Service of Air Bag Equipped Vehicles Involved In Collisions

While servicing an air bag equipped vehicle that has been involved in a collision, check sensors and wiring.

CRASH SENSORS
Vehicle sensor orientation is critical for proper system operation. An arrow indicating the forward direction is located on each sensor. If a vehicle equipped with an air bag system is involved in a crash where the fenders or grille area have been damaged, ensure that body structure in the area of the sensor mounting is restored to its original condition. Inspect the sensor mounting brackets and sensor wire harness pigtail for damage. Damaged sensors should be replaced whether or not the air bag is deployed. Undamaged sensors will reset automatically after an impact and can be reused.

DAMAGED WIRING
Inspect the sensor wiring and the wiring harness for any damage that may have occurred due to the accident. Replace any damaged wiring, terminals, insulation or connectors as required.

CAUTION: Before attempting diagnostic proveout, check for wiring shorts that could cause the diagnostic monitor thermal fuse to open, to avoid unnecessary replacement.






Splices are required in adjacent wiring, the splices should be staggered 50 mm (2 inches) from each other.

A waterproof butt-splice connector should be used on all wiring serviced in the engine compartment. A heat shrink nylon splice prevents water, salt, condensation and heat from affecting the serviced wiring.

The inner wall of the splice connector is lined with an adhesive that melts when heated with a heat gun and flows under pressure from the tubing, sealing the splice. The connectors can be crimped with a standard insulated connector crimping tool. The splices are color coded for gauge identification, and are transparent to allow inspection of the finished splice.

STEERING COLUMN AND CLOCKSPRING
If the collision involved air bag deployment, the steering column may have been loaded sufficiently to deform steering column mounting brackets or damage column wiring. An inspection should be made of the column structure and clockspring wiring to ensure that any damaged components are replaced.

AIR BAG SYSTEM
After all service, verify the air bag indicator. This means turn the ignition switch to RUN and count the flashes only after the code (series of flashes) has cycled twice. If the air bag indicator comes on continuously for six seconds and then goes out, and if no codes flash within 30 seconds, the system is functioning properly and all malfunctions have been serviced. Refer to Testing and Inspection. Testing and Inspection