EdinLA-TL

Hi folks,

I've got an '08 TL base, 5AT. I've had it for a couple of weeks now. My question is about the passenger airbag. When I'm driving by myself and I first start the car, there is a message on the right side of the gauges (near temperature gauge) that says Passenger Airbag Off and right above the emergency flasher button it says Passenger Airbag Off. They come on for about 15 seconds when starting the car. That's as expected since no one is in the passenger seat.

But, when my wife (130 lbs) is in the passenger seat, I get the exact same message. I would think it would say Passenger Airbag On. I have no SRS warnings/faults showing up in the gauge cluster when starting the car. I'm just wondering if the passenger airbag system is working properly or not. I know there is a pressure switch in the seat that's supposed to sense when someone is sitting in the seat and enable/disable the airbag accordingly. If this switch was faulty, I would think I'd get an SRS warning in the gauge cluster. Any thoughts? Is there a special switch somewhere that permanently disables the passenger airbag?

Ed

EdinLA-TL

Correction. The light by the temp gauge that comes on says Side Airbags Off, not Passenger.

NYzProtege

if its like my 2008 type-s which only has 23,000 miles I took it to the dealer and they replaced one of the seatbelts and it went away... it was covered by the warrenty so I didnt pay a dime. idk if its the same light that I had on.

NYzProtege

EdinLA-TL

I checked earlier today and the warning light stays on for about 5 seconds, then goes out. However, it seems to stay on longer than the other warning lights that come on for a short time when starting the car.

invalidalias

I'd get a carfax on the vehicle. It may have been in a collision and the frame got tweaked so the passenger seat weight sensors are showing bad readings turning the light on and off. the seat weight sensors are actually the seat rails that the seat moves forward and backward on.

Where did you purchase the car??

EdinLA-TL

I bought it from a private party but the previous owner got it from an Acura dealer and it's a CPO car. The CarFax is clean.

I would think that if the weight sensor was bad, I'd get an SRS fault.

SoftwareDrone

I have the same problem. The airbig refuses to arm when my (100 pound) girlfriend is in the passenger seat.

EdinLA-TL

I'm glad I'm not the only one. The only thing the owner's manual says is to do is move the seat farther back. I think the sensor is in the seat rails.

invalidalias

the only way to know for sure is to take it to the stealership to get the sensors checked. They may need to be calibrated or replaced.

SoftwareDrone

I did that. They hooked it up to the calibration machine right there in front of us - and said it was calibrated properly. However, when I was given a new TL (loaner), there was no such problem for her in the passenger seat...

EdinLA-TL

I took my car to the dealer and they re-initialized the system and re-calibrated the sensors. It seems to be o.k. but the Passenger Airbag Off light doesn't stay on after the start-up self-check sequence completes when the seat is empty, as one would expect it too. The Service Manager said the Passenger Airbag Off light isn't supposed to stay on when no one is in the seat, so I'm wondering what the point of the light being there is in the first place. I suppose that if the passenger seat is empty, it doesn't really matter if the airbag goes off or not.

Cbronze_06TL

i would recommend to bring your car to Acura to have it check out. Unless you have OBDII reader and able to read the code and flash if necessary.

Will Y.

The light is to tell you that it detects weight on the seat, but the airbag is DEactivated-- this is to keep the airbag from opening if you have a baby in a baby seat in the front for some reason (such seats are supposed to go in the back).
If you put books or some weight on the seat which triggers the light, then the airbag is deactivated.

If a person heavier than 50 lbs sits in the seat, the light should remain off, signifying that the passenger airbag remains active.

The only times that passenger airbag light should go on are during the self-check in the start-up sequence and when some light weight is placed on the seat.

EdinLA-TL

That makes sense. If the weight sensor threshold is 65lb, and I put something that weighs under 65lbs on the seat, then the Passenger Airbag Off light should stay on after the start-up sequence. That means it should stay off if the passenger seat is empty or someone over 65lbs is sitting in it.
Thanks for clearing that up.