Airbag Light On - Time to buy a Durametric
 

Washed the Boxster and took it out for a drive this afternoon. About a half mile down the road the airbag light came on. Great. I just completed an hour of reading prior post on the airbag light here and on other forums. Bottom line is I need a tool to diagnose what is causing the fault and a tool to reset the warning light - a Durametric fits bill. I emailed them to see if they had any refurbished units available for sale and they don't. So, $301.22 including shipping for the enthusiast model; or, I could find a used one and save some money .. or, wait for them to have a refurbished unit for sale. Not sure what I'll do yet. Oh, and this thread played in to my decision.... thanks for that!

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/61431-how-many-have-durametric.html

There is one for sale over on Rennlist for $200 with 2 VINs remaining:

Durametric Cable - Rennlist Discussion Forums

Last time my airbag light came on it was a sticky seat belt receptacle release. The passenger side unit was half way depressed.

You'll appreciate your durametric when crap like this happens in the future. The durametric tool told me it was the passenger seat belt receptacle and I looked down and saw it had not sprung back up into the normal position.

It shows a lot of other stuff that I don't understand, but it's good to know it's there when I need it.

I think I need to bite the bullet and get one soon. 2 months after I bought the car I was playing with the passenger side belt and the light came on. I replaced the receptacle and lived with the light on for the next 3 years. When I brought it to the shop a couple months ago, I had them reset it for me and for 24 hours I got to drive without the light until it came back on again. You'd think I'd be used to it by now, but not really.

Cool, thanks. One of my concerns is getting the latest version. Below is a history of the versions, their numbers and what changes were made. If I buy a 5.xxx can it be upgraded it to a 6.xxx version. Or, an early 6.xxx to the latest 6.5.2.0 version?

Porsche Diagnostic Software Version History | Durametric

Before I got my Durametric, I considered putting some black electrical tape over the lit icon... I cannot stand to see idiot lights on the dash illuminated.

I think the "new" version of the cable is compatible with all of the software versions. The "old" version of the cable is only compatible with the old software. This cable looks like the new one (it looks just like mine). I thought there was a page on the durametric site that talked about the old cable and how to tell the difference and when they switched over to the new cable but I can't find it. Since the v6 software came out late 2009/early 2010 I would imagine that any cables sold in the last 5-6 years are the new cables.

This KB article shows how to tell if it is a new v6 cable, looks like the one on RL is:

https://portal.teamsupport.com/knowledgebase.aspx?organizationid=9604&ArticleID=1 13979&TicketType=Ticket

haha..... so funny. I've done it since I've owned the box. But instead of electrical tape, I have a page of smile stickers in the perfect circle that will cover the airbag light, and just spray painted it black.:p

If you purchase a version 5 cable, you would have to send it to Durametric to have them upgrade it to version 6, so you are better off getting a 6 to begin with. The software is updated several times a year, but the updates are free.