Airbag light....Seat sensor

[Tingle91]

Hi,

Does anyone know if it is possible to turn off (using star or otherwise) the seat recognition sensor in a W246 b class? Having some problems with one and thinking if it is just permanently disengaged it will be best as obviously in the event of a crash the airbag will always deploy then. Also is there anyone around the Wirral or Liverpool area who can do this?

Thanks

 

[whitenemesis]

If you turn it off, surely the airbag won't deploy? If the system doesn't recognize the seat as occupied won't it disable the airbag?
Not sure how you would stand come MoT time ..

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Why dont you get the sensor fixed?

 

[Martin 1]

Sounds like the most obvious solution, it's a Merc after all, not an Astra !

 

[Major774]

Not sure on a B Class but I know STAR can turn on/off the seat recognition notification on a W211 E Class.

I used STAR to turn it back on as the previous owner disabled it.

 

[Tingle91]

If you turn it off, surely the airbag won't deploy? If the system doesn't recognize the seat as occupied won't it disable the airbag?
Not sure how you would stand come MoT time ..

I believe it is a child seat recognition sensor largely so if it senses a weight under a certain amount it won't deploy incase there is a child seat there however under any other circumstance the airbag deploys.

 

[Tingle91]

Why dont you get the sensor fixed?

It's not my car. The owner is trying to find the cheapest way to get it through an MOT as they are tied into the payments with it and are struggling as it is.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

A new sensor will be maybe £100 max? Getting someone to code out an Airbag will cost more & highly unlikely they would even go near that part of the system as it's borderline illegal

 

[AMGeed]

SRS seat emulators are available that simulate the seat occupancy sensor works correctly but are only supposed to be used as a short term fix.
I won't post a link as I think it would be irresponsible to condone it's use.

 

[markjay]

I believe it is a child seat recognition sensor largely so if it senses a weight under a certain amount it won't deploy incase there is a child seat there however under any other circumstance the airbag deploys.

The Front Passenger Occupancy Sensor is meant to stop the front passenger airbag from deploying unnecessarily in the event of a crash, thus reducing the repair costs. It is operated by a sensor mat inside the front seat, that activates the front passenger airbag.

It is a slightly different system to the Child Seat Recognition system, where the front passenger airbag is disabled by a computer chip incorporated into the MB-Approved child seat. The chip will disable the airbag in spite of the fact that the sensor mat might see the seat as occupied due to the baby's weight.

It may be possible to disable the Child Seat Recognition system - I do not know - but I don't think you can disable the Front Passenger Occupancy Sensor because there would not be any logic in doing so (effectively telling the passenger airbag to deploy even if the seat is unoccupied).

There are cheap emulators on eBay that will cheat the car into thinking that the front passenger seat is occupied at all times, meaning that in the event of a crash the passenger airbag will always deploy, even if the front seat is unoccupied.

It's OK to use it for diagnosis purposes (i.e. proving that the SRS warning is caused by a faulty sensor mat), but I would not use it as substitute to a proper repair.

Firstly, introducing a cheap chinese component into a car safety system is always going to be the cause for a nagging doubt: will the SRS system work properly in the case of a crash?

Then, if the car is involved in a sole-driver crash and the repair bill includes a hefty cost for passenger airbag, the insurer might start asking some very uncomfortable questions.