(Without) precious pillows

Do you need to replace airbags in cars that have been in a minor accident?

The buyer of a used car is sure that he is buying a serviceable car, but it may turn out that the airbags are faulty or ... there are none at all, and folded rags under the covers.

Correct diagnosis

An important step when buying a used car is the correct assessment of the condition of the airbags. As a rule, airbags are tested by the car's electronic system immediately after the ignition is turned on. Any malfunction in the system is signaled by a burning control lamp. But it is possible to fool such a system by including appropriate resistors in the pad circuit. As a result, airbags are correctly recognized by the car's electronics, even if they may not be present at all. Such a defect skillfully prepared by a fraudster may not even be detected by a diagnostic computer. To be sure, you should evaluate the condition of the covers and the pillows themselves. They should not refer to a period other than the car itself, and the difference in production dates of the body and cushions should not exceed a few weeks.

Occasionally, spark plugs and wires near the airbag will melt when the airbag deploys due to the sudden rise in temperature after the pyrotechnic charge is deployed. Such damage also indicates the use of pillows and the need to replace them.

When the pillows are released, the pyrotechnic belt tensioners are triggered, after which their buckle sits lower. Some car models have a special marking indicating that the pretensioners have been activated (for example, the yellow indicator on the Opel seat belt).

Proper diagnostics of airbags is guaranteed by specialized services, which should be entrusted with the assessment of the entire security system.

Replacing the pillow

Until recently, authorized dealers recommended replacing all airbags and sensors after an accident that deployed any airbag. Currently, it is recommended to replace only deployed airbags with the corresponding elements interacting with them - sensors in the body that actuated the airbags, and seat belts with pretensioners. After an accident, the seat belts worn by the passenger must be replaced. The tensioners themselves cannot be replaced. On the other hand, the control module only requires viewing and deleting information about impacts and triggered elements.

– Be sure to replace any damaged airbags after an accident. This is both common sense and a legal requirement. All systems installed in the vehicle are subject to approval. Theoretically, it is impossible to pass inspection with any faulty system. Therefore, the replacement of airbags is mandatory, says Pavel Kochvara, a specialist in a company that sells airbags.

Cushion replacement should be carried out at an authorized service center of this brand or at a factory specializing in such repairs. A service technician can not only correctly install the airbag, belts and pretensioners, but also reset the SRS module and check the status of the sensors using a diagnostic computer. In "garage" conditions, the implementation of these actions by an ordinary car user is almost impossible.

How much is it

Replacing pillows is an expense of a few dozen or so thousand. zloty. Interestingly, it is not always true that the more expensive the car, the more expensive the pillows.

“You can buy cheap pillows, for example, for a Mercedes, and very expensive ones for a much smaller car,” adds Pavel Kochvara. Prices depend mainly on the policy of the manufacturer and do not depend on the type of installation in the car, including modern BSI (Citroen, Peugeot) or Can-bus (Opel) data buses.

Estimated prices (PLN) for front airbag replacement (driver and passenger)

Opel Astra II 2000 p.	Volkswagen Passat 2002 p.	Ford Focus 2001 p.	Renault Clio 2002 p.
Total cost including:	7610	6175	5180	5100
driver airbag	3390	2680	2500	1200
passenger airbag	3620	3350	2500	1400
belt tensioners	-	-	-	700
control module	-	-	-	900
услуга	600	145	180	900