Here's What Your Car's SRS Light Means

Despite the fact that technological advancements continue to make automobiles safer to drive, traffic safety still largely depends on the ability of drivers to obey the laws of the road and, ya know, not ignore all those life-saving — though sometimes expensive to fix – bells and whistles. Still, it may come as a relief to know that some safety tech is not reliant on a driver to work, and of the so-called "passive safety" systems, it's likely that few have saved more lives than the supplemental restraint system.

Often referred to as SRS for short, the system, of course, controls your vehicle's airbags, which inflate from various points in your car, truck, or SUV to help limit or prevent potentially deadly interior impacts when you are involved in an accident. Given the absolutely vital protection provided by your vehicle's supplemental restraint system, it should go without saying that you should do everything in your power to ensure that it is 100% functional whenever you or your loved ones are in the car and on the road. 

Unfortunately, there's not much you can do to ensure SRS is functioning as it should in your car, save for keeping a close lookout for the SRS light on your dashboard when you're behind the wheel. Should that light kick on and stay on while you're driving, you'll need to get it checked by a professional, as it means there's a problem with the system and the airbags may not deploy on impact.

Like all of the warning lights in your car, there are several reasons the supplemental restraint system light might be engaged on your dashboard display. Of course, in many vehicles the SRS light automatically illuminates when you first turn your car on. It is, however, supposed to switch back off after a moment or two. If it doesn't, or illuminates while you're driving, there's likely a problem somewhere in the system that will need to be addressed, and that will likely require a diagnostic check run by you or an automotive professional.

As for what problems a handy diagnostic tool might find, one common cause for an SRS light is the failure of a seat belt latch. Yes, SRS has a sensor that monitors whether your seat belt is properly fastened; if the signal is disrupted, the warning light turns on, and you can potentially fix this issue by simply deep cleaning your seatbelt fastener. On the other hand, another common cause for the SRS light you likely can't fix yourself is a faulty passenger seat occupancy sensor, which determines the relative size of a vehicle's passenger and adjusts airbag deployment accordingly.

If that sensor isn't the problem, a damaged clock spring in the steering wheel could be, as the warning light illuminates when it loses contact with the SRS computer. Likewise, the computer itself may simply malfunction, and the warning light will even click on when the computer's backup battery runs out of juice. Whatever the cause, when the SRS light kicks on in your car, you'd be wise to address the issue as soon as possible.