Airbag control unit problem: replacement unit?

[Alibi]

I have an airbag problem that probably requires a new airbag controller. Looking for part number 8D 0 959 655 TD (or possibly TB which is for cars with head airbags which I assume are the ones on the side roof rails above the front doors Need to check if I have them). My car is a 2000X 2.5TDI Quattro Avant tiptronic.

The problem is that the airbag light has come on and won't stay off when reset. A new unit is about £500. I'm told if you get a second hand one with the exact same part number it will work.

I have also seen devices on Ebay that claim to erase crash data and reset the airbag unit. My car hasn't been in any crashes but I thought maybe the unit erroneously thinks it has. Has anyone had any experience of these resetting tools? Do they actually work? I love the car but there comes a point where the cost of repairs makes it uneconomic.

 

[griswold]

I replied to your post in ebay section


VW / AUDI AIRBAG LIGHT System Reset Tool And Crash Data Erase Tool For The MOT | eBay

 

[griswold]

I could only find the TD version of the ecu on german ebay and was over £200
I found an ecu locally but was worse than my old one so going to put old one back on and just reset when needed.
Its the cold that sets mine off.

 

[jamie226bhp]

I can vouch for the reset set tool, cleared mine but just came on after 18 months do just cleared again

 

[Alibi]

Further to my query from nearly a year ago, I bought the airbag reset tool and it worked. hHwever my car has recently come back after being off the road for 7 months waiting to get the diesel pump in the engine fixed (the place doing the reconditioning, in Chorley apparently) took forever to do what should have been a simple refurb). When I got the car back, it was clear that is was pretty damp inside and the instrument display panel wasn't working, with some of the red LEDs out (in lines). That has sorted itself now I've dried the car out a bit, but the airbag light comes on at frequent intevals. I believe it might be a problem with the wiring under the seats - apparently that is a problem area and the fault can be fixed by bridging the plug in connector. My car has been flooded internally more than once due to the blocked drain problem under the battery, and that has caused all sort of issues that are usually fixed by putting a heater in the car overnight. I suspect the latest thing is water-related or maybe due to corrosion resulting from the dampness.

 

[aragorn]

You need to read the fault codes and find out why the lights on, rather than repeatedly just turning it off.

 

[Alibi]

Further to previous post above, I removed the driver's seat and simply disconnected the connector to the seat airbag and reconnected it a few times to clean up the connections (possibly slightly corroded), however then the airbag light wouldn't go out at all even though the wee box of tricks said it has successfully sorted the problem. However I took the car to my local independent specialist who ran a code check and switched the light off (there were no error codes so he reckoned I had actually cleared them). It has been fine since, so possibly the connector was the cause of the fault. Hope so. Just got to sort out the wet rear footwell on the driver's side now - don't think it's the usual scuttle problem but maybe a seal in the rear passenger door.