Reading Airbag Codes...

Hi i'm have to following problem: I own a 98 e36 316. european model. The airbag light is on and i can't read or delete any faultcodes. The pre obd/obd2 reader just cant connenct to the computer. all fuses are good, the dlc is good and the car runs fine. i wonder why i cant read the dme or airbag.. someone any suggestions? thanks in advance

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This post was auto-generated based upon a question asked on our tech article page here: Pelican Technical Article: BMW DME Motronic ECU Swap / Repair

[Wayne 962]

Well, you can't read the airbag codes using a standard OBD reader. You need a special airbag code reader, like the one featured in this article here: http://www.pelicanparts.com/bmw/techarticles/Mult-Air_Bag_Lamp/Mult-Air_Bag_Lamp.htm

As for not being able to read the OBD codes, I would try a different reader. Although the 1998 model shouldn't have any issues with the bus, there were some issues on the early E36 cars that made reading somewhat fickle. The Peake Research code reader detailed in this article is the one I recommend: http://www.pelicanparts.com/bmw/techarticles/Mult-Code_Reading/Mult-Code_Reading.htm


- Wayne

[bostogrun]

You cant read the code yourself. Unless you work on these cars a lot it's not worth it to invest $150 plus for a one time thing. I put an inquiry on craigslist and found a guy who did it for $20. I would be willing to bet that it's the drivers seat belt recipticle. A common problem with e36s. The driver's recepticle wears out because it is used the most. It's hard to find a good one in a salvage yard because they are so much in demand.