1995hoo

My red airbag warning light is occasionally coming on (2004 TL with around 81,250 miles). Not constantly, not every time I drive the car, just sometimes, and sometimes it comes on at the end of a drive when I park the car (yesterday morning, for example, I drove my wife to the subway stop and the light came on when I parked in the driveway at home; last night, on the other hand, when I went to pick her up at the subway stop the light came on when I turned on the car and stayed on all the way home; then this morning it didn't come on at all).

The owner's manual simply says the light denotes a possible problem with the SRS system and to have the car serviced. My question is, does anyone know more specifically what the light might denote, and does anyone know whether it might be the sort of thing an extended warranty covers? I'm going to be due for routine service sometime between now and mid-June (I'd want to service it before a trip to Florida anyway) and I'd just as soon wait until I go in for the servicing to have the airbag issue checked. But I'm wondering if I'm taking a risk by not getting it checked out sooner.

Thanks in advance.

lilsid112

iTrader: (7)

Just get the code read to see which sensor is having the problem. I have a bit more milage then you but my car was throwing the 61-1 code for driver seat belt buckle. I had the dealer cover it under the lifetime warranty for the seatbelt assembly.

1995hoo

Thanks. I take it from what you've said that you don't think it would likely be a problem to wait another two or three weeks until the car dings at me for the regular servicing?

lilsid112

iTrader: (7)

Some problems are worse then others but you can just get it looked at next time your in for service. My light would turn on and off at the most random times. Hopefully its the same code that I had. If it is, make sure they cover it under warranty.

hirsch014

was just about to post about this to complain.... good timing, i'll just throw it into this post and you can take it as a cautionary tale.

my airbag light was recently doing the same thing, but because everyone had said its covered under lifetime warranty, i wasnt worried. but when i went in and paid the $100 diagnostic charge (jeesh!), they told me it was in fact that seat belt buckle, BUT that it would NOT be covered under warranty. the service rep spit out some line that he intended for me not to understand (but i'm not as car-dumb as he thought). he said there was recently a bulletin from acura that said there was an "extension of the opds system" and that the buckle sensor was now included as part of it, and because it was part of that system (as opposed to being part of the seat belt system) it would not be covered. I know theres an opds unit in the passenger seat, but I wanted to read more before I argued with the dealer. Even if they've extended the opds to include the seat belt buckle (although not sure how being buckled or not can be considered part of a person's position), its still a seat belt component, and the warranty is clear that it should be covered.

so i called acura client relations, who connected me to the district case manager. he first told me that it would NOT be covered because the warranty only covers mechanical defects, and this was an electrical problem (the sensor) and he would reimburse me the cost of the part only "in pursuit of customer satisfaction", and would see if the dealer would good-will the labor. the part, btw, was $78, the labor (including diagnostic fee) was an additional $170.

since the warranty is so clear, i called acura back, and they just redirected me back to the same person. this time he told me it wasnt covered because acura chose not to cover that particular component. so i turned the argument over to the wording of the warranty, and how its clearly covered by its wording. The sentence in the seat belt warranty he pointed to was this: "Acura will repair or replace, at its option, any Acura seat belt component...." His argument was that it was acura's "option" whether to cover each particular seat belt component or not. i'm no english major, but that pretty clearly means its acura's option to either replace or repair, not to cover it or not. he admitted the wording of the warranty wasnt very comprehensive, so he ended up reimbursing me for the labor too.

so all i'm trying to say is, dont be surprised if the dealer refuses to cover it, and be prepared to fight them on it. the warranty does clearly state that ANY seat belt component is covered, so dont give up. i wasnt surprised when the dealer tried to take advantage of me, but to have to argue multiple times with client relations over something so trivial was aggravating. it might be easier to have your warranty booklet in hand at the dealer so you can point out the "any component" part...its on p.30 in mine.

1995hoo

Thanks. I will pull out the warranty book and take a look. I have a separate extended warranty as well that has another year and a half (or 39,000 miles) and that company has been pretty good about covering things so far (most recently the hood struts), but it never hurts to have extra information.

lilsid112

iTrader: (7)

It might have if you can get the code read first before going in. In my situation I had my buddy read the code and clear it. When I was making my appointment for the 105k (did it early due to a squeaking pulley), I told him the exact code and that I wanted it done under warranty. My SA knows I'm a car guy and doesnt give me the run around or recommend any services anymore. Any ways, best of luck getting everything taken care of!

1995hoo

Thanks again for the tips. It just dinged at me today that the B2 servicing is due soon, so I'll try to get it done within the next two weeks and I'll have the airbag checked out then. Based on some of your comments I've started paying close attention to everything I do prior to the light coming on and I've noticed that it seems to happen most often when I take off my seatbelt after I park the car (I park, set the handbrake, shift into first gear, then take off my seatbelt), and the odd thing is that the light seems to come on when I let go of the belt after it's retracted. Weird.

Guess I'll find out sometime in the next two weeks. The main reason I was waiting to do anything was to find out what service it was going to want. Might as well get that done before driving 1500 to 2000 miles next month!

05 NHB

Same problem here. Mine was the drivers seat belt buckle. 05 TL w/70k+ miles. Covered under warranty. Seatblets are are covered for life on our cars. Dealer replaced free of charge.

1995hoo

Thanks again for the comments. The car is at the Acura dealer now and indeed it was the driver's side buckle. Warranty covers it, no problems there; the guy said it's something they've been seeing more often lately. Only problem from my point of view was that they had to order the part and it won't come until tomorrow. The 2012 TSX loaner car they gave me is a nice enough vehicle and quite comfortable, but the automatic transmission drives me nuts. I always have trouble driving those things because I kick them down without meaning to do so.

lilsid112

iTrader: (7)

Im glad to hear that its being covered!

techguy

Mine only lights up when there is a front passenger. I checked for codes OBD and no codes there. The light remains on even if the passenger departs and I have not shut off the engine. If I restart and there is no passenger, the airbag light does not come on. If it is NOT the buckle, I know the dealership will charge me.

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

You wont find the codes thru an OBD scanner. IIRC, there is a different scanner to diagnose it with.

Indy04TL

I have a 04 TL with 82K miles. Was having same problem as OP. took it to dealer and they diagnosed it as bad front seat seatbelt belt buckles. They ordered both (took 2 days) and replaced them at no cost to me under warranty.

MandoTL

Same with me. My light kept returning every few day for the last year. Finally the last 4-5mos. it would turn on every time someone sat in the passenger seat; upon finding similar threads here and checking warranty information with my dealer and the symptoms I was having it should be covered.

There was a $57 diagnostic charge to check it, but they did tell me that if it was in fact my suspicions of the the passenger belt buckle I would not be charged the fee, but if it wasn't related they would charge me.

Happy to find that the symptoms I was having was in fact a failed passenger belt buckle, I told them just test if for yourself, it occurs 100% every time.
Its a faulty belt buckle. NO CHARGE TO ME. Its covered under the warranty.

My service advisor at my local dealer agreed and ordered a new one for me and getting it installed this week.

Never had any problems with my dealer, very helpful and fair, and don't try to push for extra services anymore since I have given them hell when I first started taking it in for service and they tried to sell me extra services I didn't need.

xKryToN_23

I have the same problem on my car also. Everytime when someone sit in my passenger seat, my sensor will come on. Will it still be covered if my car is over 126,000 miles?

MandoTL

Yes, if it is in fact the belt buckle, it should be covered under their unlimited Belt Warranty.

I'm at 147k miles on my TL, and my dealer is covering the labor and part cost. So I'm happy they are covering it, the $57 diagnostic fee was never charged to me, but I know some people like others stated above that your charged for the service.

They find the problem is the belt buckle but wont replace it under warranty. I would make a case with Acura Corp.

MandoTL

UPDATE:

I got my belt buckle finally replaced after so long that SRS appeared on the dash.

They left my car dirty, leaving very dark black marks where their shoes were, they gave me a loaner. I'll have to clean it but at least its a new buckle and it feels so tight, hard to wiggle around compared to my driver side buckle.

I'm a happy camper.

OH and to add. I checked how much it would have cost parts/labor for this replacement was $168 bucks. In case others wanted to know the cost.

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

^ Thats good to know. I know mine will light up every once in a blue moon but it goes away once I turn off the car and crank it up again.

MandoTL

Thats what mine did but many "blue moons" ago. lol

Then sure enough months later it continued to appear every time someone was seated in the passenger seat.

They did forget to peal off the sticker stating "please remove after installation"
I did it for them. Glad they didn't fight me on this issue compared to a few other members having their dealer replace it under warranty.

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

Good thing you were under warranty. FML my warranty expired 2 months ago :/

Oh well if I got to fix it down the road; I know what to do.

MandoTL

What I meant by warranty was I got it replaced under Acura's Lifetime Seatbelt Warranty.

I am way out of warranty for power train or electrical. I'm at 147k miles now.

Since the light kept appearing every time, I called asking questions regarding their seatbelt warranty for my car, and the symptoms I was having.

They asked me to bring it in for a diagnostics fee ($58). If it was NOT related to the seat belt buckle like I told them, I would be charged the fee.

Sure enough I was right and they found it was a failed belt buckle. Ordered me the part (special order) at their expense under the Seat Belt Warranty and NO charge was applied to me for the diagnostic.

Yay! but I guess it would cost about $258 total for them to diagnose, part and labor.

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

Oh ok I misunderstood

That's good to know

Thx

MandoTL

No problem.

With so much safety and feature tech stuff in our cars, stuff is bound to fail but there are ways to see if it can get fixed at dealers expense.

Now I just need to replace my driver's side mirror, its loose for some reason.

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

^ check the bolts that hold them in place; which will require you to remove the interior door panel.

MandoTL

Its not the side mirror housing, its the glass that is loose and creaking on highway speeds.

I even see it wiggle as if its going to come off, I thought for the longest the rattle/creaking was the housing as other have stated but its actually the glass that is make the noise.

I just plan to replace it with a new glass ($50) through Acura anyways since the mirror heater has already left a burnt coloration on the very bottom edge of the glass.

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

Oh that sucks.......well at least you will be knock out 2 issues with 1.

MandoTL

Yup. Just have to order the glass, hope I can get a discount through my local dealer where I got my car serviced back home(Oxnard) compared to the the closest SD Acura dealer. They suck at helping their cusotmers out at all.

2004acuratlgreen

Hi, I have that exact same issue. Can you reply back and let me know what part malfunctioned and was it covered under the lifetime seatbelt warranty. Thanks

Chad05TL

I think I know the problem. Its subway

2004acuratlgreen

what got in there, the chicken sub?

imj0257

iTrader: (1)

Just started lighting up to me. Reading here I knew it had to be the belt sensor.

Dropped it off and indeed it was the sensor. Getting fixed for free, and in the meantime I get a TLX for a few days.. it's ok..

lians60

Having the same issue. It's intermittent. Would the Acura techs be able to diagnose the issue without the light on?

mau108

Yes because the once the code is triggered its stored even if the light is off. You can read it with a HDS.

lians60

Bumping this up. Spoke to Acura dealer, they mentioned that they will be charging a diagnostic fee of $120 and if they do find out its the seat belt buckle that they will change the buckle for free under the warranty. However, they mentioned that the diagnostic fee will still be charge. Are they trying to screw me? This is Acura of Valley Stream in Long Island. Additionally, i'm curious if anyone in the NYC area has had success with a dealer who took care of this issue without any diagnostic fee being charge. Thanks in advance!

2004acuratlgreen

Yes, they are. Go to a different dealer. Also, in my case, I had called ahead to my dealer (not in your area of the state) and told him, I would like to get this taken care of in one visit, so could he please order the seat buckle in my interior color before han, so you have it in stock. They agreed. The only work around I could suggest is to tell them your already had the code read, but you're going to have to isolate which buckle it is, driver or pass. In my case, when only the driver was seated no air bag malfunction. When a passenger was also seated and buckled in, airbag indicator illuminated on cash. I had this discussion with my dealer explaining, I already had it diagnosed and told him the code 62-10 indicated it was the right front seat belt buckle malfunction. Funny, when i showed up for the work, the parts desk guy started to give me that "look", but then i told him the guys name who cleared this already and it just fell into place. Hope that helps.