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YOUR RESEARCHAirbag check recommended by Porsche - 4 years???
Leading reported evidence
Inspect by an authorized
Performed · outcome unconfirmed
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0
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1
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Leading evidence: 'Inspect by an authorized' (no explicit attributable resolution; this is a reported action or suggestion). Across 1 matching discussions, the most frequently mentioned possible cause is 'cya' (1 discussions; 0 report identifying it and 1 suggest it). The most frequently discussed action is 'Check "' (1 discussions). For that action, 0 discussions report a resolution and 0 report an unsuccessful attempt. No action has an explicit, attributable resolution report under the current rules. These are forum reports and suggestions, not a confirmed diagnosis.
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Test without sending a long duration pulse of energy
Performed · outcome unconfirmed
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
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0
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1
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed
The sensors can not be tested without sending a long duration pulse of energy to them.
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Suspected cause
The whole idea of an airbag maintenance is probably a CYA for Porsche to avoid lawsuits but if you want to risk the life of you and your family over a few bucks please feel free to.
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Suggestion · Original poster
As part of the service, my dealer service tech is recommending that I have a $105 "Air Bag Check".
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Suggestion
A very worth while check no doubt, but its a bit steep at 105 bucks.
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Suggestion
If there is a fault in the wiring to any airbag component, a fully functioning airbag control unit would know this, store a fault in the control unit and set the airbag light.
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Suggestion
But if you insist that there is a air bag maintenance test, I will reveal the secret DIY test that can save you the $105 that a dealer charges to do the exact same test.
These are separate views of the same evidence. Frequency alone does not establish a fix, and these counts must not be added together.
cya
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Suspected cause
The whole idea of an airbag maintenance is probably a CYA for Porsche to avoid lawsuits but if you want to risk the life of you and your family over a few bucks please feel free to.
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25 eligible posts · 0 unverified posts · 1 discussions match the subject in their title or opening post.
Rennlist: 1 discussions
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So I am scheduling a service for an oil pressure failure code that just came on today. I'm also having a brake fluid flush and tech inspection for an upcoming DE.
As part of the service, my dealer service tech is recommending that I have a $105 "Air Bag Check". He says they send a false air bag deployment signal to the unit after disabling the airbags themselves to make sure the system works.
He claims that Porsche recommends this every four years.
I call BS on this as I believe it is every 10 years, but figured I'd check with the experts here on Rennlist for confirmation.
From my MY03 Owners Manual:
Airbag maintenance
In order to ensure long-term functioning, the airbag
system must be inspected by an authorized
Porsche dealer after 4, 8 and 10 years from the
date of manufacture shown on the safety compliance
sticker, and every 2 years thereafter.
Thanks for checking this! I'll be darned - I thought this was a creative service that they just made up, unless Porsche is doing this to help the dealers make money on 4, 8 and 10 year old cars.
Or maybe I'm just too cynical.
I'm not sure what kind of signal they can send to an airbag system to test it. The sensors can not be tested without sending a long duration pulse of energy to them. Airbag igniters can not be tested, well I suppose you could look for an open in there, but they don't do that for fear they will ignite. You could test the electronics but that still leaves two other items unkown, the impact sensor and the ignitors in the airbag module.
I guess it is some sense of security to have the system tested.
Hendrick Porsche I guess... they seem to always push this. I posted the same msg a while ago, when they were suggesting this to me. At that time the experts on the board decided this service was not necessary
Following my post:
https://rennlist.com/forums/996-forum/366445-need-some-quick-advice.html
I am looking at the 996 workshop manual in the Diagnostics/troubleshooting section 0 (69-01)
And it looks like the only time that one would actually test the airbag firing circuits is if the airbag fault warning light is on, or if the bags were deployed, and new bags are installed.
It sounds to me that you are paying $105 for someone to hook up a system tester to verify that there are no faults in the airbag subsystem. Of course you could do that yourself by verifying that the airbag fault light is not on.
The 4, 8, 10 yr. inspection is primarily a physical one to make sure the wiring is in good shape, and the bag and its enclosures are not compromised.
I would advise that if the airbag warning light has never been on, that you are just fine, and can save the $105, unless your dealer also tests your muffler bearings for the same price.
That is easy, all you need is either a Porsche System Tester or the Durametric diagnostic SW. Select the airbag module, read fault codes, clear fault codes. If the code will not clear, then you have a problem.
While I'm spending money on this, and the muffler bearings, I should have him make sure that the Fetzer valves are aren't full of gook, too, huh? [Blatant Fletch reference]
Thanks for the link Dutchie! Yes, this is Hendrick. I guess for the $105 I would have a certified technician point out that the system show no faults , but that my sunvisor airbag decals are not in proper operation, as the previous owner removed them.
The purpose of the airbag maintenance is to test the self diagnostics of the airbag control unit. You induce a fault and then check and make sure the airbag control unit sees the problem. A very worth while check no doubt, but its a bit steep at 105 bucks.
I think they are also running a Fall special on the Air Replacement Service. For $89.99 they will remove the hot Summer air from your tires and replace it with fresh, cool Fall air. That will help your tires maintain their proper pressure since the air inside the tires and the outside air temps will be similar.
So this check would be to make sure the fault indicator works? That doesn't prove that the airbags are in proper working order, just that the system would be able to detect the fault they trigger. As mentioned previously, it doesn't seem that you can induce every type of fault that the airbag system could encounter without triggering the airbags. For instance, how will I ever know the impact sensor in the bumper is really working or not, unless I crash into something?
The air bag monitoring circuitry self-tests itself every time the car is turned on. If you check the workshop manuals, you will see that there are no procedures for "inducing" a fault, only to diagnose a detected fault. These systems are completely closed ones, with all diagnostics performed automatically and continuously.
From a liability stand-point, the last thing manufacturer needs is some dumb-*** mechanic trying to simulate a faulty system, and in the process actually creating a faulty one.
But if you insist that there is a air bag maintenance test, I will reveal the secret DIY test that can save you the $105 that a dealer charges to do the exact same test.
1. Turn car on.
2. Observe if air bag light is on.
3. If light is not on, then air bag system is OK.
4. Turn car off.
Orient is 100% right on this...just another scam to take money from us...Oh yeah Tim...I saw a special on the air...You can get fresh
Colorado
air shipped free for $69.99.
Obviously you cant induce every single possible fault that might pop up. Thats impossible. The goal of the airbag maintenance is to ensure the system is electronically sound, which by the way is pretty much all thats possible short of actually crashing the car and seeing if if the airbags deploy. If there is a fault in the wiring to any airbag component, a fully functioning airbag control unit would know this, store a fault in the control unit and set the airbag light. What if the control unit for some freak reason lost its ability to diagnose itself and you never knew you had a problem? The whole idea of an airbag maintenance is probably a CYA for Porsche to avoid lawsuits but if you want to risk the life of you and your family over a few bucks please feel free to.
Yes you're correct. We know the airbag control units completes a self diagnostic every time the car starts. Say the control unit fails its self test and stores a fault saying so, but what if you're airbag light bulb in the instrument cluster is burnt out. Or, say the fault was for an open in the wiring for the side airbag. How would you ever know that you have a problem and that if you got in a wreck your side airbag wasn't going to deploy. Now there might be some people on these forums who every time they start their car watch the instrument cluster go through its bulb check and ensure every bulb is properly functioning. These people are ahead of the game and they can say almost for sure that there is no problem with their airbags since the light isn't on all the time, and the bulb is good. However, I'm guessing you don't since you left it out of your own asinine airbag maintenance plan.
Again, you're correct. There is no procedure in the manual for "inducing" a fault. If you need a shop manual to tell you how to safely induce a fault into the airbag system you may need some help with your objective thinking. How about pulling the plug connection under the seat? I think you could trust a "dumb *** mechanic" to unplug a connection. Hell you could probably even trust a PCA member to do that.
All airbag firing circuits are tested at every vehicle startup. If the airbag controller or any other fails, then the DME controller would see the fault at startup when it polls all of the subsystem controllers for their health. If any controller is unable to report its condition or a fault, then the CEL will light, and then it will be up to a human (or a DAM module
) to find the sick controller. While it is possible that a warning bulb may be burt out, it is a very low probability.
