Mk4 Ford Mondeo Titanium 2009 - Airbag ecu & warning light

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
View Threaded
Mon 23 May 2016 14:18
Mk4 Ford Mondeo Titanium 2009 - Airbag ecu & warning light - Alasdairweir

Hi there,

I bought this car from a licensed dealer just over 2 years ago with a clear HPI and, they say, electrical and mechanical checks completed. I've had no issue with it until a month ago when we had electrical gremlins so took it to a Ford garage. Turns out the battery was dying. While they were working on it they found the airbag light does not come on before or after the engine starts and when they checked the airbag ecu is was full of crash data. We've rechecked the HPI and it is clear.

The garage suggests fixing the dash first as they believe it has been tampered with (£300 if fixable, £1,100 if not) before replacing the ecu (£340) to determine the root cause. This raises a couple of questions I need help with to limit my costs:

1. Can the current ecu not be interrogated to determine the root cause, thereby saving me money? I couldn't get this out of the garage

2. Can a replacement ecu be plugged in without fixing the instrument lights to determine the root cause?

3. Is there any history of airbag ecus filling with crash data without actually being in a crash? This would help my claim against the dealership.

Many thanks for your help

Alasdair

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 23 May 2016 14:58
Mk4 Ford Mondeo Titanium 2009 - Airbag ecu & warning light - RobJP

For starters, RUN away from a main agent with a vehicle at that age. They don't like to fix parts, they like to replace them. Which is nearly always more expensive for the customer (hey, in an ideal world for them they present you with a potential bill so large that you buy a new car !)

You need a good auto electrician. Thjere is a decent list of good independent garages, etc. on this site at

good-garage-guide.honestjohn.co.uk/

and there are also other garage review / recommendation websites. Search engines are your friend.

Finally, bought 2 years ago I doubt you'd have any claim against the selling garage.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 24 May 2016 08:53
Mk4 Ford Mondeo Titanium 2009 - Airbag ecu & warning light - Alasdairweir

Thanks Rob.

My claim against the dealership is valid under the sales of good act, but being more than 6 months after the sale, the onus is on me to prove the problem cannot be down to general wear and tear. Hence the question. A long shot I know.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link