Aghhh. Ducato airbag light of death! Any advice?

[Rugbybull]

Hi. Took the motorhome out for its first outing in a couple of months this weekend only to have the airbag light appear on the dash. It’s a Fiat Ducato base and I know from previous posts that this will mean that the ECU will need replacing. Bizarrely my nearest Fiat Professional dealer (Guest Trucks of Coventry) are not taking on any Fiat related work until June at the earliest due to lack of staff! I’ve had a quote of £416 from an independent garage in Warwick but am suspicious as they originally estimated £700 and have asked for £188.61 up front as they are unable to return the part if it turns out to not be needed. They also claim to be in the process of becoming a Fiat Professional garage despite dealing in Fiats since the mid ‘70s! I’m likely going to go with the garage which serviced all of the motorhomes supplied by the dealer I bought mine from. He’s suggested that he will need to check which ECU it is (it could be one of two apparently) and has quoted £465 + VAT as a worse case scenario or £100 less if best case. Does this sound reasonable in terms of price? Is this problem likely to reoccur or are the replacement ECUs more robust? Does Fiat do any ‘goodwill gesture’ to mitigate the cost ? Is there anything else I need to to consider? Apologies for all of the questions. Thanks in advance for your advice on this.

 

[activecampers]

Our vehicle battery is (should be!) topped up when parked up as drip fed from Solar. So fingers crossed....

But with new air bag module, does it need just a proxy align to program - or does it need configuring, as different vans have different airbags (we have driver + pax, no curtains).

Assume you disconnect battery to install?

(I did watch a video of someone changing airbags with ignition on (!) and picked up and rotated the air bag module which detonated the airbags (oops) as the car thought it was in a roll (the gyroscope/yaw sensor was in the airbag module).

 

[Ray-Vic]

Depending on the model of unit they can vary quite a bit in price. You need to see what the part number is and get a price for that (or compatible) part.

It can happen with it being nothing to do with the battery. My battery was absolutely fine, and still is (have a Victron monitor on it) but mine had failed badly and was not able to be repaired.

I bought a brand new (2024 model) one here and swapped it over myself. Cost me £179.00 and went to my local Fiat Professional who programmed it with no issues. He confirmed it was a genuine Fiat part.

Having a chat with him about this issue, he did say that you should never carry out a proxy alignment with the module outside the vehicle, which is what these repair companies do if they give you a new one, as it needs to see all the other modules as part of the process and to complete it properly, otherwise it can throw up issues with the other modules when you plug it back in.

 

[SVMC15]

If you get the correct ECU for your vehicle, same number as your existing one, then it is just the proxy alignment.

I'm not sure what would happen if you get the incorrect one, probably an airbag alarm!

 

[on the hook]

Hi. Took the motorhome out for its first outing in a couple of months this weekend only to have the airbag light appear on the dash. It’s a Fiat Ducato base and I know from previous posts that this will mean that the ECU will need replacing. Bizarrely my nearest Fiat Professional dealer (Guest Trucks of Coventry) are not taking on any Fiat related work until June at the earliest due to lack of staff! I’ve had a quote of £416 from an independent garage in Warwick but am suspicious as they originally estimated £700 and have asked for £188.61 up front as they are unable to return the part if it turns out to not be needed. They also claim to be in the process of becoming a Fiat Professional garage despite dealing in Fiats since the mid ‘70s! I’m likely going to go with the garage which serviced all of the motorhomes supplied by the dealer I bought mine from. He’s suggested that he will need to check which ECU it is (it could be one of two apparently) and has quoted £465 + VAT as a worse case scenario or £100 less if best case. Does this sound reasonable in terms of price? Is this problem likely to reoccur or are the replacement ECUs more robust? Does Fiat do any ‘goodwill gesture’ to mitigate the cost ? Is there anything else I need to to consider? Apologies for all of the questions. Thanks in advance for your advice on this.

Hello this may help. I had a 2020 ducato 2.3 MH Kontiki. Calmac tyres Northampton always did my mots as it was 5ton. Last mot the airbag light came on on the way to mot, they plugged in and turned it off, it passed the mot, sure enough it came back on a week or two later, I went back and this time they took the ECU out and sent it off for repair re program, I’m not sure, but it came back sorted, I think the cost was circa £200. Maybe if they can turn it off it might not come back on but I feel sure they are reliable and will do any work at a proper price, hope this helps.

Car Tyres Northampton | Free Local Fitting with Low Prices | Calmac

A specialist tyre & autocare centre, great service & low prices on all brands with huge stock & no upfront payment required. Click & Fit today!

www.calmactyres.co.uk

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Rugbybull]

Thanks. They’re not too far from me so may be worth contacting.

 

[gilbaro]

Don't know how long you have had the vehicle but I got mine replaced under my dealer's warranty 11 months after I bought it. This was on a 2015 Peugeot but I presume it is the same.
They didn't query it, just replaced it.

 

[pat100]

Just trying to get more info on this issue.
Does anyone think that they (or mechanic) may have precipitated the failure by recently disconnecting the starter battery without following a possible recommended procedure (E.g. 3 (or 6) minute wait etc)
Probable answers might include “Possibly” or “Definitely not” .

 

[Apacheman]

As others have said this is a common occurrence with Ducatos and airbag ECUs. I stand to be corrected but I believe it is related to low battery power, particularly when vehicles have been unused and vehicle batteries drain to a low voltage??
I had the problem on a previous van, removed the ECU and sent it off to Crashdata. Afterwards it worked fine but I always made sure the battery remained at a healthy voltage. I’ve read some negative reviews about them since.
We bought a new van in 2020 and after about 18 months we had this problem but it definitely wasn’t linked to low voltage. It was taken to Northern Commercials at Brighouse under Fiat Warranty. They replaced the unit but it did not cure the problem. They had to raise a technical issue with Fiat and according to them when I picked it up it was related to a sensor in the dash??
They informed me that an updated ECU was now fitted which should not have the same issues as earlier models as if Fiat has somehow recognised the issues and upgraded ECUs??
I do check my batteries regularly and keep them topped up if dropping to 12.4v. I’ve had no further issues.

 

[the1andonly]

Previously i presented graphs on reliability if the airbag ecu. hers additional words i posted on FF.
Since 21/22 there have been new designs with new part numbers that are much more reliable.
Multiple failure s are now much grater a %age than the graphs. At least one of the companies that do "repair work" do nothing other than turn off error flag. It is my belief that the only sensible repair is a new replacement. From Fiat it would also come with a 2 year warrenty but at a price, a sensible approach is new via coastal motorhomes and a proxi align.
I'm not sure I believe that low volts causes the ECU to fail. From my analysis of the failure trends i believe it is design related as the newer replacement are not as susseptable and the voltages stated as an issue are what should be expected in a vehicle environment, if they cant cope they should have been designed with better voltage regulation (this problem has been well known since 2012. From samples that have been dismantled we can see water damage (and poor earth contacts). whether this is just damage due to short circuits or a failure mechanism analogous to popcorning i don't know. (popcorning is a failure mechanism seen during manufacture of electronic circuits and is normally a thermal process.) Peugeot reccomend an additional earth. if you wait for the warning lights to go off before cranking, you reduce the risk this I believe is due to the ECU "waking up" properly allowing the ecu to deal with normal voltage variations. is My own 2017 has not bust a ECU and earlier in year changed the battery as on two occassions it failed to start (generaly permamently charged by Votronics duo mppt).
How do i protect my new investment :
1 additional earth.
2 water protection, its stored on the floor , if drenched dry out slowly before turning on ignition
3 i've always adopted the procedure recommended that is turn ignition on, let the display complete its check sequence and then start the engine. then put the seatbelt on. Maybe I have been lucky in not having a failure. may not be rigorous in order of putting on seatbelt.
for those unaware there is now a website that has E-learn data on x290 to the 2.3 Adblu model (not total ie many missing bits but still useful) . I will not post it here as access is very poor due to the demand for service is very high or the server cant deal with 3 of us trying to access site at same time. There is effort on the fiat forum to get as much info before the site dissapears. I include some docs related to air bags

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Brian/April]

I found northern autotech exellent, if you provide the error code they can tell you over phone or website if it can be repaired, mine was back in two days . It did then need to be matched to vehicle. Don't know if that's the same with a new replacment, but worth checking if it's likely to be added cost and time. As said above a few minutes work to remove and replace. Under carpet to the left of clutch . Odd position to damage it by standing on it !!

 

[Rugbybull]

Thanks again for all the really helpful advice on this. Thanks also for the suggestions on ‘trusted’ businesses which I’ll now need to follow up. The van is on a 2017 plate and outside of the 12 month warranty period provided when I bought it used.

 

[Rodders1234]

Snap, same happened to me Tuesday when we left site so I will watch this thread with interest. Airbag warning message see manual with red warning on the dash. I guess it’s a mot failure so will need to get it sorted but I’m not back in the uk until end of March. The local garage that service mine ( not a dealer) said they could help. Where can you see the error code?

 

[Googlebot]

There is a thread on my signature about my recent issues.

I did the software reset myself after buying the software.

Mine happened to be a very expensive ECU. :-(

MultiECUscan will pay for itself just by sorting this issue out.

 

[Brummycraig]

Thanks for all of the advice so far. Much appreciated. I was aware that it’s an all too common on Fiats. What’s frustrating is that the battery seemed fine when I came to start the van.

I suspect that the battery is just fine for starting the vehicle but when you fire up before the airbag module has booted with the voltage drop caused by starter motor this is enough to corrupt the memory chip....I would personally give northern autotech a try as they seem to get the most glowing reviews. Removal of the module is very straight forward.
I actually removed the corrupted chip myself and cleaned the data but this is not for the faint hearted. I also purchased multiecuscan and the correct lead to do proxy alignment, again pretty easy and a useful tool to have in the MH.

Good luck
C

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[pelican]

I had the same problem a couple of years ago. Having had to research the problem and rectify my opinion is that the airbag ecu fails primarily due to a low voltage engine start battery and starting the engine immediately on turning the key. My starting procedure now is to ensure the engine start battery is charged, turn the ignition key and wait for the airbag light to go out, depress the clutch and start the engine. This of course is only my opinion.
I bought a new ecu from Coastal Motorhomes at a very reasonable cost and fitted myself. I also bought Multiecuscan for £50 to do the proxi alignment which is very easy. I now have Multiecuscan to diagnose any faults and clear codes which is very handy.

Agree with your start up procedure as mine only illuminates if I dont follow that procedure.

 

[nelson8217]

Hi. Took the motorhome out for its first outing in a couple of months this weekend only to have the airbag light appear on the dash. It’s a Fiat Ducato base and I know from previous posts that this will mean that the ECU will need replacing. Bizarrely my nearest Fiat Professional dealer (Guest Trucks of Coventry) are not taking on any Fiat related work until June at the earliest due to lack of staff! I’ve had a quote of £416 from an independent garage in Warwick but am suspicious as they originally estimated £700 and have asked for £188.61 up front as they are unable to return the part if it turns out to not be needed. They also claim to be in the process of becoming a Fiat Professional garage despite dealing in Fiats since the mid ‘70s! I’m likely going to go with the garage which serviced all of the motorhomes supplied by the dealer I bought mine from. He’s suggested that he will need to check which ECU it is (it could be one of two apparently) and has quoted £465 + VAT as a worse case scenario or £100 less if best case. Does this sound reasonable in terms of price? Is this problem likely to reoccur or are the replacement ECUs more robust? Does Fiat do any ‘goodwill gesture’ to mitigate the cost ? Is there anything else I need to to consider? Apologies for all of the questions. Thanks in advance for your advice on this.

Sorry, you haven't put the year of your Ducato but if you look on various forums you will probably see that certain years are more prone to failure.
Speaking from personal experience, I had the same problem on our 2016 build Ducato and I dealt with myself as follows,
Remove all the front carpets to expose the battery compartment (on ours the battery is under the heater unit)
Disconnect the earth connection (the black one) and leave for at least 30 minutes.
Remove the lower shroud (I just unscrewed it as seems difficult to get it out) and pushed it out of the way as much as could.
The airbag module is then visible, disconnect the two wiring connectors and remove the module. (It's held in by 3x10mm nuts, I used a 1/4 drive ratchet, it's not easy)
I then sent it off to Crashdata for testing, they reported that the unit was completely duff and would be £400 to have a brand new unit including transferring all of the data and P&P.
The unit was duly calibrated and returned, refitting was the reverse of removal and it seems to be working okay.
Hope this helps but it is only my experience.
Regards
Peter

 

[Riverbankannie]

The fault is caused by flat starter battery, and jump starting fries the circuit. So make sure you keep your battery maintained during winter.

My failure was not due to a low battery.

 

[pelican]

My failure was not due to a low battery.

What caused it?

 

[Windy66]

Hi. Took the motorhome out for its first outing in a couple of months this weekend only to have the airbag light appear on the dash. It’s a Fiat Ducato base and I know from previous posts that this will mean that the ECU will need replacing. Bizarrely my nearest Fiat Professional dealer (Guest Trucks of Coventry) are not taking on any Fiat related work until June at the earliest due to lack of staff! I’ve had a quote of £416 from an independent garage in Warwick but am suspicious as they originally estimated £700 and have asked for £188.61 up front as they are unable to return the part if it turns out to not be needed. They also claim to be in the process of becoming a Fiat Professional garage despite dealing in Fiats since the mid ‘70s! I’m likely going to go with the garage which serviced all of the motorhomes supplied by the dealer I bought mine from. He’s suggested that he will need to check which ECU it is (it could be one of two apparently) and has quoted £465 + VAT as a worse case scenario or £100 less if best case. Does this sound reasonable in terms of price? Is this problem likely to reoccur or are the replacement ECUs more robust? Does Fiat do any ‘goodwill gesture’ to mitigate the cost ? Is there anything else I need to to consider? Apologies for all of the questions. Thanks in advance for your advice on this.

I am reliably informed by a Motorhome service company that the ECUs fail because of condensation running down the window and the back of the dash. Water and damp ingress causes the failure.
My ECU failed about 7 years ago. It was fixed and I put a towel/flannel at the bottom centre of the windscreen to soak up any condensation. Not had a problem since.
Can I be sure that was the fix - absolutely not. But I’m not removing my towel!

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Burge]

I am reliably informed by a Motorhome service company that the ECUs fail because of condensation running down the window and the back of the dash. Water and damp ingress causes the failure.
My ECU failed about 7 years ago. It was fixed and I put a towel/flannel at the bottom centre of the windscreen to soak up any condensation. Not had a problem since.
Can I be sure that was the fix - absolutely not. But I’m not removing my towel!

I find that hard to believe as where the ECU is situated

 

[yorkiebar]

I am reliably informed by a Motorhome service company that the ECUs fail because of condensation running down the window and the back of the dash. Water and damp ingress causes the failure.
My ECU failed about 7 years ago. It was fixed and I put a towel/flannel at the bottom centre of the windscreen to soak up any condensation. Not had a problem since.
Can I be sure that was the fix - absolutely not. But I’m not removing my towel!

Sounds like we're talking about two different ECUs. Main vehicle ECU is under the bonnet, airbag 'ECU' is in the cab.

 

[SVMC15]

My airbag ECU was in immaculate condition, no sign of any moisture when it failed after 8 years.

Although my battery charged and was maintained above 12.5v when I put a battery tester on it, it only tested at 560ah ish, it was started with 800ah capacity.

In hindsight when the airbag light lit up and went out I should have changed the battery then. I think it only reset itself the once before the ECU logged a permanent fault.

 

[iandsm]

Hi. Took the motorhome out for its first outing in a couple of months this weekend only to have the airbag light appear on the dash. It’s a Fiat Ducato base and I know from previous posts that this will mean that the ECU will need replacing. Bizarrely my nearest Fiat Professional dealer (Guest Trucks of Coventry) are not taking on any Fiat related work until June at the earliest due to lack of staff! I’ve had a quote of £416 from an independent garage in Warwick but am suspicious as they originally estimated £700 and have asked for £188.61 up front as they are unable to return the part if it turns out to not be needed. They also claim to be in the process of becoming a Fiat Professional garage despite dealing in Fiats since the mid ‘70s! I’m likely going to go with the garage which serviced all of the motorhomes supplied by the dealer I bought mine from. He’s suggested that he will need to check which ECU it is (it could be one of two apparently) and has quoted £465 + VAT as a worse case scenario or £100 less if best case. Does this sound reasonable in terms of price? Is this problem likely to reoccur or are the replacement ECUs more robust? Does Fiat do any ‘goodwill gesture’ to mitigate the cost ? Is there anything else I need to to consider? Apologies for all of the questions. Thanks in advance for your advice on this.

I just paid £404 inc VAT at my local Peugeot main dealer for a replacement ECU, I had the same fault as you after the camper being unused for a few weeks in the cold weather I got the warning lamp come up They told me the unit was over £200 but the extra was labour for half an hour and VAT, so all in all I was happy. I do know of a firm called Crash data who can repair these units, I think for £80 ish but the units can fail again. I have also found out that the original units manufactured somewhere in Europe are prone to failure and are unreliable but the new ones, after I think 2018, are made in the UK and are much better, I decided to go to the main dealer as they give a year warranty. I think the people who have quoted you seem pretty near the mark at £416.

 

[iandsm]

My airbag ECU was in immaculate condition, no sign of any moisture when it failed after 8 years.

Although my battery charged and was maintained above 12.5v when I put a battery tester on it, it only tested at 560ah ish, it was started with 800ah capacity.

In hindsight when the airbag light lit up and went out I should have changed the battery then. I think it only reset itself the once before the ECU logged a permanent fault.

Mine was completely dry and there is no way condensation or water could have entered it and in any case the fault, as I understand it, is an internal one. The airbag light on mine always did come on when first starting then go out after thirty seconds or so, and still does, presumably to show that it is working. The same thing happens in my car. I can't prove it but I have grave reservations about the story of low voltage from battery causing the fault as a low battery doesn't cause a fault on the main ECU. I think it's just a poor piece of equipment.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[SVMC15]

Mine was completely dry and there is no way condensation or water could have entered it and in any case the fault, as I understand it, is an internal one. The airbag light on mine always did come on when first starting then go out after thirty seconds or so, and still does, presumably to show that it is working. The same thing happens in my car. I can't prove it but I have grave reservations about the story of low voltage from battery causing the fault as a low battery doesn't cause a fault on the main ECU. I think it's just a poor piece of equipment.

Yes the red airbag warning does come on during its self test, think only about five seconds though. I got the airbag warning text come up on the dashboard as well.

 

[59Loz]

Hi. Took the motorhome out for its first outing in a couple of months this weekend only to have the airbag light appear on the dash. It’s a Fiat Ducato base and I know from previous posts that this will mean that the ECU will need replacing. Bizarrely my nearest Fiat Professional dealer (Guest Trucks of Coventry) are not taking on any Fiat related work until June at the earliest due to lack of staff! I’ve had a quote of £416 from an independent garage in Warwick but am suspicious as they originally estimated £700 and have asked for £188.61 up front as they are unable to return the part if it turns out to not be needed. They also claim to be in the process of becoming a Fiat Professional garage despite dealing in Fiats since the mid ‘70s! I’m likely going to go with the garage which serviced all of the motorhomes supplied by the dealer I bought mine from. He’s suggested that he will need to check which ECU it is (it could be one of two apparently) and has quoted £465 + VAT as a worse case scenario or £100 less if best case. Does this sound reasonable in terms of price? Is this problem likely to reoccur or are the replacement ECUs more robust? Does Fiat do any ‘goodwill gesture’ to mitigate the cost ? Is there anything else I need to to consider? Apologies for all of the questions. Thanks in advance for your advice on this.

I had same problem. Sent module to Northern Autotech on eBay. Return 4 days later repaired with a pack of Haribos. Worked perfectly with no more trouble. They are still on eBay and showing £60 for the repair. You will need to remove and reinstall yourself.

 

[Hobo]

Hi. Took the motorhome out for its first outing in a couple of months this weekend only to have the airbag light appear on the dash. It’s a Fiat Ducato base and I know from previous posts that this will mean that the ECU will need replacing. Bizarrely my nearest Fiat Professional dealer (Guest Trucks of Coventry) are not taking on any Fiat related work until June at the earliest due to lack of staff! I’ve had a quote of £416 from an independent garage in Warwick but am suspicious as they originally estimated £700 and have asked for £188.61 up front as they are unable to return the part if it turns out to not be needed. They also claim to be in the process of becoming a Fiat Professional garage despite dealing in Fiats since the mid ‘70s! I’m likely going to go with the garage which serviced all of the motorhomes supplied by the dealer I bought mine from. He’s suggested that he will need to check which ECU it is (it could be one of two apparently) and has quoted £465 + VAT as a worse case scenario or £100 less if best case. Does this sound reasonable in terms of price? Is this problem likely to reoccur or are the replacement ECUs more robust? Does Fiat do any ‘goodwill gesture’ to mitigate the cost ? Is there anything else I need to to consider? Apologies for all of the questions. Thanks in advance for your advice on this.

Unfortunately the ECU price sounds about right. Happened twice to me in 7 years. A ridiculous flaw in the Ducato. Apparently you can get the ecu reprogrammed by specialists which would be cheaper but don’t have any details, Paul

 

[Two on Tour]

Apparently you can get the ecu reprogrammed by specialists which would be cheaper but don’t have any details, Paul

The details have been posted numerous times on this thread, let alone other threads over the years.

 

[SpeedyDux]

2017 Ducato. Starter battery getting old was probably a big factor that led to the original airbag ECU failure. I reckon the starter battery is only good for about 4 years even if it can still crank the engine.

Even with a healthy starter battery the airbag ECU can fail - it seems to be quite random. I don't think damp penetration can be a cause, because my airbag ECU was always bone dry when I lifted the rubber cab floor.

The re-programming by Crashdata lasted 2 years in my case. At the time there was a shortage of replacement new ECU modules. At least it got me through a couple of MOT tests. I now have a brand new later upgrade FIAT airbag ECU module with warranty. Fingers crossed every time I start the engine I won't see the airbag warning light stay on!