Hey Fitters,

I need some advice. I have a 2008 Fit and the passenger side curtain airbag and seat airbag deployed when I hit a curb. The dealership wants around $4,500 to replace the two airbags, headliner, SRS module, and the seatbelt lap tensioner.

I can save some money by having Safety Restore (dot com) fix the outer lap belt tensioner and reset the SRS module. I can also save little bit more by buying a used (but un-deployed) seat airbag.

If I go this route, I'm trying to figure out the correct order to do them in. For example, if I send the SRS module off for a reset, can I still drive the car to the dealership without the module and then have them install it after all the other components are replaced, so that new codes are not stored back on the module unit.

Obviously the airbags wouldn't work without the SRS module installed, but they won't work currently anyways.

All-in-all this would cut the price roughly in half.

Any insight is much appreciated!

Thanks!
Jax

 

Just curious if there is any damages to body panels, wheel and suspension?

 

No damage to panels. Had to get the passenger side strut replaced however.

 

The amount of cash this is going to put you out might not be worth it in the end . Good luck tho!

 

For anyone curious, I ended up doing it all myself.

Here's a rundown:

Right seat airbag from eBay — $70
Right roof airbag from eBay — $85
Airbag module reset from SafetyRestore.com — $50
Right seat belt and pretensioner repair from SafetyRestore.com — $100
ZR13 OBD2 Code Reader from Harbor Freight — $190

Anyways, $500 is a lot better than $4,500 from the dealership. Just takes a little time and patience.

NOTE: The headliner was in good shape structurally. It just has a really minor crease in it so I'm keeping as-is for now. New headliner runs about $450 fyi.

Jax

 

Hey! I'm running into the same thing with my Fit. Minor incident with minor body damage but deployed only the passenger roof airbag. Insurance wants to consider it a total loss, but since the car is totally mechanically fine I want to just fix it up so we don't need to buy a new car. How did you source your airbag? I've been looking for it but haven't found anything reliable.

 

I did the repair myself as well. Similar to jaxbeach.

Background:
My Fit is a 2007 base. Two right wheels went off pavement and into dirt bank. No body damage but right side seat and curtain airbags deployed. Nobody was in passenger seat so the seat belt didn't lock.

Disassembly and Parts Replacement:
Removing the headliner wasn't too bad. Maybe an hour of effort. There are some youtube videos on this.
I first removed deployed airbags to get exact serial numbers.
I found right seat airbag and right curtain airbag from a 2008 Fit base from local junkyard (Serial numbers matched perfectly) - $87 ea.
Unfortunately the right seat airbag electrical connection was already cut due to someone removing the seat. However, I was able to salvage the entire cable and the yellow connector. Reconnected wires using crimp wire connectors. FYI.. rethreading the wire for the replacement airbag was tedious and difficult to reach. If I were to do it again, I would remove the seat as working under the seat was difficult to reach.
The curtain airbag was in perfect condition and was easy to install (just a few bolts).
I didn't replace the airbag sensors since there was no body damage I assumed these were not damaged.
Airbag module reset from Myairbags.com (included shipping in both directions) - $105
Have to admit I was skeptical of sending out the SRS module but the company provided good status updates and had positive google reviews.

After receiving the reset SRS module:
Disconnected battery.
Connected replacement airbag wire connectors.
Remounted SRS module.
Connected SRS module wire connectors.
Reconnected battery and started the car.
Dashboard light no longer illuminated.

I plan to reuse the headliner. It has a few creases and wrinkles that can be fixed using tack glue.
Total cost was $279. Total time was about 8-10 hours. Totally worth it given the car would have been totaled otherwise.
Super easy if you have a little patience.

 

First, you should confer with a lawyer. You may be in violation of Federal law(s). You may also be in jeopardy of a law suit if your work results in a future event that causes personal damage(s).

Second, does your insurance company know (a) what happened and (b) what you did to "remedy" the damage? Given the dealer's quote for repairs, the car should have been totaled.

 

While I would likely do the same thing..
It's 100% federally illegal to use a used air bag. Its why you can't typically buy them from a wrecking yard.
If I was to do this,,,, I would do it all cash/non traceable payments.(711 Gift cards) No paper trail no foul.. " the previous owner must have done it..."