VTEC2002Civic

Hi everyone. I am new here and having an issue with my 2002 civic EX with a manual transmission that has 89,000 miles on it. I am hoping that you all can help me out. I did read other posts on code 9-3 and the seatbelt buckle fiasco.

A few weeks ago I parked my car at work and took off my seatbelt. As I took off my seatbelt the SRS light turned on. I took my car to my local Honda dealership and they diagnosed the failure as code 9-3, a failure of the sensor internal to the seatbelt buckle. They charged me $59 for the diagnosis and refused to cover the replacement under the 'useful life' seatbelt warranty. They gave me an estimate of $503, inclusive of parts and labor for the removal and replacement of the seatbelt buckle. Due to the dealership refusing to cover the repair under the seatbelt warranty, I opened a case with Honda corporate, which they are dragging their feet on.

In the meantime, I purchased a used seatbelt buckle from a reputable seller on E-bay and had my brother, who is a BMW master tech, install the used buckle and we did the manual reset of the SRS light. The SRS light stayed off until the following day, and again stays on after starting the car. The E-bay seller believes the buckle he sold me may be the issue and graciously is sending a new buckle to me immediately.

My question is this, will the SRS light turn off for a short period of time and then turn back on if the manual reset is done and an OBD scanner is not used? If we didn't disconnect the battery before removing the original buckle but did disconnect it after the new buckle was installed will that matter? Is it possible to get a 9-3 code and have something else besides the seatbelt buckle be the culprit? Any ideas on how to fix this?

I really do enjoy driving this car and would like to fix this situation without spending another $500. Thanks in advance.

ezone

Post unghosted
Only if there is still a problem.

Battery disconnect does not erase SRS codes.
Battery disconnect does not cause SRS codes.

You bought a USED replacement, and these are very well known for failing the internal microswitches. Used parts are always a crapshoot that may be no better than the one you already have (as you already found).

Another? You didn't even spend the first $500 yet.

VTEC2002Civic

Ezone, thanks for your reply. Do you see many 9-3 error codes on cars that come through your dealership? I guess my primary concern is this... being that the Honda dealership diagnosed code 9-3 have you ever known a new (not used) buckle to not turn off the SRS light? I just want to know that this is a fixable issue.

ezone

Didn't I already say they are very well known for failing?

Many buckle codes of various code numbers, and for both sides.

Yes, but it's very rare.

Testing properly could prove the system either works or does not work, the buckle switch works or doesn't ..........but you probably won't catch it if it's only failing intermittently, therefore proving the rest of the system works is necessary......and it worked for a few days when you plugged in the last buckle so that tells me that the system does work if the buckle switch is good..

EVERYTHING is fixable.

NDNV

The proper outcome in this situation should have been the Honda dealer replacing the seatbelt buckle under the lifetime seatbelt warranty.
The majority of customers I read about online get this part replaced for free.
If the Honda work order shows the SRS code and they do not replace the seatbelt buckle, how does this work liability-wise should an accident occur and they failed to act?
Even in Canada with no lifetime warranty on seatbelts, I received the part under goodwill for free and I paid the labour.
I would insist corporate would come through for you on this.
Another dealer might warranty this work.