How do I disable the airbag/seatbelt warning light?
 

I have a 1998 318Ti.

I need to know how to disable the airbag/seatbelt warning light that shows up on my dashboard. There is an unneccessary component of my seatbelt that needs replacing, and that makes the airbag light come on. The dealership didn't even recommend replacing the part. If I get the dealership to turn it off, it just comes back on.

Is there any way to permanently shut this warning light off?

I have the same frustration with my 318i sedan. I have been unable to find a fix for this since 2006. I'll keep an I on this thread now though. Sorry, I don't have anything for you.

Scott

Post something here if you find anything. I hate that light, and I'm not paying $300 to make it go away.

I agree the $300 is ridiculous for a part that should last the life of the car in my opinion.

Actually, my broken part is a C02 charge which will propel the seatbelt backwards, or the whole seat or something. I believe that C02 cartridges legitimitally have an expiration period... But $300, or suffer the little red light, is stupid.

You can take the instrument panel out and remove the bulb that lights up that one spot.

Thats how I made mine go away

That can't be easy.

Actually, removing the bulb is very easy. Remove the steering wheel, remove the two screws that hold the gauge cluster in the dash. Disconnect two electrical connectors and using a small screw driver unscrew the bulb (1/4 turn) and it's out but, I would rather make the system believe the CO2 cartidge was fine than remove the bulb since any electircal disconnect could affect the airbags.

no need to remove the steering wheel

1) remove two torex screws at the top of the instrument cluster
2) screw off headlight know by turning CCW (anti- clockwise, or nascar)
3) put a cloth on top of your steering wheel and tape around the headlight knob
4) push headlight knob as far in as possible
5) extract instrument panel by using suction cups, ect. and pull out towards you
6) once out, lean top of panel into and under the top part of the steering wheel
7) undo the three plugs by depressing the clip and push/rotate the clips upward
(that will remove the plugs and free the panel)
8) YOU WILL NEED YOUR KEY IN AND ON THE II spot
9) carefully rotate steering wheel and instrument panel CCW

The instrument panel will then come out!
Easy, don't have to mess with remove wheel or anything.

If you remove your steering wheel please disconnect your battery and wait 15mins

here is another good write up in the Knowledge Base (remember, the search feature is your friend)
http://www.318ti.org/forum/showthrea...steering+wheel

am I the only one that had a backup airbag warning light? (bulb removed, airbag light remains on but dimmer!) I think there was another bulb in there.. rather than remove it i stuck a resistor in a bulb socket..

That certainly could be. For safety reasons I think they might have another bulb (little LED?) so you know your airbag system is bad, even if the bulb is burned out.

I've heard the same exists with the Check engine light. If you pull the bulb there's still something else illuminating the CEL.

My CEL is permanently on, so I should pull that bulb and see for sure. Maybe I can remove the black tape covering it then? :)

I've taken the cluster out many times with the sterrig wheel in place. If you rotate it just right it'll come out. Takes some wiggling.

no theres no backup bulbs or anything

I just replaced my gauges ... so easy I can do it! I bet I could take it out, remove the proper bulb, and reinstall it in under 30 minutes, probably in under 20 minutes. I took several photos and posted them in my blog here and here.

There is no "back up" light for these. What you are seeing is ambient light (or light bleed), from the surrounding bulbs. This is caused by having the bulb (in it's little holder) removed from the socket. To eliminate this, you need to have the bulb holder in place with either a burned out bulb or a removed bulb.

(if you do not have a burned out bulb to swap out with the airbag bulb, you can always break the tiny bulb with a pair of needle nose pliers and then replace it. Presto!)

This should eliminate the ambient (or diffused) light issue.

here is a link that has another write-up on how to remove the cluster w/o removing the steering wheel...
http://www.318ti.org/forum/showthread.php?t=23905

I believe there is a backup LED for the airbag light.

If you pull the bulb, its still lit, just dimmer.

I needed to pull the bulb and open the cluster (really easy) and put electrical tape over the LED for there to be no light.