Diagnostic car codes

Posted 1st Mar 2023

Maybe daft question, but I've an airbag sensor warning light on my 10 year old Merc. There could be a number of reasons.
Question basically is , will any garage be willing to give me a diagnostic reading, or do they expect you to sort out the problem too?

13 Comments

sorted by

.MUFC.
1st Mar
Try the connections under the seats, They're notorious for connection issues. Disconnect the battery, then disconnect the cables under the seats and use some contact cleaner, Reconnect. You could use IPA instead of contact cleaner.
Big_Rik Author
1st Mar
Yeah I've read there's simple solutions, so fingers crossed, tho I'd still need to get rid of warning lights. Thanks
booboy2
1st Mar
Great post, and really good information in the replies.

Brilliant !
Yolofknell
1st Mar
They will charge you for diagnostics then up to you whether you get it fixed from them. Have you thought about buying a code reader yourself. I have a generic one and reads codes from my car, can also clear them too.
KodaBear
1st Mar
They’ll do the diagnostics alone but you should expect to pay for it.

OBD Scanners and/or dongles are cheap. I’d recommend buying your own if you aren’t wanting the garage to do the repairs for you and you want to do it all yourself anyways.

In fact you may actually be able to get the official Mercedes me dongle free of charge from your dealer. They aren’t as in depth but should still give you the error codes.
samosa
2nd Mar
+1 - I got mine free from Mercedes.
Big_Rik Author
1st Mar
Thanks for both the replies, I've seen some readers on Amazon etc for around £30, but don't think they all do airbag type sensors. I could always buy an expensive one , use it , and return it. 😜😜😜
samosa
2nd Mar
I purchased odb scanner from ebay for a couple of quid many years ago. Using some random app, I can now read and understand what the fault then reset codes which switches warning light off.

Since got a free one from Mercedes for my own vehicle but still have the old to use on family/friends car when needed.
Big_Rik Author
2nd Mar
Really? Must have a look