Technical Discussion Thread: Airbag Seat Wiring

[Deckchair5]

There's an airbag orange connector in the boot over the right hand wheel arch. That's a favorite for causing problems and easy to get to so go for that one next. In the boot- right hand side- pull out the pocket over the wheel arch held in by velcro and there it is


There's another one behind the upper glove box

 

[T14086]

There are more than 2 orange connectors & only time I have fitted/seen a new loom was when the owner made a c*nt of trying to repair it!

There are now seperate connectors available (dealer fit only) to cure this problem however may I suggest sending a copy of your recipts to Fiat UK & also ask garage for printouts of all previous errors.....labour is guaranteed just as much as parts are!

p.s.its not a nice earner for fiat its the garage

 

[Camblet]

Now you tell us!!! And there I was tearing the last few strands from my bald pate in frustration, twiddling and widdling and spraying under the front seats all morning! However......

With renewed enthusiasm and vigour I will attack the rear wheel arch at dawn....., should this not work then a frontal assualt on the glove box defences will hopefully lead to a triumphant victory for the allied forces of the Fiat Forum. Which is my roundabout way of saying thanks for unexpectedly speedy replies!

As regards my previous problems, its a bit late in the day to go down that route. However, if I do have to get it fixed 'professionally' even after tomorrow's effort then I will ask for the relevent bit of paper in case the same problem reoccurs within a year. To be honest, if I can fix it myself then that will be far more rewarding than trying to get 30 quid labour back from the garage with all the stress that entails.

I should say I am rather fond of my Stilo. Apart from this sort of thing and some strange tyre wear issues I've had no trouble at all with it. Same for my Brava, my white Tipo and my green Tipo. Minor electrical niggles always seem to be the bugbear but rarely in my experience do you see a Fiat completely knackered on an AA relay truck despite what the general perception of the public and motoring press might be.

18 or so years of motoring in Fiats with only a couple of major breakdowns isn't too bad and the last was with the 2nd Tipo at about 140,000 miles in the mid '90's when the head gasket blew!

 

[T14086]

If you typed in 'airbag' in the search box you would of found your answer beforehand

If you try & fix yourself just be careful & observe all safety precautions! If all else fails & it needs new connectors then as mentioned its dealer fix only and even then only level 3 DET's can carry out the work.

 

[Camblet]

Oh I see....... Its just that I assumed that the Fiat Guides were there specifically to provide a definitive and complete answer to common problems without having to search here, there and everywhere in order to drag the relevant bits of information into a coherent whole. Silly me.....

As for the 'safety precautions' where do I find out what those are other than what is blindingly obvious already!? There appear to be no safety issues involved in following the proceedure described. I.e. Screwdriver to undo plastic clips, can of spray, squirt, wait to dry, reassemble.......explosion, death??

I'm starting to get scared now you've said that.... Perhaps there is a hair-trigger hand grenade device located serupticiously under the wheel arch to deter amatuer fiddlers like me from depriving workshops from their £30 fix, by depriving me of my fingers! Did I mention my paranoia as well as my depression?

I certainly have no intention of cutting wires, pulling out wires, trying to fit new connectors or anything other than what the guide tells me is a ten to fifteen minute easy cure for the airbag light/bleep scenario. If I have no joy tomorrow with the 'quick fix' then it will be off to Fiat to speak to a level 3 DET (Is that the young lady who works generally on reception?)....she's rather attractive and well worth £30 for 15 minutes in my humble opinion. She might even be level 4...... And you do get a free cup of coffee while you're waiting.....hhhmmm. I'm starting to hope that tomorrow morning will be another waste of time and that the loss of my fingers as well as the £4 spent on the spray will bring its own reward through the other rather nice reception lady, upon seeing my bloodied, bandaged stumps, taking pity on me by lifting the coffee cup to my lips!! Such intimacy of a feminine nature has not occurred in my life since before my ex ran off nearly 3 years ago with a long nosed gentleman from Leeds.......I wouldn't have minded so much, but she got temporary custody (otherwise known as taking a vehicle without the registered owner's consent) of the Brava and I had to drive round in a borrowed Skoda Felicia for six months until the head gasket blew on that hideous heap of junk!

Anyway, I digress.....as always, annoyingly but inevitably on internet forums. I just can't help myself. Sorry. I told the Psychiatrist I wasn't cured but he wouldn't listen......:bang:

Nonetheless, thanks again. I will let you know how I get on, regardless of whether you want me to or not!

 

[Deckchair5]

Adds to that feeling of discovery which you'd be missing if you were told everything at the start.

Can't add extra items to the Stilo Guides without a forum mod help and they're smashed out of their brains living it up in Bermuda most of the time on Forum donations

Feel free to donate to the forum if you can if we save you a packet on garage and inconvenience costs. T1's glass is nearly empty too

 

[Camblet]

Good point Deckchair. Though from the sound of your user name it seems the mods. are merely joining you on your private beach for that grand P!ss up! Life is sweet for those in the know eh? Anyway, I tackled the rear wheel arch connector today. Easy....but ineffective! At least there was no incendiary device waiting to explode hence my ability to type this without the aid of Dr Stephen Hawkings, but the bleep and the light remained obsinately on.

I then dismantled the glove box cover, only to be confronted by a small but ominous looking metal box with no less than 3 nuts and bolts which seemed to be part of the airbag mechanism itself. I assume the orange connector is behind there, but knowing my luck I'd simply trigger the airbag and suffocate myself if I messed with it. Or maybe that would be the best outcome for all concerned? I dunno. I decided to leave it alone and slump into my armchair for the rest of the day with my medication, 3 chocolate digestives and a blanket for comfort.

Its like when I back horses. I always lose whether I back the favourite or the outsider or the 4-1 horse. Its like the fuker KNOWS. Same with these bloody connectors. They just don't want to make my life easy, not even this once. If I do take this damn metal box off and get at the fuker in the orange jacket without setting off the airbag I can't see it wanting to do the decent thing any more than its 3 mates. Or am I simply a miserable, pessimistic tw*t who doesn't really crave the feeling of discovery.....merely the feeling of success. Discuss. Or perhaps not. What I really need to know is, what are the odds on the 4-1 connector responding to the 'whip' compared to the odds of the airbag blowing off in my face if I disturb its metal shroud? Perhaps I should search under 'airbags' to find the answer if its here, but my brain has just formed a small puncture in its frontal lobe as it tends to do after midnight and I can't be bothered just now. Goodnight.

 

[Deckchair5]

Don't touch the airbag, although it's behind the upper glove box, drop a little access panel in the top of the lower glove box to get at the front airbag connector. Just put your finger in beside it and tug down the small panel. You obviously didnt play Tomb Raider when you were younger


Here's a pic of the whole unit but you dont want to mess with that


It's very likely to be the wiring joints at the connectors as these so often cause the problems. It's not the connectors themselves but how the wiring is attached to the connectors.

If you have side airbags then there are connectors there too




coloured green this time for continuity
but these rarely cause problems


There's always a chance that it may be the airbag ECU itself but that's expensive so go for the cheap and cheerful cures first

 

[browney]

Re: Airbag Failure Warnings

can you tell me the fix for my air bag light doing my head in whats the part number for the part etc

 

[Deckchair5]

What part? Most of these fixes here don't involve parts. OCS is different from 3 door to 5 door and obtainable from Fiat only so best to get them to fish out the part numbers if you actually need one

 

[Camblet]

Thanks Mr Deckchair! This is rapidly becoming the single most stimulating exercise in my entire life! An upper access door eh? How exciting!
Spielburg could make a fortune out this concept.... :idea:

'Raiders Of The Rogue Stilo'....

The reason I didn't play Tomb Raider in my younger days is because it hadn't been invented!....infact from what I recall of my younger days ''Pacman' and 'Donkey Kong' were state of the art as far as that sort of thing is concerned. By the time Lara Croft turned up I was old enough to be her father! Perhaps I am her father? Although given her ludicrously flawless genetic composition, it is unlikely. In fact its impossible as any combination of DNA between myself and the ex Mrs Camblet could only have produced something akin to a cross between a walrus and a bulldog......Lara Waldog?.....Just as well we didn't try very often to create such a creature. Although maybe we would still be together?, touring the country with 'The Camblet Circus'.....'roll up, up, see the Camblet Waldog girl/boy.......' Could have made a fortune.....

Oh well, no use pondering what might have been. Anyway, I digress...again. I will give it a go post haste. Or more likely, at the weekend. Something meaningful to look forward to, other than the football results and 'Dancing On Ice' of course.

As for you Mr Browney, there is a 'search' facilty on this forum if you took the trouble to use it. I don't know, some people want it all just fed up on a plate to them. That's the problem with this country these days, people don't use their initiative. They just expect everyone else to go out of their way to help them out and explain everything word for word. The people who run this forum are busy people with lives to live and Champagne to drink......Mr Deckchair has very kindly written a very useful guide under 'Stilo Guides' (a fairly unambiguous title by any standards) to locating 50% of the airbag connectors. What more could you want to know?...apart from where the other 50% are. As for part numbers...what do you think this is? A Fiat Parts counter? Good grief man, get a grip. Life is too short to be wanting to know such trivialities. Read this thread (apart from my posts), read the guide, buy the electrical contact spray, search under 'airbags' and before you know it you will be where I am.....75% through the job with no guarantee that it will work when its completed. BUT with a secret tunnel yet to explore which MAY, just MAY contain the 'Ark Of The Covenant'. Fantastic!

I really don't think you can expect life to get any better than that and if you end up getting crushed by a massive boulder trying to escape the tunnel in the glovebox, in the context of human existence its small beer. Cheers!

 

[Argonought]

ROFL!

You must tell me what you're on at the moment because I intend to buy some

 

[jostheboss]

Fantastic - think the honours for the best post of 2008 are sold...

 

[arti_abarth]

ROFL!

You must tell me what you're on at the moment because I intend to buy some

:yeahthat:

Fantastic - think the honours for the best post of 2008 are sold...

i'd say best 4 posts:worship:

 

[Deckchair5]

Ha HA! Hysterical!
Just how much time have you got on your hands? With a good sense of humour and plenty of free time you'll make a cracking Fiat car owner
Welcome to the clan!

To be fair, the Stilo Guide does say
"THE PROBLEM - you move either seat and the AIRBAG FAILURE message and red warning light comes on, often followed by the message STOP ENGINE just for fun. Twiddling with the wiring under the seats gives a temporary cure but just when you were starting to relax- BING- AIRBAG FAILURE"

So if those aren't your symptoms then that guide isn't for you. Anything electrically wrong at all with the airbag system will cause the warning to fire up so it's a question of working through the easiest and cheapest first. For mere mortals it's a blind or intuitive search. That's why Fiat plug into the airbag diagnostics straightaway to narrow down the search area.

Post up your history and symptoms
Has it been like it since time immemorable or did it suddenly start?
Does your OCS have lumps in it?
Does it alter if someone is sat in the passenger seat?
Did Fiat actually replace the underseat connectors?
Did anyone find Lara Croft's treasure in that hidden crack?

 

[GavM]

Airbag Failure Warning & the orange connectors.. What else?

Hi

I have a 2003 model year 1.2 Stilo Active & last Saturday, the dreaded airbag warning manifested itself! I quickly jumped on here & found the guide regarding the orange connectors.

I followed the instructions but to no avail, the warning is still lit. It has however gone off once or twice but returned very soon afterwards.

On the passenger side, there is the additional connector for the OC sensor, but this isn't connected to anything, or is there anything to connect it to. Is this normal?

And does anybody have any other suggestions, before I resort to a dealer visit?

 

[Deckchair5]

Re: Airbag Failure Warning & the orange connectors.. What else?

The guide refers to the underseat connectors for those that get the problem when they move the front seats but it applies to ANY of the orange airbag connectors. There's one in the boot over the RH wheel arch



and this one at the front passenger airbag - access through a small panel in the roof of the lower glove box

If you have rear airbags then there will be connectors there too


You may not have an OCS as they were not fitted to later models i believe

 

[GavM]

Re: Airbag Failure Warning & the orange connectors.. What else?

Thanks for the additional info! I'll check the glovebox & boot ones. Is the boo one behind the boot liner or accessible through the flap for removing the lamp cluster?

 

[Deckchair5]

Re: Airbag Failure Warning & the orange connectors.. What else?

For the one in the boot just pull out the whole right hand stowaway pocket. It's just held with velcro and you'll see the orange connector right away on the top of the wheel arch

 

[johnnyh]

Re: Airbag Failure Warning & the orange connectors.. What else?

Hi , i often get the airbag warning when the passenger seat is moved ,i often just wiggle the wire's & connections, then no more probs untill the seat is moved again!!!!