air bag light 1990 Miata

Disconnect the battery and fully charge it. The number of flashes does reveal a coded fault message but it usually stems from low battery rather than actually faulty airbag.

Brian Minto

Battery is only a year old. another thing that happened, would not turn over tonight and appears to be the igition switch. figure maybe it was not making contact and the air bag ckt was reseting. thanks.

from read "Turn the ignition swith to ON and observe the airbag warning light in the instrument panel.

Airbag Warning Light Does Not Illuminate

Check the METER and the ENGINE fuses in Fuse Block 1 (depending on the market they will be rated at 10 or 15 amps). Replace any burned fuses with new fuses of the correct rating. If the new fuses blow, check the appropiate wiring harness for damage, open or short circuits and oir connections.

Airbag Warning Light Stays On

This indicates a problem with the SAS unit or its wiring harness connector. Check the connection; If the fault remains, consult your Mazda dealer as quickly as possible.

Airbag Warning Light Flashes

A sequence of 3 short flashes repeating: code 3. This code indicates a problem with the battery (low voltage), faulty wiring between battery, ENGINE fuse and SAS unit or/and faulty wiring between battery, METER fuse and SAS unit. Check wiring and connectors. If the fault remains, consult your Mazda dealer as quickly as possible.

A sequence of 6 short flashes repeating: code 6. This code indicates a fault in the clockspring or/and a fault in the wiring between the clockspring and the SAS unit. Check that the clockspring is correctly adjusted and that all relevant connectors are securely connected. If the fault remains, consult your Mazda dealer as quickly as possible.

A sequence of 7 short flashes repeating: code 7. Indicates a fault in the wiring between the SAS unit and the passenger side air bag. Check that all relevant connectors are securely connected. If the fault remains, consult your Mazda dealer as quickly as possible.

Warning! Airbag system fault are reported one at a time in order of priority, If you repair a fault, always check that the warning light then indicates that all is well with the system: there may be more than one problem. If the fault remains, consult your Mazda dealer as quickly as possible."

Thanks for all the information. I am going to try the ignition switch cleaing that is on the Miata site.

Cleaning the switch seems to have taken care of the issue. has turned over and started up every time since and no issue with the air bag light or the wipers. thanks for all the information.

Glad to hear that it was an inexpensive fix! Too often, those type of repairs cost lots of MSUs (Miata Spending Units).

Iva & Vixen