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MG MGF Technical - Passenger airbag removal


Can anyone supply any more information here?

Have done some looking about to try and find a way of disabling the passenger airbag. An on/off switch would be ideal of course.

Firstly, I have found out that as much as my dealer would like to help, they can't. They can and will supply parts but will not undertake the job of fitting them.
The DVLA (I think it's them) get involved here as doing this sort of work will alter the car's certificate of conformity as originally supplied to the DVLA by Rover. ie. the DVLA know I have a passenger airbag and will have to be involved if it is disabled/removed.
As there are all sorts of legal issues surrounding this, the dealer is backing away from doing the work.

As far as I can see there are now tree options open to me:

i) Remove the passenger airbag and replace the loom with a driver-only loom. May have to replace the diagnostic control unit (DCU) also. To be confirmed.
I'm unsure if I legally have to tell the DVLA. I'm looking into this.

ii) Remove the passenger airbag and replace it with a resistor!! Take a look at these instructions: http://www.miata.net/garage/pass_airbag_rem.html
It seems like a possible solution but is untested in an MG/Rover.

iii) An extenstion to the above. Install a switch to switch between a resistor and an airbag to create an on/off switch for said passenger airbag. Very untested.

All of the above will probably have insurance implications.

However... is there anyone in the know that is able to shed any light on whether these ideas are viable or not?

Paul.
Paul Nothard

I always assumed - may be wrongly - the passenger airbag was an optional extra hence it is an addition to the orginal car design. Following on from this - not all cars have them so how do the DVLA know your particular car has one??

I can see MG not wanting to remove the main driver bag but can see no problem with the passenger one been removed or am I looking at it too simply??? A switch to disable it via MG will have a legal effect on them if there is an accident and you (or others who have the car after) try and claim from them but if it is completeley removed (with the wiring sorted correctly) it becomes an 'un-optional extra' car which many are.

Hope others can clear this up for you.

Keith
Keith Williams

Unfortunately 'logic' does not come into the equation on this one.

If you have the passenger air bag then you have a different system to the no-passeneger air bag system.

As I understand it to remove the passenger air bag you have to have the cars 'brain' reprogrammed otherwise it will show a fault and the whole system will be disabled.

There is much in the archives on this subject.

Ted
Ted Newman

There are many questions in the archive... but few answers.

Hence I'm looking into it again Ted. :-(

It is clear that there are two looms. One for single and one for double airbag systems. There may or may not be a separate "brain" (they call it a DCU) that needs replacing. MG Rover are stating that whilst technically possible, they cannot undertake this work as it involves the DVLA and 'legal stuff'.

I'm asking if anyone knows anything about this 'legal stuff' and/or anything about replacing the airbag with a suitably spec'd resistor to fool the DCI into thinking that an airbag is still there, and thus keep the whole system (pre-tensioners and driver's airbag) up and operational.

Would be cool if I could sort either or both out.

P.
Paul Nothard

I can't make any comments regarding the legal aspects of the SRS, but the resister idea seems to be the best one to me. If it were switchable, then obviously that'd be even more convenient - but I'd want some form of warning to tell me whether the airbag were operational or not: critical for the circumstances under which you'd want it switched off Paul.
Rob Bell

Found anywhere ...

......
put a potentiometer on the ECU side
of the airbag connector and adjust it until the airbag light wents out, thus
avoiding the danger of measuring the airbag resistance itself. Then
substitute a resistor for this value.
...

1/4Watt type with low resistance of app 3 to 5 Ohm may work (IMO).

HTH
Dieter
Dieter K.

I'd have to agree that a resistor would probably fix this; add a switch and a LED to show status and you may have a working solution.
But how do you know that the switch contacts wont bounce during a crash and allow the airbag to fire ?
Permanently replacing the airbag with a resistor and removing the airbag *should* give a more predictable result at the only time this system is used.
Steve

Here's someone who tried it on a miata
http://www.miata.net/garage/pass_airbag_rem.html
Steve

Hi Paul, have you got an infant Nothard to carry in the passenger seat then?
If so, well done :-)
jt
John Thomas

Indeed John. Due March. Thanks. :-)

I think it really depends on what voltages run through the system to fire the bag. Presumably they are relatively standard, and the Miata board comments apply?

Switches/LEDs. Good points Steve/Rob.
Easiest solution would be to have a very manual push connector (like under the seats in the same loom) instead of a switch. That would ensure no bounce and good contacts.
Position 1: Airbag connected. Exactly the same as it is now.
Position 2: Resistor connected along with some for of indicator (led?) to warn that the airbag has been disabled.

Hmmm... interesting. :-°

P.

Paul Nothard

I remember hiring a golf in Spain a few years ago, and there was a key switch in the door piller - this deactivated the pax airbag and put a light on the dashboard.

I now have a Megane ragtop, and on the dash is a light with a picture of a seat with a baby seat attached and the work OK. I guess at one time Megane's had a switchable pax airbag. Mine has no switch, but when I have some time, I will disconnect the pax airbag, work out the resistance required, then wire up a multi contact key switch which will, when ON divert airbag wiring to the resister and put +12v to a wire to the dash light.

I investigated the F set up and there are 2 DCU's, one for twin and one for single airbag vehicles.

Paul
Paul Lane

Forgot to mention the following Air Bag Switch company:-

http://www.airbagswitches.com/

Paul
Paul Lane

Aha!

So it may be possible to install a switch from a third party... or do it ourselves.

Shall chase any legal implications now.

Thanks Paul.

P.
Paul Nothard

A picture of it here: http://www.airbagswitches.com/switch_from_front_5.jpg

I guess the main reason for going for this is for convenience and the fact that it is guarded by a key [nice feature that].

Where would you mount it? It seems to be quite a large, bulky unit - in the glove box and have the remote indicator mounted somewhere on the dash board?
Rob Bell


Looks like it will cost a couple of hundred dollars to buy it and be shipped to the UK.

P.
Paul Nothard

Ouch. Is that value for money?
Rob Bell


No. But it's an "out the box" solution with safety issues being dealt with by the designers.

My guess is a parallel switchable resistor will do the same... but with more time and more risk involved.

Gotta weigh up the two and decide which way to go.

...after I fix the current problems with the car - mostly my own doing. Ooops. :-)

P.
Paul Nothard

This thread was discussed between 28/10/2003 and 04/11/2003

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