Technical Marea airbag

[bpetersb]

My airbag light has been permanently on for a while now and I am getting fed up with looking at it. Before I get a diagnostic/reset done I am going to check and clean all the connections first as I am told poor connections can be the reason for the light staying on. Looking at the Bravo/Brava workshop manual, which I use in the absence of a Marea manual, it mentions the airbag clock spring but does not explain what it is or does. Can anyone tell me?
BTW, as we are talking airbags here I would appreciate a total lack of guesswork or assumption in the answers

 

[Davren]

The "clock spring" is a long coiled ribbon cable (mounted in a plastic housing behind the steering wheel) that connects the airbag ECU to the steering wheel airbag. Because it's coiled, the cable doesn't break when turning the steering wheel.

 

[johnson550]

You dont say wether the light came on on its own or you were doing something at the time. If you have a laptop you could use http://www.fiatecuscan.net/Default.aspx to remove it your self using the free version and about £11 or £12 for the interface a lot cheaper than a garage doing a reset.

 

[bpetersb]

That sounds good to me, one fiat dealer quoted me an hours labour at £84 to do the diagnostic check, when I called them 'robbing
b?"%$*ds' and stated I knew just how long it took to do a diagnostic check they revised the quote down to 'time taken' at £84 per hour.
But where do I get the interface from and what type of port do I need on my laptop for it? I have a HP Mini laptop which only has usb ports although I could download the software on to my wife's laptop which also has RS232.
The light just came on on its own by the way, not while I was working on the car.

 

[Davren]

All the information is on yani's (the author of Fiatecuscan) website here:

http://www.fiatecuscan.net/

 

[bpetersb]

Thanks for the info guys, just one more thing, I downloaded the software and Yani says just a cheap VagCom KKL interface will work. Looked on ebay and can't find one that specifies Fiat compatibility. Most are listed for VW/Seat etc. Will these work on a Fiat or can someone point me in the right direction

 

[Davren]

Any VAG COM 409 will work with the software for Fiats. If you want to read anything other than engine codes, you will need to modify the cable as explained on yani's website.

There's a long thread here:

https://www.fiatforum.com/stilo/216751-ecuscan-fiat-diagnostic-software-free-now.html

It mentions some of the cables others have bought.

 

[johnson550]

This one should do http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vagcom-409-1-...iagnostic_Tools_Equipment&hash=item1e5b17d5d0

unless you want to go for somit cheaper in China.

 

[bpetersb]

Thank you Davren and thanks Johnson550 for the link to ebay. Interface lead now ordered so with a bit of luck I will be able to sort the airbag problem soon

 

[bpetersb]

This is starting to get frustrating:bang:
I bought the vagcom interface lead as suggested and have modified it to interface with the airbags, but it didn't come with any drivers so my computer will not work with it. I have spoken to the ebay seller and he 'just sells the cable' and doesn't know anything about the driver I notice that some cables are pictured on ebay alongside a cd which will I assume have the necessary driver on it. Can anyone suggest where I can get a cd, download a driver or send me the software?