Inspection - Crash Sensor

So my car is due for inspection in September. In its current state it will not pass due to the airbag light on the dash. The light is for the crash sensor on the drivers side.


2 Faults Found:
01221 - Crash Sensor Side Airbag; Driver Side (G179)
29-10 - Short to Ground - Intermittent
00532 - Supply Voltage B+
07-10 - Signal too Low - Intermittent


I was going to start with unplugging the battery and waiting 10-20 minutes, unplugging the sensor and inspecting the wires, cleaning the connections then plugging back in to try and clear the code. My question is how to get the carpet up. After some research it seems that this sensor is not under the seat but underneath the carpet. How exactly do I pull the carpet up? I am not sure what trim I have to remove to do so.

I had a crash sensor in the front under the bumper cover of my Beetle that would trip a code every time I hit a large water puddle. You could clear it once it dried out. The fix is to clean the terminals and use dielectric silicone on it when you plug everything back up.

I'm surprised it's be a fail - in NY it's only the check engine light that will cause a fail. ABS and airbags don't matter (or really anything besides the ECU saying it's ready)

Remove the seat, pull the sill plate trim up and hang it out of the way (you do not have to remove it completely), and pull the carpet up enough to reach in there to get access.

I would not go through all the trouble of "inspecting" it, just get a new sensor and replace it and clear the DTCs.

Also, for 1999.5 cars anyway, there are only the side impact sensors mounted on brackets, under the sound deadening, under the carpet, under the front seats; and the sensor(s) built into the SRS module. There are no sensors on the front of the car.

To remove the carpet: Remove the seats, center console, b pillar trim, and sill trim.

I want to say the sensors are mounted are mounted just in front of the "cross bar" running across the floor of the car. They might be just in front of the seat track... I can't remember.



-J

compu_85 said:

Also, for 1999.5 cars anyway, there are only the side impact sensors mounted on brackets, under the sound deadening, under the carpet, under the front seats; and the sensor(s) built into the SRS module. There are no sensors on the front of the car.
To remove the carpet: Remove the seats, center console, b pillar trim, and sill trim.
I want to say the sensors are mounted are mounted just in front of the "cross bar" running across the floor of the car. They might be just in front of the seat track... I can't remember.

-J

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I am having trouble finding this part online to purchase. Does this mean the entire SRS module must be replaced? I cannot seem to find the crash sensor by itself for purchase on a 99.5.

I believe there are two versions, with or without side bags, because I think those were still an option in '99, but most of our cars had them?

You can give the dealer your VIN, then have them search ETKA for G179, and it will call out (usually) which one your car needs. But there are sometimes mistakes in ETKA.

Best to get the part number off of the sensor. It takes 10 minutes. It is on the body brace that the forward mount of the seat attaches to. You do not need to take the center console out. Seat, sill plate trim, pull of the carpet, and it is right there. You can usually see the wire harness heading to it once the sill plate trim is up.

Even Mk3s with side bags had side crash sensors IIRC. Side airbags were standard for 1999 Mk4s.

Looks like the sensor is NLA now?

https://parts.vw.com/p/Volkswagen_1...lateral-impact--rear/48266123/1J0909606M.html

It might be superseded.

6Q0-909-606-K-001 or 002 is what I come up with, the 001 or 002 has to do with it having side airbags or not.... but then when you look it up for a newer car, that I know has side bags, they still list both numbers but no description, just the PR codes.

I think the Golf CL did not have side bags, that may be why ETKA shows that. Not sure though.

What a headache

I am in the process of getting the old sensor out so I can grab a part number off of it. In the process I found that the entire floor of the car is soaking wet! No wonder the sensor is shorting out! I have water dripping out of the grommets and there is a small puddle underneath the car at one of the grommets in the rear. What do I do? Where do I start? idparts sells the grommets for underneath the car but is that likely the issue?

All of the sensors I am finding are red in color vs. this tan one. Is that okay? Or is there something different with it?
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jbourke367 said:

I am in the process of getting the old sensor out so I can grab a part number off of it. In the process I found that the entire floor of the car is soaking wet! No wonder the sensor is shorting out! I have water dripping out of the grommets and there is a small puddle underneath the car at one of the grommets in the rear. What do I do? Where do I start? idparts sells the grommets for underneath the car but is that likely the issue?

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Got sunroof? If so there's a decent chance the drains (rather, the lack of draining) are the cause of it.

The other high-probability possibility is a plugged drain from the A/C evaporator pan or (you hope not!) a perforated pan itself. The former you can usually clear, the latter sucks badly as you have to pull the entire dash to get to it.

This is the view from inside the car looking at the backseat. Are the grommets supposed to plug the hole completely? Or allow the car to drain if water gets inside? Right now its basically a straight shot to the driveway. I seem to learn everything the hard way.
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Genesis said:

Got sunroof? If so there's a decent chance the drains (rather, the lack of draining) are the cause of it.
The other high-probability possibility is a plugged drain from the A/C evaporator pan or (you hope not!) a perforated pan itself. The former you can usually clear, the latter sucks badly as you have to pull the entire dash to get to it.

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No my golf does not have a sunroof

jbourke367 said:

I am in the process of getting the old sensor out so I can grab a part number off of it. In the process I found that the entire floor of the car is soaking wet! No wonder the sensor is shorting out! I have water dripping out of the grommets and there is a small puddle underneath the car at one of the grommets in the rear. What do I do? Where do I start? idparts sells the grommets for underneath the car but is that likely the issue?

Click to expand...

As far as I know there are no drain holes in the floor pan.

After it rains a while when you open the door do you find water on the bottom surface under where the door would be?

There's suppose to be 2 drains under the door (may look like 2 strips) that are suppose to open to let any water out of the door if the seal (or wiper) where the window slides wears out.

The Bentley manual calls this a outer seal but it looks like it runs the length of the door.

I'm not clear on this but there should drains there.

jbourke367 said:

All of the sensors I am finding are red in color vs. this tan one. Is that okay? Or is there something different with it?

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bump to the top. Does anyone know if this crash sensor can be replaced with a red or green crash sensor from an MK4? Attached are a few ebay links. The sensors look identical just a different color. The part numbers are the same except the one I have has an "M" as the last character in the part number. The green one has an "L". Any difference in sensor specs?
https://www.ebay.com/i/372379623742?chn=ps
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1J090960...418068?hash=item1a31e7b394:g:eCgAAOSwdd9aeuTj


Also looks like the sensor is no longer available through VW:

https://parts.vw.com/p/Volkswagen__...lateral-impact--rear/48266123/1J0909606M.html

Exprod said:

having the exact crash sensor. please update in what you've done to fix the problem. thanks in advance for everything! also thanks everyone else for all you posted, i feel it would come handy.

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Purchased a used OEM sensor on eBay this morning. will be swapping the sensors out in the next couple of weeks. I will keep you posted. Fairly certain the water issues in my car caused the sensor to short out and throw the code. Working on fixing the water issue first.