My husband has heart trouble and to date, has 15 stents. Is there a way to disconnect the air bags in a Chevy Cavalier? He is a dead duck if they go off and crush his chest.

Hi Cari, That means there are defects in the operation of both circuits. Take the vehicle for a diagnostic scan, find out what is wrong and have them fix it. The seat belt light should be a fairly stright forward job but the air bag must be diagnosed. Regards John

Disarming the System

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CAUTION The Supplemental Inflatable Restraint (SIR) system must be disarmed before performing many in-vehicle service procedures. Failure to do so may cause accidental deployment of the air bag, resulting in unnecessary SIR system repairs and/or personal injury.

1. Turn the steering wheel so the vehicle's wheels are pointing straight-ahead.
2. Turn the ignition switch to the LOCK position.
3. Remove or disconnect the following:
   
   Ignition key AIR BAG fuse from the instrument panel fuse block Left-hand sound insulator Connector retainer and yellow 2-way connector at the base of the steering column. Right-hand sound insulator, if equipped with passenger side air bags Connector retainer and yellow 2-way connector from the passenger inflator module pigtail, if equipped with passenger side air bags
   
   

   Fig. Driver-s side Yellow 2-way air bag connector retainer location
   

Hello! The removal and installation of an Air Bag is a multiple step process that exceeds our ability to send these procedures via a comment...I would suggest that you purchase a repair manual ( I believe AutoZone sells them for $15)...Also, due to safety issues, It would be best using the manual...

Guru...Saailer

I’m happy to help further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/david_6df67de3b14de867

You need to go to a dealership to have this done properly. The air bags can be dangerous and this is no job for an amateur.

First thing is to remove the negative battery cable. Then pull the air bag fuse, then take off steering wheel cover, and pull the wiring harness of the air bags. Just pulling the fuse is the first good thing.

I changed air bag front sensor myself $275 it's a 15 minute job and I know nothing about cars. Unplug battery, sensor is located dead center in front of hood.

I'm not sure if the air bag is bolted or clipped on. But to disable the bag, just unhook the battery first and wait 5 minutes before you disassemble it. I think it is bolted to the steering wheel with torx.

the air bag light being on is most likely a mal funtion, they shold have not had to mess with the wiring for the air bag, in the old days air bags had an acellarometer on the otter part of the car on the front of each fender if one was disconnected it would cause the light to come on, since yours is a generation 2, I suspect a different problem, since air bagsare explosive I do not recomend you try repairing it but I have a web page where they can trouble shoot it for you for a very reasonable price, they can tell you how to reset the lamp and tell you what code it is but it cost's $20.00 still cheeper than hooking up a scanner at a shop. here is the site http://www.airbagsolutions.com/contact.aspx you will need to fill in the information and then you can call them and they will be able to pin point it for you, when working on air bag systems always disconnect the battery and wait 5 minutes before testing or pulling anything apart as they can hold a charge in the ignigher for up to 5 minutes and use only a digital ohm meter to test wires as a meter with a sweeping arm can detonate the air bag, and at 170 MPH if you in the way your gonna get burned. hope this helps.

Usually a lit airbag can be attributed to faulty wiring, crash sensor behind the front bumper, bad connection between the airbag and lower part of the steering column, or a faulty airbag module. I've also heard of clockspring wiring harness problems. An airbag "on" light means that your airbag system is INACTIVE. Be careful. Check for a safety recall. You must have the battery disconnected for at least 15 minutes for a reset and double check your battery. I know it seems simple, but a poor battery will trip a code. 15 minutes allows the SDM (Sensing Diagnostic Module or Airbag computer) to discharge the backup power for airbag. Do this especially if you're poking around the controls. It sounds like a bad connection which is not allowing communication between all parts of the system. Also check the fuse (can't hurt).

frist disconnect the battery , then remove the fuse that is marked for ths air bag . do not attempted any work for at least 5 mins. then procced