Passenger Airbag

bigjilm · 08-03-2012, 05:09 AM

I have a '11 335i Sedan with sport seats, and I've been having problems with the passenger airbag since I got the car. The dealer has taken at least 4 shots at fixing it, and pretty much gave up on it at this point.

The problem I'm having is that the "Airbag off" light often comes on while my wife is sitting in the seat. She's not a huge woman - 110 pounds, plus purse, but I was able to reproduce the problem once with me in the seat.

Done by my dealer so far:
-updated the software (twice? three times?)
-replaced the matt in the seat
-cleaned and reconnected the connector
-acted smug and told me it's normal
-acted really smug and told me that it couldn't be reproduced (twice?)
-scanned for codes and found nothing every single time

At this point, I notice it every 10th ride in car, but it could be happening more often and I don't notice. The light shuts off after a short while, which is normal for no passenger, so unless I'm watching for it I might miss it. Next time it happens, I'm going to try and snap a pic of her and the light, but I haven't seen it in a couple of weeks.

Anyone else have this problem?

Meeni · 08-03-2012, 07:02 AM

I had a similar problem:
Airbag and passenger light would turn on as a warning, there being a passenger or not. It happened twice, once it was because of the mat in the seat, second time because of electrical gremlins in the B-pilar wire routing.

bigjilm · 12-02-2012, 08:13 PM

I still have this problem, and I've been able to get a picture of the air bag disabled while my wife is in the seat. My dealer still has no idea how to fix it, and corporate told me they'd 'log the problem' and had no suggestions.

Question to the crowd - if BMW has had four shots at fixing this problem, and it has existed since the car was new, do I have any recourse here? Is there a lemon law in Canada that could get me some action?

08-03-2012, 05:09 AM	#1
bigjilm Private First Class 9 Rep 100 Posts Drives: '11 335i Sedan Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Toronto iTrader: (0)	Passenger Airbag - unfixable? I have a '11 335i Sedan with sport seats, and I've been having problems with the passenger airbag since I got the car. The dealer has taken at least 4 shots at fixing it, and pretty much gave up on it at this point. The problem I'm having is that the "Airbag off" light often comes on while my wife is sitting in the seat. She's not a huge woman - 110 pounds, plus purse, but I was able to reproduce the problem once with me in the seat. Done by my dealer so far: -updated the software (twice? three times?) -replaced the matt in the seat -cleaned and reconnected the connector -acted smug and told me it's normal -acted really smug and told me that it couldn't be reproduced (twice?) -scanned for codes and found nothing every single time At this point, I notice it every 10th ride in car, but it could be happening more often and I don't notice. The light shuts off after a short while, which is normal for no passenger, so unless I'm watching for it I might miss it. Next time it happens, I'm going to try and snap a pic of her and the light, but I haven't seen it in a couple of weeks. Anyone else have this problem?
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08-03-2012, 07:02 AM	#2
Meeni Gateropode 329 Rep 2,848 Posts Drives: BMW 330i 06 Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: TN iTrader: (0)	I had a similar problem: Airbag and passenger light would turn on as a warning, there being a passenger or not. It happened twice, once it was because of the mat in the seat, second time because of electrical gremlins in the B-pilar wire routing.
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12-02-2012, 08:13 PM	#3
bigjilm Private First Class 9 Rep 100 Posts Drives: '11 335i Sedan Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Toronto iTrader: (0)	I still have this problem, and I've been able to get a picture of the air bag disabled while my wife is in the seat. My dealer still has no idea how to fix it, and corporate told me they'd 'log the problem' and had no suggestions. Question to the crowd - if BMW has had four shots at fixing this problem, and it has existed since the car was new, do I have any recourse here? Is there a lemon law in Canada that could get me some action?
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