branman444

I have a 1998 Maxima SE that the AIRBAG light keeps blinking and i was wondering if you guys could tell me what might be up. It just started out of the blue one day when i was driving down the road. I am going to have it looked at but cant at the moment. It blinks on off on off on off..... and never stops.
Thanks

djbrown

ok u need to reset ur airbag light.. here's how u do it:

Open the driver's door. Note the rubber covered button located low on the B pillar, a button which is pressed by the door when the door is closed. This is the Driver's Door Switch (DDS).

Turn the ignition from OFF to ON. Press the DDS at least 5 times within 7 seconds after turning the ignition switch ON. Turn the ignition OFF. Close the driver's door. Start the engine.

If the airbag warning lamp is still on (or still flashing), there is a fault in the Supplemental Restraint System which must be diagnosed and repaired. This is a job for your local friendly Nissan dealer


PS: U NEED TO READ THE "FAQ: & "HOW TO" MAN

MaxedOutOfCash

you got side airbags in it?

i have the same problem & everytime i reset it...it comes back....
it's a sensor in the side or something for the seat airbags....

Sam

chicago max98

iTrader: (6)

i have same problem too

djbrown

yup most of the time is the side one that go's bad
anybody ever been to a dealer to get a quote on how much it will cost to fix it ???

MaxedOutOfCash

i heard one guy saying they quoted him $300
and another guy said it's close to a $1000

they gotta be different things though...

but i figure it's between $300-$400

i'll just live with the light on for now.

Sam

branman444

Yes i do have side bags and yes i think i can live with the lightthanks a lot

maxmobile

I had this problem last year.. did the reset thing and it worked for a few months.. now its back on, the reset does not work anymore... When I did the search on this (last year when the search worked) I noticed a lot of people had this issue.. but any of you had yours fixed or diagnosed? im weary of taking it to the dealer...

Nick7455

iTrader: (23)

This is rediculous...I am look through the posts and I see this all over...my light just started blinkin today...outta no where...wtf is nissan doing?!? LOL Imma go to dealership monday..>WILL KEEP EVERYONE INFORMED...LOOK FOR MY POST MONDAY AFTERNOON!

Nick7455

iTrader: (23)

Dealership told me that it is the passenger side airbag and the wires were hit by a passenger cause they sit just under the seat. They can't do a rewire or anything (supposidly) and they have to replace the whole airbag. They said with labor it is about $500. The light is annoying as hell and I can't get it to go away so I might just get it done but chances are that another person might "accidently" hit it and then Imma have to pay another $500?

My suggestion is that the mods here need to make a main thread for JUST AIRBAG LIGHT ISSUES and then once we get a certain # of 4th gen ppl that have the same side airbag problem then we can contact nissan so they can pay for it because that is rediculous.....Mods if u see this please consider it bacsue this actually is a big problem and we shouldnt just sit back and let our lights blink................Thanks

kchase219

I got quoted at $2600 , but that was for the sensor modules or something...

vipervadim

iTrader: (10)

i too suffer from the blinking light. but mine was when i unplugged the side passenger airbag sensor to take out the seat with the battery left connected.

if we can't find a way to fix this problem relatively cheap and effectively i'm just going to unscrew the dash and pull the 'air bag' lamp out so its not annoying.

MaximaNewb

I thought the airbag doesnt work when the light is flashing?
I reset mines like shown above and it was fine for awile but I took off the seat and the dash when i did my alarm and now i cant get the light to go off. Anyone try reseting the ecu?

djbrown

If ur succesfull in removing the airbag light . PLZ tell me how.. cuz i took the instrument cluster out and the airbag light is not reachable .. they hide it somewhere the bastards... and yeah this airbag thing should be covered lifetime by nissan like seat belt...

MaximaNewb

Anyone have more input for this thread?

Nick7455

iTrader: (23)

MODS PLZ Sticky this issue...that trick doesn't work for everyone and it doesn't fix the problem...please make this s bigger issue so ppl can post more about it.

MaximaNewb

Up to the top again

bmr12

I'm the original owner of a 98 SE. I have had a side airbag replaced under warranty five times. Every time, that **** blinky light starts going off. The last time it happened, it was after my 3 year/36K warranty was past, but after showing the dealer the warranty text (it counts as a safety/seat-belt type item warranteed for 5/60) they billed Nissan for it yet again. It was in the $500 range for one side.

My attempts to call Nissan to see if there was a TSB for this item were largely a waste of time. I know sooner or later that they will fail again, after which I will be looking to disconnect the fine blinky light. In retrospect, it was folly to pay extra for whichever package gave me the "extra" safety of the side airbags.

This is pretty much my single largest complaint about the car.

Skyboarder

I don't know if anyone has gone this far, but if you do the reset procedure, the airbag light starts throwing long and short blinks. This is a code that indicates what airbag or sensor is at fault. I have a document that outlines the different blink patterns. For instance. mine was LONG...LONG......short......LONG...LONG......short ......Over and over. This pointed me to the drivers side airbag module. If you want the diagnosis sheet, pm me.

MaximaNewb

Bump lets keep on adding info to this thread

SzeMan4

Yea i just let mine blink i have reset it many times and i'm almost posivite it is just a bad connection somewhere. But when i go to Nissa they tell me i need a whole new air bag system = 1000 bucks so i have learned to ignore the blinking.

TXtoTNmax

I also have a 98 and the light has been blinking for a good 2 and a half years now. The reset procedure does not work so my solution was to put a square piece of electrical tape over the light on the outer plastic to block the light from my eyes at night. I just dont notice it anymore, but when i have people in the car for the first time, they wonder what is going on and are scared sh!$less. I find it ammusing

if anybody could figure out how to take the light out of the cluster, that would be awesome.

Nick7455

iTrader: (23)

ARGH!!! THis is the worst problem....I hate this...I was told that once the light comes on the WHOLE airbag system doesn't function, even if it is just the side airbag. Nissan needs to recall this passenger side airbag cause there is no way in hell imma keep paying $500 to get this side fixed....

bmr12 where did you get your car fixed at in CO? John Elway Nissan?

PLZ STICKY THIS ISSUE MODS.....

aleph

I'm not sure if this is a coincidence or not, but I had this same problem and after resetting it a few times and having it comeback on again; I stopped putting my (absurdly overfilled) cd case underneath the seat and haven't had the problem since. I can't imagine this helping anyone, but hey. Also, it's probably been mentioned but, just try getting underneath the seat and giving all the connections a good shove together and checking for any tension on the cables. Good Luck.

bmr12

Nick,

Yes, I had it fixed at John Elway Nissan (north) as they are the closest dealer.

As I expected, I am not alone with these failures. When it fails the next time, I'm going to push Nissan to replace it for free anyway, given the number of failures to date. If they don't, I'll be looking for a piece of electrical tape too.

In terms of reliability, the Nissan has been closer to my '96 Suburban than my '87 Prelude or my wife's '90 Civic (recently left the garage after 14+ years). I can hardly wait until I get to ten years and beyond.

Nick7455

iTrader: (23)

Yea....I should just get it replaced at JEN south but I have decided to give Nissan a call and ***** at them for a lil bit cause I barely have passengers in my car and chances are there airbags are just defective.

Amazingly when I was in Tynann's Nissan today getting my BG Induction cleaning a guy had an xterra 99? 00? and the side airbags were recalled so he had them replaced for free. Nissan puts the wires and everything in a very poor place and I have a feeling that a if ppl having problems just call nissan they should fix it for free.....unless you have been in an accident there is NO REASON for the aigbag to just go bad....that is IMO a very serious issue. I will let everyone know how it goes....just go to nissanusa and find the 800 # and just complain about it....even if you have already paid for the service.

maxmobile

I cleaned the crap from under the passenger seat and made sure the connections were secure. I really didnt do anything but push the connectors together just to make sure, and reset the airbag, to my surprise it worked... but for how long

Thanks aleph

I'm going to wait for the light to come back on.. and it probably will before going to Nissan... but when or if any of you go, have them replace the harness, in case the people at the dealers dont know there is a TSB on the Airbag Harness, if they work on it it should be for a replacement

Look at # 97 in the TSB link below


http://www.alldata.com/TSB/41/98416289.html