dreaded airbag - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

lcsdoug · 03-22-2018, 11:39 AM

Well I got the Everstart Maxx H7 installed and vented just fine. Fits fine, works great. I was kind of hoping that would fix the airbag light problem but no it didn't.

I had previously ordered an icarsoft POR II scanner that was supposed to diagnose airbag faults on a 987. But no that was NOT a function available for the 987. So it went back to Amazon for a refund. I emailed Autel to see if they had a unit that would work. I got a response indicating the SP315 (MD808 pro) would work and they included the V1.00 function sheet for Porsche. Under the 987 it also did NOT include the airbag.

So it would appear that the Durametric is the best option. I like the idea of having some idea of what's wrong even if I take it to a service shop anyway. I still think I can do some repairs myself, especially if i have some diagnostic help. Is the general consensus that this is wise investment? I plan on keeping this car for a long time. Ok, at my age long is a relative term but you get the idea.

dav9515 · 03-22-2018, 11:58 AM

Autel worked on my 986, along with some proper electrical spray in the seat belt receptacles it has not come back (knock on wood)

lcsdoug · 03-22-2018, 12:27 PM

I have a can of deoxit somewhere in my ham shack. I will give that a try. Thanks.

shadrach74 · 03-22-2018, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lcsdoug

I have a can of deoxit somewhere in my ham shack. I will give that a try. Thanks.

Have you had anything else apart? In addition to the receptacle, there is also a sensor on each inertia real.

Gilles · 03-22-2018, 05:00 PM

FYI, I was Not able to turn the red airbag off on my 987 with the Durametric (not the pro version)

jaykay · 03-22-2018, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lcsdoug

I have a can of deoxit somewhere in my ham shack. I will give that a try. Thanks.

Ham shack? Really cool man..!

husker boxster · 03-23-2018, 05:01 AM

An airbag light doesn't necessarily have to be a bad connection. If you remove a seat or center console and then turn the ignition on, you'll get the light. Put the seat back in and the light will remain on. Once the light is triggered, it has to be reset.

Brian in Tucson · 03-23-2018, 05:28 AM

I'm all for spending massive cash for tools, my Autel works on my 986 just fine.

I think, tho, that just this one time, I'd take it to an indie shop or a dealer and have the fault reset. Get it over with, and worry about getting a compatible scanner later.

lcsdoug · 03-23-2018, 06:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaykay

Ham shack? Really cool man..!

Well yes we really are cool.

I think, having this car only about a week, it would be best to take it to a service center and have this fixed and give it a check up. There seems to be a myriad of things that can cause this. Thanks for the the replies, I do appreciate it.

DWBOX2000 · 03-23-2018, 11:59 AM

My light was on when I bought my 2000. Where I bought the car roughly 500 miles away, the one request I had was to fix the light. I took to Porsche, they charged me 220 to turn off light (just to come back on) and tell me the airbag control module in the dash was bad. Wanted like 1200 to fix. I called the seller who sent me a check for 800. I bought a used module for 50, bought a durametric and installed in like an hour or less. it hasn't been on for years. I would have refunded the 500 I had left but the car wasn't ready the 1st time I drove the 500 to get it.
If that's your problem, I think those are easy to get used since race guys take them out to make lighter. Good luck.

shadrach74 · 03-23-2018, 06:12 PM

My airbag light came on after removing seat and inertia reel for for OBD/Cruise upgrade. Durametric would not diagnose the airbag problem, but it did turn it off once the problem had been remedied. In my case the inertia reel sensor was not "armed" after re-installation. Durametric would turn the light off for a few seconds and then it would reappear. I figured out my mistake and corrected it. Next time I shut it off it remained off and has remained off ever since.

STRANGEPOLLY · 03-26-2018, 06:03 AM

I too purchased icarsoft (doesn't work) Communicated w/head of tech dept of Autel and she said she was 98% sure it would work (no thanks) Purchased Porsche version of Scwaben tool from ECS Tuning. It was about $300 but turned my airbag light off no problem. Just my 2cents.

lcsdoug · 03-28-2018, 12:47 PM

Well good news bad news. Took the car to a local very well regarded BMW/Porsche indi garage. They don't charge for diagnostics and resets. Seems I had a bunch of low voltage warnings as well as the airbag. He reset everything and took it for a test drive. No warnings came back on so the new battery took car of that.

He gave gave it a post purchase inspection and said overall it's really in great shape. He did feel there were some maintenance issues I might want to take care of with 69k miles. The car did idle a bit rough. So his recommendations were: Filters, Main belt, Ignition coils and plugs, AOS and possibly the water pump. He said he couldn't be sure about the water pump until the belt was off. I said just go ahead with the water pump and thermostat. So Friday and $3200 later I should be in great shape.

I told my wife I could probably do some of those things myself and I got the look and roll of the eyes. She said just get it done so we can use it. Actually I was thinking I would do all these things fairly soon anyway, so now I'll be good to go with a great summer of driving ahead.