Can I temporarilly remove the passenger airbag?
 

I'm in a pickle. My wife took my truck to work today so all I have is her Boxster. I have to take my grandson to an appointment this afternoon, but we don't have the Porsche child seat. I'm thinking I can unplug the battery for awhile then manually unplug the passenger airbag. When I plug the battery back in, I think it will disable the entire airbag system because of the fault it finds with the passenger bag. Is this correct?

I have the Durametric tool to turn off the airbag fault code when I reconnect everything later so that's not a problem.

Thanks for the help! :cheers:

I'm interested in this solution too as I definitely don't need a whole new car seat to take the kids somewhere


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Hi,

should work.

But always disconnect the car battery before doing any work on the passengers airbag – disconnecting and connecting. That is very important. Also remove the key from the ignition lock.

If the airbag isn't present you'll get a warning light in the dash. Also you'll get an DTC which can be erased later on via Durametric.

Regards, Markus

I would like to know how to do this also.... would you be able to put together a step by step DIY ?
Thanks...

I disconnect the battery for about 1/2 an hour before touching the airbag connections or removing the seats. Don't want that thing to go off in my face while I'm working on it. Thanks!

Here's a quick "how to":

1) Disconnect the battery and leave it for a minimum 10 minutes (preferably 30) to clear out any residual power.
2) Go under the passenger side dash and you'll see a yellow electrical connector from the airbag. Pull it out and it's disconnected.
3) Reconnect the battery and you're good to go.
4) Do the same steps to reconnect it later.

WARNING: This turns off the entire airbag system since there will be a fault condition.

You will need the Durametric tool to turn off the fault code when you plug it back in or pay a dealer to do it.

You can go here and order a Baby / Child Seat Belt Clip (about $50 shipped to the US) that plugs in under the seat to turn the airbag off. I just don't have enough time to wait, but I ordered one so I don't have to do this again. Seats Baby & Child

I wonder if the is something to plugin there that will make the sytem think that the airbag is present like a resistor or something

just take out the fuse, instead of going thru this truble.
and yes. in theory once the airbag is removed, you can measure the resistance on it, and replace it with same value resistor.
same thing can be done with the seat belt receptacle to avoid the beeping noise when not using the seatbelt

One thing to mention:

Because the airbag system won't work, don't have an accident. Over here in Germany you also won't have any insurance if you manipulate your airbag system and have a seroius accident. So i wouldn't recommend to do it the way deliriousga suggested it.

There was a Porsche conversion kit for the 986 with a an additional child seat and a switch that was connected to an additional buckle that was mounted below the seat. If you had connected the seat to the buckle the passenger airbag was deactivated. This was confirmed with a 3 seconds blinking airbag sign in the dash if you turn on ignition.

Regards, Markus

I don't suggest this as something to do at all times, only if it's an emergency and you have to get somewhere with a kid in the car and don't have the key to turn off the passenger airbag only. You should get the airbag key or the bar or the Porsche child seat if you're going to do it more than once. That's why I just ordered the key.

I don't have any kids, so please forgive my reasoning...

If the child is so small that s/he needs a car seat, could you not just have him/her curl up on the floor, and then surround him/her with bubble wrap, pieces of foam and/or crushed-up newspaper?

Also, it seams that you might still have a 1992 model still for sale? I might be interested.

Three points...

1. Deactivating the airbag system this way may void your insurance completely. In an emergency get a rental or a taxi
2. If you have a pet that rides in the passenger seat, the airbag will injure / kill it in an accident
3. When you install the passenger airbag deactivation bar, you'll need to program the car to recognize its there

BTW: Check with the dismantlers for the deactivation bar and buckle. I got mine for $50 a couple of years ago.

Airbagsystems.com will make an air bag shunt for you. I haven't installed it yet but I ordered one when I installed a momo steering wheel. They also make them for passenger sides. Just give them the year and model of your boxster. Much cheaper to buy a resistor and do it yourself but I am all about convenience:)

As much as I would like to take my 6 year old son for a drive I wouldn't do it. Just my opinion.

I looked under dash and couldn't find the connector. Any suggestions?

Pull the airbag out and you'll see the connector. The wire is plenty long. ;)

Thanks I appreciate the sarcasm. Figured it out ...hardest part was putting the air duct hose back.

Yeah...I wasn't being sarcastic. :confused: