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How does a repairer know if the car they are repairing has an airbag that is armed and ready to work when needed?
The most common test is to turn on the ignition switch and watch the dash for the airbag light to flash. In most cases, if a system has been tampered with or was improperly repaired, the light will not appear on the dash. Repairers also can use scan tools to read codes.
But those are not failsafe tests. Some Internet sites sell a switch that causes the airbag light on the dashboard to light up regardless of the condition of the airbag, according to Toby Chess, national director of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists.
If repairers have reason to believe that the airbag in a vehicle they are repairing is not working properly, but they aren’t certain, they could call an airbag specialist company, such as Airbag Service, a mobile electronics repair business.
The only way to make sure an airbag is armed and ready to work is to use scan tools and physically take the system apart and look at its components, according to Andrew Feldman, vice president of Airbag Specialists.
“Some of these frauds are fairly sophisticated,” Feldman says. “People can take resistors and put them in line to simulate airbag resistance. We use scan tools and we physically remove the module from the steering wheel and visually inspect the airbag to make sure it is intact.
The airbag diagnosis costs from $99 to $150, Feldman said.
