Long story short: (2005 Ford Focus ZX4) Son rear ended another car (no injuries). Most damage to bumper, grill, radiator support, headlights, all of this can be fairly easily replaced/repaired. Car is drivable as is, however, after the accident, drivers seat belt does not extend or retract and air bag light on the dash is illuminated. Air bags did not deploy. Does the seatbelt need to be replaced or does something need to be reset? Why is the airbag light on?
Accident damage
- Thread starter another Todd
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Does the seat belt release/dispense ok? Glad your son is OK! Reminds of a thread I saw on the Accord forum recently:
http://www.driveaccord.net/forums/showthread.php?t=185849
Hmmm, now I see where it doesn't release correctly. Will you run all the repairs through insurance?
http://www.driveaccord.net/forums/showthread.php?t=185849
Hmmm, now I see where it doesn't release correctly. Will you run all the repairs through insurance?
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Yes, that probably fired.
Originally Posted By: Rand
seat belt pretensioner? that's part of the airbag system I believe.
Originally Posted By: Rand
seat belt pretensioner? that's part of the airbag system I believe.
Originally Posted By: wag123
The seat belt mechanism needs to be replaced.
The pretensioner has gone off and it is a one shot deal. It will turn the air bag light on if it is bad.
I suspected this, but wasn't sure. Will a junk yard seat belt work, and make the light go out, or is this a "programmed to specific vehicle" thing. Also, is it just the seat belt, or is there a pre-tensioner separately that needs replacing, what about the sensor that triggered the pre-tensioner?
The seat belt mechanism needs to be replaced.
The pretensioner has gone off and it is a one shot deal. It will turn the air bag light on if it is bad.
I suspected this, but wasn't sure. Will a junk yard seat belt work, and make the light go out, or is this a "programmed to specific vehicle" thing. Also, is it just the seat belt, or is there a pre-tensioner separately that needs replacing, what about the sensor that triggered the pre-tensioner?
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Every car is different, but a compatible seatbelt should work, but you still will have to have someone 'reset' the airbag system to let it know you have a new part in place. Some vehicles require a new airbag module (computer) anytime an airbag or seatbelt pre-tensioner fires...Ask any body shop and they can look up the vehicles 'rules' for you in their estimating system...
Don't cheap out on the safety parts. Rad support, aftermarket grill and sheetmetal, ok. But go dealer on the safety hardware and reset. It may save someone's life, and it's neat to see that it did it's job already.... staged deployment... belt first, before bags. cool.
Originally Posted By: meep
Don't cheap out on the safety parts. Rad support, aftermarket grill and sheetmetal, ok. But go dealer on the safety hardware and reset. It may save someone's life, and it's neat to see that it did it's job already.... staged deployment... belt first, before bags. cool.
Well, I've been doing due diligence and researching just that. It looks like there is a reputable company called airbag systems that not only will reset my airbag computer, but sells the igniters to rebuild the pre-tensioner. The cost saving vs replacing those parts is tremendous, and I am one that totally believes in fixing rather than replacing wherever possible. The igniters are $15 and they show you how to do it, it's not rocket science. The computer reset is $50.
Don't cheap out on the safety parts. Rad support, aftermarket grill and sheetmetal, ok. But go dealer on the safety hardware and reset. It may save someone's life, and it's neat to see that it did it's job already.... staged deployment... belt first, before bags. cool.
Well, I've been doing due diligence and researching just that. It looks like there is a reputable company called airbag systems that not only will reset my airbag computer, but sells the igniters to rebuild the pre-tensioner. The cost saving vs replacing those parts is tremendous, and I am one that totally believes in fixing rather than replacing wherever possible. The igniters are $15 and they show you how to do it, it's not rocket science. The computer reset is $50.
Wreck pics please!
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