Airbag light on + strange error codes

[The General]

I wonder if anyone has come across this before.

My son purchased a VS11 Commodore in March, it needed some work on it.

The Air bag light came on after the dash was repaired and reinstalled.

My mechanic has used the scan tool to find the problem, unfortunately the only thing that shows up are random codes that he's never seen before, and that are not in the scan tool manual.

The codes show for only a second, and then disappear.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[mpower]

strange codes normally indicate a fault with the computer, module or wiring.

I self diagnosed faulty ABS module and then made the mistake of going to a workshop to get them to confirm - never again, they thought it was all kinds of things because the faulty module caused the systems to go haywire so I just took the car back and fixed it myself.

Experience > Scantool+Mechanic.

I don't know the VS myself however I would be pretty sure there will be a procedure to follow to identify the fault. Someone here may be able to help.

 

[IBLOWN]

The ABS light is on because the cluster was removed. Needs to be reset, theres nothing wrong with the airbag itself, although the airbags wont work when the light is lit...

I only take into account trouble codes read from the cluster by bridging pins 5&6. I found scan tools bring up all sorts of weird and wonderful things.

 

[Brett_jjj]

strange codes normally indicate a fault with the computer, module or wiring.

I self diagnosed faulty ABS module and then made the mistake of going to a workshop to get them to confirm - never again, they thought it was all kinds of things because the faulty module caused the systems to go haywire so I just took the car back and fixed it myself.

Experience > Scantool+Mechanic.

I don't know the VS myself however I would be pretty sure there will be a procedure to follow to identify the fault. Someone here may be able to help

The ABS light is on because the cluster was removed. Needs to be reset, theres nothing wrong with the airbag itself, although the airbags wont work when the light is lit...

I only take into account trouble codes read from the cluster by bridging pins 5&6. I found scan tools bring up all sorts of weird and wonderful things

^^Air bag light is SRS, antilock brakes are ABS.. He's talking about SRS codes not ABS codes.
What codes are showing up mate?

 

[BlackVXGTS]

Can you expand on what you mean by repairing the dash? If you mean repairing/replacing the instrument cluster, that won't cause an airbag code on a VS unless you have damaged the clock spring coil or disconnected an airbag connection (yellow wires) without having first disconnected the battery (and waited for at least 15 seconds for the energy storage devices within the airbag module to lose their charge).

On a VS, the engine/trans related codes are stored in the PCM/ECM/ECU (displayed by bridging pins five and six), ABS codes are stored in the ABS control module (displayed by bridging pins five and 12), and Airbag (SRS) codes are stored in the airbag SDM (Sensing and Diagnostic Module) and need to be displayed/reset with an appropriate scan tool. Not all scan tools can display/reset airbag codes.

 

[Wayno77]

Had the same problem with my vs ran fine although was pretty certain the air bag wouldn't deploy. $359 and a new ecu later the light turned off after an unrelated no injector spark. $750 all up at the auto electricians to get fixed and identify more issues as the abs light is now constantly on

 

[chriso-k]

Correction guys! If the instrument cluster has been replaced, this will definitely cause SRS codes to be logged in the air bag module. The air bag module is re configured through the instrument cluster and if this is replaced, then the module will require re configuring back into the system. Re configuring refers to how many "loops" the car has. Different option levels have varying loop levels. Such as basic executive up to the Calais model etc. The other thing to note is live data. Looking at the SRS live data is a good tool for diagnosing problems. This will show you the workings of all the SRS related components. Best way to diagnose the air bag system, is with a reputable scan tool. Some scan tools simply don't have the correct software for complete and accurate communication with certain systems. Example, I scanned a car the other day with one scaaner and it showed thumbs up, as in no problems. I used a different brand scanner and it actually picked up a logged code. It turned out the second scan tool was correct. I use the the Tech2 on these cars, which is the dealer level scanner.

 

[The General]

The odometer had stopped working, so we had to pull the cluster out to replace the cogs.
The airbag light was not on before we pulled the cluster.

My mechanic mentioned that the airbag system is a closed unit without any interference from other systems.
So it came as a surprise to see these "funny codes" pop up.

 

[chriso-k]

Provided nothing has been damaged when you played around with the cluster, try having the SRS system reset, this may be all that's required. You must use a scan tool that's compatible. Most importantly, ensure the SRS warning light (on the dash) is not illuminated constantly when the car is running as the SRS system is disabled under this state and will not deploy in a collision.

 

[IBLOWN]

Airbag I meant, not ABS lol. Just needs to be reset.