Replaced a starter and now the airbag light stays on
 

Hello,

The mechanic replaced the starter in my 1996 SE. When I picked my car up from the garage the airbag light was on. The garage said give it a couple of days as GM computers sometimes take awhile to reset when the battery is diconected. I have and it is still on. I called again and they said to unhook the battery and try again to see if that fixes it. I am taking it back to the garage tomorrow to see what happened. I was hopping I could go in with a little knowledge. All I know is the light was off when I brought it in and on when I picked it up. Could it be a fuse? a damaged sensor? How could changing the starter have caused this?

Thanks

AB

Any help here?

Check the wiring running to the front crash sensor.....Maybe it got snagged or something and came unplugged?

Where is the sensor located? Is it near the starter?

Thanks again

Top center radiator support. Little black box, about 1.5x1.5x1" square.

The airbags don't run through the 'computer' so to speak. That is, if your mechanic was inferring that they run through the PCM. They have their own controller under your right front passenger's south end.

Could that box or connections to it be damaged changing the starter? Or is it likely to be a possibility?

Can anyone help here?

I don't recall exactly how the wires from the sensor are routed. If you haven't found it yet, it's just below the field of view in my signature picture. The vertical center radiator support has a shelf attached at it's upper end, and there it sits.

Find the wiring harness for it and follow it along to see where it goes.

The other likely points of problems are the two major harnesses above the hushpanels (trim panel above your feet in the front seats). All airbag harnesses are YELLOW. Can't miss them. Look for broken connections, or disconnected stuff, although it beats me why they would be rooting around the passenger cabin for a starter install.

Ultimately, the car needs to be diagnosed professionally. The mechanic should scan the Airbag system for faults, or pay to have it done (assuming you can pin blame on him). A scan will tell exactly what the problem is.

Well the light went off for a few days and then came back on again. then suddenly the seatbelt light also came on. Now sometimes the lights will be off. sometimes they blink but not with any particiular frequency. sometimes they come on and then slowly fade out. some times just seatbelt will come on. sometimes just airbag. So confused.

The warning lights are under the system's control; if they come on, there will be an error code stored, which can be retrieved to tell you what the detected problem is. Stop by a dealer or service place that can extract the error codes, and have them do it while you wait. It's not hard to have this done and it doesn't need to be a mystery:

1) Light comes on
2) Error code is extracted
3) Fix whatever it is complaining about