Disabling SRS bulb in 97 Accord Wagon

A bit of background:
I've had problems in the past with the SRS light coming on, but with a code
which doesn't correspond to a particular fault. At first I could reset it
(paperclip method) and it wouldn't come on again for a few weeks/months.
Last year it started coming on more regularly so I fitted a switch to let me
reset it more quickly without fiddling under the dash. Even more recently
the light comes on almost every time I start the car, and won't always reset
on the first attempt - usually it resets by the third attempt but sometimes
it takes more attempts.

Anyway, it's got to the stage where I don't think it's worth trying to
sort - I'm probably going to get a new car next summer anyway. As a result
I want to disable the SRS bulb so I don't have a bright red light glaring at
me the whole time. As I understand it the SRS is disabled when the light is
on, and the system will not fire under these circumstances, so I basically
have a car with no airbag system.

So, how to disable the bulb? Presumably I need to take at least part of the
dash off - does anyone know how tricky that is and how long it will take?
Once I find it, can I just remove the bulb or will I need to short the bulb
connector? Anything else I should think of?

Thanks in advance,
Al

Al Reynolds wrote:
> A bit of background:
> I've had problems in the past with the SRS light coming on, but with a code
> which doesn't correspond to a particular fault.
> ...
> So, how to disable the bulb? Presumably I need to take at least part of the
> dash off - does anyone know how tricky that is and how long it will take?
> Once I find it, can I just remove the bulb or will I need to short the bulb
> connector? Anything else I should think of?
>

Cover it with a piece of tape?

"Al Reynolds" > wrote in
:

> A bit of background:
> I've had problems in the past with the SRS light coming on, but with a
> code which doesn't correspond to a particular fault. At first I could
> reset it (paperclip method) and it wouldn't come on again for a few
> weeks/months. Last year it started coming on more regularly so I
> fitted a switch to let me reset it more quickly without fiddling under
> the dash. Even more recently the light comes on almost every time I
> start the car, and won't always reset on the first attempt - usually
> it resets by the third attempt but sometimes it takes more attempts.
>
> Anyway, it's got to the stage where I don't think it's worth trying to
> sort - I'm probably going to get a new car next summer anyway. As a
> result I want to disable the SRS bulb so I don't have a bright red
> light glaring at me the whole time. As I understand it the SRS is
> disabled when the light is on, and the system will not fire under
> these circumstances, so I basically have a car with no airbag system.
>
> So, how to disable the bulb? Presumably I need to take at least part
> of the dash off - does anyone know how tricky that is and how long it
> will take? Once I find it, can I just remove the bulb or will I need
> to short the bulb connector? Anything else I should think of?
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Al
>
>



Skip the bulb. Just pull the SRS fuses.


--
Tegger

The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ
www.tegger.com/hondafaq/

"Tegger" > wrote:

> Skip the bulb. Just pull the SRS fuses.

I had thought of that, but thought that the SRS bulb would be on a dash
lights fuse rather than the SRS fuse. Will give it a go anyway.

Thanks,
Al

"Tegger" > wrote:
> Skip the bulb. Just pull the SRS fuses.

Didn't work unfortunately - the SRS light still came on.

Anyhew, I dug out my shop manual, which wasn't completely clear for once.

The steps to remove the SRS bulb we
1. Remove central console
2. Remove stereo
3. Extract and disconnect switches in dash surround -
demister/sunroof/dimmer in my case
4. Remove dash surround - 6 screws (I didn't bother disconnecting the heater
control cable)
5. Extract dash module - 4 screws and three green connectors to separate
6. Take the *back* off by undoing clips
7. Remove the circuit board by undoing about 11 screws
8. Pull the bulb
9. Installation is the reverse of removal (apart from step 8!)

Hope this helps someone else - it was quite a hassle and took me about 1hr,
but I reckon I could do it in 20mins if I needed to do it again. Definitely
worth it as my visibility while night-driving is a lot better without a
bright red glare in my eyes the whole time.

Al

"M.M." > wrote:
> Cover it with a piece of tape?

Not a bad idea, but by the time I had got to the dash assembly it wouldn't
have saved much time.

Thanks,
Al

"Al Reynolds" > wrote in
:

> "Tegger" > wrote:
>> Skip the bulb. Just pull the SRS fuses.
>
> Didn't work unfortunately - the SRS light still came on.



Heh. Now that I think about it...

When I disabled the SRS in our Tercel I didn't pull any fuses. I simply
unplugged the SRS computer (two bright-yellow connectors), which
accomplished exactly what I wanted and also turned the light off. This
required disassembling the center console.


>
<snip steps to get at bulb>
>


--
Tegger

The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ
www.tegger.com/hondafaq/

Thus spake Tegger > :

>"Al Reynolds" > wrote in
:
>
>> "Tegger" > wrote:
>>> Skip the bulb. Just pull the SRS fuses.
>>
>> Didn't work unfortunately - the SRS light still came on.
>
>
>
>Heh. Now that I think about it...
>
>When I disabled the SRS in our Tercel I didn't pull any fuses. I simply
>unplugged the SRS computer (two bright-yellow connectors), which
>accomplished exactly what I wanted and also turned the light off. This
>required disassembling the center console.

Of course, all of this is done after pulling the battery. If not, I
recommend resting your chin on the steering wheel. Cure certain
population issues.

Not you, Tegger!!!

>
>
>>
><snip steps to get at bulb>
>>
--

- dillon I am not invalid

"Always shoot first. At the very least you'll
distract the guy enough to make the second one count"
-- Lazurus Long