Stephen337 Posted August 14, 2005 Share Posted August 14, 2005 My Disco is getting to be 10 years old now... I read that its recommended that Airbags should be replaced after 10 years. My Haynes manual says (and I paraphrase ) "keep well away, pay Landrover to do it!" I guess that I dont really need to get them done untill about five minutes before I hit that brick wall...anyway has anyone any good advice on this issue, to replace or not. Do the units leak air which makes them less effective over time, or is this just Landrover covering their asses incase of failure? Have you had them done? (Plus, first post in 'the new place', like it here!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 14, 2005 Share Posted August 14, 2005 The reason for replacing them is apparently that after a long period it can no longer be guaranteed if the propellant will detonate when the bag is triggered. I think the propellant is called sodium hydrazine or something (though I might have completely imagined that), and it goes "off" over time meaning you don't know if it is going to detonate on command. There is apparently no way to test it apart from triggering the bag - and if you do that then you'll have to replace it anyway as it will either be ****ed, or have just gone off!! There is no "air" in an airbag, the propellant when detonated produces a huge amount of gas very quickly and this fills the bag instantly then it leaks out through holes around the bag as you bash your head on it, thus stopping you from the otherwise inevitable task of picking teeth out of the steering wheel. There is no black magic about working with airbags, just common sense. Don't wear static-laden nylon clothes when you are doing it, disconnect the battery and leave it for half an hour or so before you start (discharges the airbag internal capacitors which are used to trigger the bag), don't drop it or throw it at anybody, don't poke the terminals with multimeter probes or connect it to an electric fence energiser, don't chuck it in a fire, don't sit it face down (if it does go off it'll go steaming up in the air if the "bag" side is facing down) and earth yourself by touching a metal part of the vehicle before you start work. Basically if you handle it like a box of explosives you'll be doing the right sort of things The other thing to be very careful of is not to bugger up the rotary coupler that transmits the bag wiring through the rotational movement of the steering wheel. If you turn it round too much it will rip the guts out which will mean 1) the airbag won't work 2) there'll be lots of warning lights on the dash and 3) you'll have to fork out well on the wrong side of £200 for a new one, they are a horrendous price! Personally I wouldn't bother replacing them though I don't know what insurance companies have to say about it. Land Rover airbags used to cost about £1000 a side for my old Discovery (I checked on the price once); with more vehicles being fitted with them I expect the price has come down but I still wouldn't bother. Once you get into modern vehicles with 8 or 10 bags how much is anybody willing to spend on a 10 year old car in a few years time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen337 Posted August 15, 2005 Author Share Posted August 15, 2005 Ta for the info. I got a quote from the local LR garage for replacement of both airbags, including labour and VAT..... £2870.36 Yes nearly three grand! Two grand for the bits and the rest labour and VAT. Suffice to say I wont be getting them replaced! If it was a couple of hundred I might have considered it but that is way too expensive. Do we know if the seatbelts are different in airbag and non-airbag cars? I know airbags in the USA are more powerful because they dont wear seatbelts, are the seatbelts similar? Do seatbelts in airbag cars have to do less restraining? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 Some seatbelts have "pretensioners" which is another pyrotechnic squib (not sure of the wisdom of filling your car with all these explosives to improve safety....!) which tightens the seat belt if the airbags are triggered, not sure if yours will have those or not, my Discovery 2 does but I think perhaps Discovery 1 didn't. At the very least if you had a crash and nothing detonated I don't think you'd be in any worse off position than a driver of a non-airbagged car and I don't know what a 10 year old Discovery is worth now - six grand? not worth spending £3k on those anyway!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 15, 2005 Share Posted August 15, 2005 It is sodium azide, not sodium whateverIsaidthismorning... Sodium Azide Marvellous idea, it is toxic .... just what you need having narrowly escaped bashing your swede on the windscreen, you then have to hold your breath as well.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopchop Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 Reading all this, I'm rather glad I've kept my 200TDi Disco - No electrickery, No ABS and no airbags.... Hehe!! Anyway, at a Garage sale last Saturday I picked up a very realistic large kids' toy lion for $3 which I shall perch on the front (ie LH) passenger seat of the Disco, leaning up on the fascia grabhandle. Should generate a few interesting looks in Sears' car park..... A variation will be to have someone sitting in the passenger seat with said large lion on their lap, "driving". Wife says she won't be the front passenger, though. Concerned about causing an accident with gawkers! RHD cars aren't exactly common here, and most of the prats around here can't comprehend how it's actually possible to drive one at all on the "wrong" side of the road. - Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen337 Posted August 16, 2005 Author Share Posted August 16, 2005 Was watching the last Top Gear on the BBC and the new Merc S-Class actually opens the windows before setting off the airbags to prevent ear damage from the rapid increase in pressure in the car. Anyway whats least toxic, sodium azide or a face full of steering wheel? Was chatting to the local garage about airbags last night as well and they reckon its one of the main causes of car writeoffs these days. Ta Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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