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Skoda Octavia airbag light

  • 23-07-2010 2:19pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 1,546 ✭✭✭


    Te airbag light has come on on my 05 Octavia and i have been told it is caused by the seat wiring which will need to be replaces at cost ~€200.

    Is this a common problem, And is it just a matter or reconnecting wires or does it relate to a known fault? Does the whole seat wiring kit need to be replaced?
    Any help much appreciated.


Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 99 ✭✭yogimotorsport


    Common enough fault in the mk2 octavia,wires are about 45euro plus VAT and should take no longer then a hours labour max


  • Registered Users Posts: 12,863 ✭✭✭✭crosstownk


    I can't remember the name of the dealer but they are near Monasterevin, Kildare. A mate of mine swears by them as they are very reasonable - he drives to them from Dublin any time his Škoda needs work. I'm sure you'll get the name of the dealer from www.skoda.ie

    As stated, it's a common enough fault. It's a DIY job if you're that way inclined but don't patch up any wires, it's best to replace the loom given the safety implications of an airbag.

    EDIT : It's this dealer.


  • Registered Users Posts: 655 ✭✭✭selfbuilder1


    I had this exact problem with my 05 Octavia this week. The dealer wanted €230 to replace the wiring loom in the drivers door. Took it to a neighbour that works as a mechanic and he joined the broken wire and cleared the fault for €30. He says a common enough problem with wires breaking under the drivers seat or door.


  • Registered Users Posts: 4,315 ✭✭✭Pkiernan


    Despite the fact that the car is out of warranty, I would ask the dealer to replace/repair free of charge.

    If it is a common problem, then it is a known safety issue. Skoda should be repairing these for no charge, if not recalling affected vehicles.

    I would search online, and see how common the issue is. Print out a list, and bring to dealer.

    We had a similar issue with an immobiliser in Germany on our VW Golf.
    Dealer initially wanted €1500 to replace, when presented with a printout showing how common the issue was, he brought the price down to €286 - his cost for the part (or so he said!).

    Anyway, given that the airbags are part of the sfaety system, this should be cost free to you.


  • Registered Users Posts: 23,198 ✭✭✭✭mickdw


    Pkiernan wrote: »
    this should be cost free to you.

    You would be doing well to get that for free. It is common but still, on an 05 car, you would be pushing it imo


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  • Registered Users Posts: 6,976 ✭✭✭Barr


    I had this exact problem with my 05 Octavia this week. The dealer wanted €230 to replace the wiring loom in the drivers door. Took it to a neighbour that works as a mechanic and he joined the broken wire and cleared the fault for €30. He says a common enough problem with wires breaking under the drivers seat or door.

    Is it the connectors under the seat that break ?


  • Registered Users Posts: 516 ✭✭✭sophie1234


    mickdw wrote: »
    You would be doing well to get that for free. It is common but still, on an 05 car, you would be pushing it imo

    its also a common probelm in my 02 mini airbag light always on the bmw garage we bring ours to because its a common fault they will still fix it for free now they just do a quick fix it ends up comin back on a few weeks after but it really is not a probelm havin the light on anyways the airbagb is still there and working just a electrical fault!


  • Registered Users Posts: 655 ✭✭✭selfbuilder1


    Barr wrote: »
    Is it the connectors under the seat that break ?

    Its the connections under the drivers seat usually. In my car it was the wiring loom going to the door where a wire had broken at the hinge.


  • Registered Users Posts: 17 the airbag man


    rock22 wrote: »
    Te airbag light has come on on my 05 Octavia and i have been told it is caused by the seat wiring which will need to be replaces at cost ~€200.

    Is this a common problem, And is it just a matter or reconnecting wires or does it relate to a known fault? Does the whole seat wiring kit need to be replaced?
    Any help much appreciated.

    Contact Keith at [EMAIL="info@<snip>ireland.com"]info@<snip>ireland.com[/EMAIL]
    and get what ever seat airbag wiring you need for free.
    BUT i would think that you may have hit a kerb or pothole hard enough to blow your front seatbelts,
    to check remove one side and shake - if rattling it has fired and is gone. It may be working mechanically but will never work electronically again -
    a very common problem with all new generation vehicles from VW family (which includes Seat, Skoda, Audi) - if one goes they both go. If this is the case they will need to be replaced - airbags ireland can sort this for you as well - contact them for a price.

    Happy motoring - you know what they say about cars, they are buckets with holes in them.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,901 ✭✭✭GTE


    Is that the same issue you would find on the mark 4 golfs?

    If so I fixed it by cutting out the connector (it was losing connection) and then re connecting them with block connectors or solder it if you like. Then you need the fault cleared. Easy DIY if you are keen at it.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 21,969 ✭✭✭✭Esel


    sophie1234 wrote: »
    it really is not a probelm havin the light on anyways the airbagb is still there and working just a electrical fault!
    Afaik, if the light is on, the system is disabled (any car).

    Not your ornery onager



  • Registered Users Posts: 516 ✭✭✭sophie1234


    esel wrote: »
    Afaik, if the light is on, the system is disabled (any car).

    will the air bag light is just faulty in the mini but the air bag is working!!!


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,901 ✭✭✭GTE


    Having the airbag warning light lit at any point means there is a fault somewhere in the airbag system, simple as that.

    That means the system can not be trusted in an accident. Any posts implying that a lit airbag warning light means the system will work in the same way are very misleading and could result in people getting injured if listened to.

    Sophie seems to be referring to a Mini specific problem where the airbags MAY (although I dont believe it) work as normal when the light is on. The VAG specific problem is generally one where the airbag connector plug under the seat begins to lose connection after years of the seat being moved forward and backwards etc. Although the light can be triggered by a nano second break in the connection the plug may be completely messed up and no connection is being made at all. The wire leads to the airbag itself so if there is no connection at the critical time the airbag will not deploy.

    The fix is easy if you are DIYer and should be very very cheap at a good mechanic.

    The airbag system is NOT 100%.

    Finally, if anyone does a DIY jobby at it they need to get the fault code cleared by a VAGCOM or other scanning tool. When a fault is registered the ECU will not switch the light off until its been seen to.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,011 ✭✭✭Bodhan


    I had the vert same problem in my Seat Leon. Everytime someone esle would drive and move the seat I'd get the air bag light on.
    There's a connector under the seat that comes loose, I went to a Seat dealer in Castlecomer, he said it's a common problem and it would be €40 to fix it.
    He took out the connector and soldered the wires together, hasn't happened since.
    Should be the same set up in your car. Try your nearest Seat dealer.


  • Registered Users Posts: 17 the airbag man


    sophie1234 wrote: »
    its also a common probelm in my 02 mini airbag light always on the bmw garage we bring ours to because its a common fault they will still fix it for free now they just do a quick fix it ends up comin back on a few weeks after but it really is not a probelm havin the light on anyways the airbagb is still there and working just a electrical fault!

    firstly if the airbag light does not come on in any car and extinguish after 5 seconds there are major problems on board - this usually means some conman repairer of the car at somestage has blocked the light off in the clocks with a dark thick tape/piece of rubber windscreen bonding/ etc. because they have cut corners when repairing and replacing the airbags in the same car -normally it comes down to buying a secondhand airbag kit from a breakers yard and getting the wrong main module (control house for the workings and of the airbags)
    and second if the airbag light is on full time/flashing/ or from time to time there are also problems, sometime only a minor fix. BUT......
    On both occasions the car could be hit by a jumbo jet and the airbags will not blow up.

    In 95% of vehicle crashes the two front wheels must take a bang or the vehicle skip on the road as a result of the bang which will cause a vibration to go through the running gear into the subframe then on into the floor of the car which 'detonates' the airbags. Manufacturers of cars spend millions designing and perfecting airbag systems. They are to be taken seriously - they are not something you can survive without in a crash.

    Just on a final note you wont pass your NCT if either your airbag light doesnt come on when you turn on the ignition, or if it stays on permanently or comes on periodically. Its about time this rule came in as up to recently you could go in with an airbag hanging off the dashboard and if it didnt obstruct the tester the car could still pass. :):eek::eek::eek:


  • Registered Users Posts: 516 ✭✭✭sophie1234


    firstly if the airbag light does not come on in any car and extinguish after 5 seconds there are major problems on board - this usually means some conman repairer of the car at somestage has blocked the light off in the clocks with a dark thick tape/piece of rubber windscreen bonding/ etc. because they have cut corners when repairing and replacing the airbags in the same car -normally it comes down to buying a secondhand airbag kit from a breakers yard and getting the wrong main module (control house for the workings and of the airbags)
    and second if the airbag light is on full time/flashing/ or from time to time there are also problems, sometime only a minor fix. BUT......
    On both occasions the car could be hit by a jumbo jet and the airbags will not blow up.

    In 95% of vehicle crashes the two front wheels must take a bang or the vehicle skip on the road as a result of the bang which will cause a vibration to go through the running gear into the subframe then on into the floor of the car which 'detonates' the airbags. Manufacturers of cars spend millions designing and perfecting airbag systems. They are to be taken seriously - they are not something you can survive without in a crash.

    Just on a final note you wont pass your NCT if either your airbag light doesnt come on when you turn on the ignition, or if it stays on permanently or comes on periodically. Its about time this rule came in as up to recently you could go in with an airbag hanging off the dashboard and if it didnt obstruct the tester the car could still pass. :):eek::eek::eek:


    well ive never had a prob passing the nct with the light! it has been fixed but comes back on after a while
    the mechanic has alway told me its electrical and not the air bag but when i bring it back now i will make sure its fixed properly
    thanks for that:D


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,901 ✭✭✭GTE


    sophie1234 wrote: »
    well ive never had a prob passing the nct with the light! it has been fixed but comes back on after a while
    the mechanic has alway told me its electrical and not the air bag but when i bring it back now i will make sure its fixed properly
    thanks for that:D

    Just so you know also the rules that came in that fails cars with airbag lights on only came in recently. April last I think. I got the airbag light a week before the rules came in and my test was a week after. Bad timing.


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