Hi all,
I am looking for driver knee, steering wheel, and left side curtain airbags for 2019 RDX. I can buy them from APFL, Curry or other online sellers for about $2K which is still a hefty chunk of cash. I also searched Car-parts and eBay, their prices for salvage vehicle airbags are pretty close to the price of new airbags...and selection for 2019+ is almost non-existent

Any other sources I should consider?

 

You may want to stay away from used/salvaged airbags for these reasons. Do you really risk your life just to save a few bucks? Many reputable junkyards won't sell airbags.

 

Isn't finding the air bags a problem for the shop that's fixing your wrecked car and paying for it a problem for your insurance company?

 

I'm guessing this is a person rebuilding a salvaged title car that was already totaled by an insurance company and they are now looking to rebuild it as cheap as possible and sell it for as much as they can to maximize their profit on flipping it.

 

And he doesn't have a cousin with a chop shop? These kids. Whatcha gonna do?

 

That is a very reasonable assumption. After all, who else would want to buy such things? If they were defective they would be replaced under warranty. If the owner was having the car fixed the insurance company would be putting new ones in.

You will often see late model cars being written off as "totals" even though the damage may at first not seem too severe. However, as this guy is finding out; replacing all the safety system parts gets real expenisve. Not to mention if the air bags have deployed this vehicle likely has a lot of crushed structure as that is what absorbs the impact. All of these are expensive to properly repair. On top of that there is the liability attached to doing such work. For an insurance company its often better to just write the thing off as a total. There are still a LOT of good parts that can be salvaged off a total and safely sold, BUT air bags are not on that list!

My sister, against my advice, bought a rebuilt totaled Honda Fit some years back in an effort to save a thousand bucks. The car deteriorated quickly with many problems including the air bag light coming on, paint falling apart, and many electrical problems. (Likely the thing got a lot of water in it sitting outside after the crash). She tried but failed to sell it and ended up giving it away to her daughter who gave it to her estranged husband! My sister took a bit hit on buying a car like that to save a buck. I would NEVER buy a rebuilt salvaged vehicle.

 

I asked a specific question, if you have nothing to contribute to the original topic don't highjack this thread with your opinions on unrelated topic.

 

If you are planning to rebuilding an unsafe vehicle using unsafe secondhand airbags then advising you of the pitfalls is on-topic.

 

Somebody is butt hurt! OUCH!!!!

 

On the 23rd and 24th of Jan, the OP introduced himself as a new owner because he needed a kid friendly car.

On the 25th, he posts a request for a bunch of parts.

He clearly bought a salvaged car and is trying to fix it on the cheap and flip it. Does NJ have laws against curbstoning? I'd bet this isn't the first time he rebuilt a car using bailing wire and chewing gum.

 

He can ask a question, it’s his business why he needs parts.

 

Well, I tend to assume the best out of people until they prove me wrong, so I'll take it on faith that OP is planning to drive the car after he fixes it. Perhaps with his family on board.

In which case, I'll second the friendly advice that of all the things on a car, air bags are the ones I would never screw around with. Buy new replacements, or walk away. They are explosive devices; treat them with due respect.

I did a little DIY body work in my youth, but mostly to deal with rust, not collision damage. I'd suggest having a qualified body shop inspect the vehicle before buying a single part. At minimum, get alignment checked. If it's still within specs that might rule out major structural damage. If alignment is off, it would be prudent to dig deeper before starting any other work.

$0.02

 

Correct. The issue with airbags is that they are highly susceptible to moisture and no junkyard or eBay store can be trusted to store them properly.

Given the parts that the OP is looking for, there is a good chance that there is structural damage.