »
    Light needs to come on when ignition is turned on, must then turn off when car starts, otherwise NCT fail.
    From what he was telling me it did come on when the car was started, then went off, but would intermittently blink and then maybe go solid. Didn't happen every day either and wasn't linked to whether or not the passenger seat was occupied.

    Now with the emulator, the light comes on when the car is started, then goes off and stays off. It's a small box connected to the sensor underneath the seat, but he says it's visible if an NCT tester went poking around under the seats.


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  • #7
    Senna
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,800 ✭✭✭Senna


    In this case the "emulator" is just closing the circuit, an inch long piece of wire will do the same.


  • #8
    Mycroft H
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,313 ✭✭✭Mycroft H


    Atlantic Dawn wrote: »
    Light needs to come on when ignition is turned on, must then turn off when car starts, otherwise NCT fail.


    Or on some cars the light only comes on if there is a problem with the airbag. The Starlet or some early 90's toyotas for example.


  • #9
    kirving
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,129 ✭✭✭kirving


    Isn't the seat sensor important though?

    As far as I know, they can be used to gauge the passenger's weight, which can help in the timing of the air bag deployment.


  • #10
    Guy:Incognito
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 38,247 ✭✭✭✭Guy:Incognito


    monkeypants wrote: »
    looking at a substantial bill to get the seat replaced.

    What car is it that needs a whole new seat and not just a sensor?


  • #11
    CiniO
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16,069 ✭✭✭✭CiniO


    Kevin Irving wrote: »
    Isn't the seat sensor important though?

    As far as I know, they can be used to gauge the passenger's weight, which can help in the timing of the air bag deployment.

    I don't think that feature would be present in many cars, if any.


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  • #12
    CiniO
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16,069 ✭✭✭✭CiniO


    This so called "emulator" is most likely just a piece of wire or in the best case a resistor.
    Packed in the box ;)


  • #13
    monkeypants
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,386 ✭✭✭monkeypants


    Guy:Incognito wrote: »
    What car is it that needs a whole new seat and not just a sensor?
    It's a 05 Mazda 6 saloon and I'm interested because I also have a Mazda 6. It's older, but could easily develop the same fault. He wasn't offered an entire seat replacement, just the lower bit.


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