So... I have a 2008 3. I bought the base model, with fabric seats, and wanted leather ones. Today, I made a little trip to the junkyard and found a pair of pristine black leather seats for 350 and installed them.

Now, heres the problem...
For the drivers seat... the fasten seatbelt indicator on the dash is illuminated only when the seatbelt is being worn (in the buckle). When I take the belt off... the light goes off.
For the passengers seat... the Passenger Airbag Off light is illuminated when the seatbelt is not buckled, andoff when buckled, regardless of whether or not the passenger (or anything) is in the seat.

Apparently the seats came from a 2005 3...I dont know of any differences between them... anyone have any ideas??????

 

Ideas? Of course.
The wildest idea I have is that since cars are 12 DC, and there are sensors (electronics, not just electricity) detecting those conditions, what if you were to simply reverse the leads? +for -, and - for +.

 

Or just find a '05 3 to look at and see what the wiring on the car side of the plug looks like.... it's possible they just changed how it was layed out.

 

both good points and the points that i was going to make. also, is the harness reversible (are both sides of it identical)?

 

harnesses between the two cars were exactly the same... to switch the + and - wires, i'm going to actually have to take them out of the harness... they are all one-way fit

 

and these '05 seats have a harness that my 08 ones didnt have...

they both had side air bags, and none were/are power adjustable...
i think the "new" harness is the gas tube trigger for the buckle...

which is the switch for the buckle itself?

 

I wouldn't mess with the harnesses, switching the wires won't get you anywhere.

I believe the 08's have what are called pyrotechnic pre-tensioners (they fire and cinch down the seatbelt in an accident.), the 05's didn't have that. (or maybe vice-versa from your description above)

The safety systems in your car are now reading an open circuit on the pre-tensioners.

When you buckle the seatbelt, the vehicle thinks an occupant is now in the seat, but with the open circuit in the pre-tensioner it lights up the warning light. (as it is designed to do.)

 

i think i just need new buckles for the seats themselves... anyone have any they arent using??

 

What SST states is probably the best advice. The qustion is how to override the problem and/or fool the system.
Any ideas Scott?

 

im going to talk about 2SETS of harnesses... the car side, and the seat side... both underneath the seat

my car (2008) has 3... what i assume to be the "seatbelt buckled" switch, the "side airbag activation" harness, and the "this person is heavier than a baby" switch... my car did not originally have the pre-tensioner front buckle...

the seat side obviously has those three (and one more)... of which 2 harnesses only have 2 wires, leading me to believe they are switches. one is yellow wire/yellow wire... another is red wire/black wire... another is a 3 wire harness... and the last i cant remember.

so what is reading open... and why?? they are all plugged in, unless one is defective...

the passenger airbag off light used to only come on when there were say... a pile of books on my seat, with or withoutthe seatbelt buckled.