Last night my SRS light came on in the dash. After reading the manual I decided to take the car to the dealership. They informed me that my two front pre-tensioners were bad and needed to be replaced. (This is the buckle that the seat belt latches into to.) They want to charge me $700.00 to replace these two little parts. After doing some research I found a bulletin from the TSB (Technical Service Bulletin) and they state that the parts should just be cleaned.

I am not sure where to go with this and wanted to know if any other 02 Escape owners are having the same problem. The bulletin I received dates back to Oct. 2003. I dont understand why these parts would go out on such a new car. They really shouldnt have to be replaced until the airbags are deployed. Please help if you have experienced this same problem or know of a recall or if the cleaning works. Thanks!

 

Unplug and replug the connector under the passenger seat. This seems to be an annoying problem with Escapes, a loose connection. If that doesn't work...Try the cleaning.

 

Thanks Doc I will give that a try today before I take it in for cleaning and see if it works.

 

The OLD TSB was for cleaning the connectors and applying an electrical spray to them. The fix lasts about two months.

The NEW TSB says to replace the pretensioners and splice in new connectors.

You might try tightening the female spade terminals in the connectors for a tighter fit... that may help.

Also you can eliminate the connector completely and solder the wires together, I bet that would work, but I wouldn't recommend it. I think it may violate some federal safety thing or something.

Good Luck!