Hello all, I’m planning on running a cluster pod on the driver side column and I noticed it has an airbag in it, is there any way to disable it without uppercutting myself with it? I’d rather just completely disable it so if I do get into an accident it’s not blowing gauges into my face like buckshot. TIA

 

I suggest removing the airbag completely and fooling the control unit with a resistor. They are typically very low resistance, many of these I do measure close to 2.2 ohms.

 

what would be the easiest way to do that, disconnect the battery wait a while and then where does it connect?

 

not sure where it connects- get a wiring diagram. Disconnecting the battery is safe, but you should be OK with the key off, as long as the RCM is not active

 

I wonder if you could do this within the ETACS..

 

This is not a good idea for several reasons: lets discuss...

ETACS is basically a programmable BCM. You can turn features on and off- however they essentially need to be outputs that the ETACS (I will call this a BCM) controls. If the BCM does not control the output- how can it disable it? This would be no different than trying to scale your fuel injectors by modifying the BCM.. since these are controlled by the PCM, you would need to program that.

The RCM, BCM (ETACS) and PCM share information to work together. It is no different than the internet that you are reading this on now. When I type, it goes to the server on EvoM. When you log on and read this post- you are getting this data from EvoM. Everything is floating back and forth on the internet- Think of this as how your cars CANBUS network operates. Each computer in the car is sharing information so the others can use it. The RCM for example needs to know how fast you are going- and it may use data from the PCM or ABS pump to determine that.... the RCM does not have a dedicated speed sensor that measures the speed of the wheels or the output speed of the transmission... this would be silly... why not just measure the value once- and share it... this is how modern cars work.

The goal of the OP's post is to prevent his gauges from becoming projectiles. If you were able to disable the airbag it would be done by reprogramming the RCM- but why go through this trouble? The software to do this would only be available by the manufacturer... and how would you test it if you wrote your own? Using a resistor to make the RCM happy would physically allow the OP to remove his igniter from the vehicle making it physically impossible to hurt him.