Chevy rear head curtain removal?

[Ultralite]

Is it possible to remove the rear head curtain airbags in a 2015 Chevy Express? I bought one to tow a camper with thinking I could do a Sportsmobile conversion later. When I called SMB they said they won't touch them. (I had not seen that warning on their site, and still haven't found it.)

In any event, I'm willing to get them removed and then take it to SMB, or one of the other conversion places, but I'm trying to see if specific air bag removal is even possible.

Thanks in advance...

 

[bdog1]

If you remove them the lamp will stay on. It knows there missing


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[wjeeper]

It would seem to me that you could eliminate the side curtain airbags in the back. Cargo vans don't have them. It might just take a simple reflash of the BCM at the dealership, it might be hard to find one that will do it with seat still in the back of the van.

 

[TeleSteve]

They can be removed and replaced with airbag simulators <$30 each from Airbag Syatems and you won't get any codes or dash lights. Will Sportsmobile do the work knowing you removed them is the question.

 

[40sqft]

I removed them from my 2008 Express 1500. I was surprised to find that there aren't separate airbags for the front and rear passengers. In other words, the side curtain airbag runs all the way from the back to the front and is about ten feet long. It's like a life raft! I've been trying to figure out if there is a side airbag for cargo vans that I could put in place to protect just the front seats.

The airbags are a snap to remove once the headliner is out and only the front headliner is finicky to get out without creasing it.

 

[TeleSteve]

I removed them from my 2008 Express 1500. I was surprised to find that there aren't separate airbags for the front and rear passengers. In other words, the side curtain airbag runs all the way from the back to the front and is about ten feet long. It's like a life raft! I've been trying to figure out if there is a side airbag for cargo vans that I could put in place to protect just the front seats.

The airbags are a snap to remove once the headliner is out and only the front headliner is finicky to get out without creasing it.

My 2010 cargo only has the side curtains above the front doors. Not sure if they would be plug and play in a passenger van.

 

[Ultralite]

Thanks everyone I appreciate the responses. I may try this airbag disconnect kit once I'm out of the warranty period.

 

[broncobowsher]

You would need a cargo airbag controller from the same spec of vehicle and the cargo (front only) airbags as well. The tuning of these systems isn't one of those things that you can do at home mixing and matching parts. You are going from a system expecting to fire off an airbag the length of the van, but if you replace that with just the front seats the tuning will be all wrong. At this point it could turn from a safety item into a dangerous item.

The truly correct answer would be to get the correct van to start with. I didn't see it listed but I am guessing you have a passenger van? I've heard of stories (live in the auto industry) of disabled airbags in the used car world. Things get ugly. One of them was a disabled system that was traced through several owners, car lots, auction houses, etc. until they found who pulled they system. The were on the hook for the cost of the vehicle and all the lost profits and costs associated from the time he sold it. He was on the hook for a couple times the cost of what the car was worth. This came and bit him well after he sold it. Big part of it was the deception that was created when he made it appear to be a fully functional system. Removing/disabling the rear system would fall into that same category. I'm sure your current plans are to never sell it. But plans don't always meet reality. So be forewarned that you are potentially opening yourself up to some legal headaches in the future. For some reason people get really upset when they buy sometime for a safety feature and find it doesn't exist.

 

[Ultralite]

Oops, it is a passenger van.

I think I've decided to leave the headliner, airbags, and AC vents alone. Actually I'd like to leave all factory wiring alone. Even if there were some aftermarket solutions, I've dealt with enough to see a probability of warning lights.

But I was starting from a place of no information. I appreciate everyone's help here.

 

[h-atlas]

I see that Ultralite has decided against it for now, but we have a SMB pop top scheduled at the end of May for our 2009 Chevy Express passenger van. We're finally getting around to thinking about the rear airbags. We had to go passenger because we have 3 kids in car seats + an au pair that lives with us and it is our 2nd car. So, seating for 6 is a must. We are just doing a rudimentary build - wooden platform in the back for 3 x 2 year olds and mom and dad would sleep up top on the Sportsmobile bed once installed. All cooking outside. Might eventually replace the seats with a folding bed when we don't have a full time nanny. Anyway, that is the background and why we were planning on getting a pop top on a passenger van. Talked to SMB and they said they can try to work around the simulators if we go that route but they may not be able to. Any other ideas? I guess they have not come across this issue too much as most vans are Cargo but are starting to see it more and more. Open to ideas. We may have to scrap the whole idea of a relatively inexpensive camper van for triplets, but I don't want to give up yet!

 

[Ultralite]

H-atlas, do you have the head curtains for sure? I don't know but I thought they were an addition in more recent years.

I called SMB North requested they add something to the website warning people. SMB North said the website was run out of the Texas location. So I called them too and asked them the same.

Then, to be thorough, I just emailed all 3 locations to make the request. I also expressed my frustration in the process. I've been on their website so many times over the years and never saw anything that even suggested cargo to the absence of passenger, if you follow. And, as you look at the photos of all the different models you'll see vans with windows that look like they're passenger vans.

 

[Ns1]

First, I'd like to thank the OP for posting this. Out of the 38945987345 webpages I've looked at, only 2 have mentioned the rear airbag curtain issues (which is evidently also true of late model Transits)

Second, has anyone actually found a solution to this, or has used the Airbag Systems workaround? I was all set to buy a 2012 Chevy Express too...

Finally, on a related note, does anyone know the last model year Chevy/Ford made passenger vans w/o the rear curtain airbags?

 

[NevadaLover]

According to alldata 2008 is the first year rear they are used.
this is the list of Passenger Compartment/Roof Components shown on alldata, their info comes manufacturer direct to them so it should be correct.

1 - Inflatable Restraint Roof Rail Module - Left Rear (****** +YA2)
2 - Inflatable Restraint Roof Rail Module - Left Front (******)
3 - Instrument Panel - Upper Pad
4 - Inflatable Restraint Roof Rail Module - Right Front (******)
5 - Rollover Sensor
6 - Yaw and Lateral Acceleration Sensor (JL4)
7 - Inflatable Restraint Sensing and Diagnostic Module (SDM)
8 - Inflatable Restraint Roof Rail Module - Right Rear (****** +YA2)

 

[bdog1]

Ignoring the legal issues, in theory the inflator could be removed and a substitute resistor added to the wiring connector so the control module would be none the wiser. This would be similar to testing and diagnosing the system.


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[Ultralite]

First, I'd like to thank the OP for posting this. Out of the 38945987345 webpages I've looked at, only 2 have mentioned the rear airbag curtain issues (which is evidently also true of late model Transits)

Second, has anyone actually found a solution to this, or has used the Airbag Systems workaround? I was all set to buy a 2012 Chevy Express too...

Finally, on a related note, does anyone know the last model year Chevy/Ford made passenger vans w/o the rear curtain airbags?

And that's why I posted it, I hope it saved you some trouble and more importantly, a lot of money.

Last I checked Sportsmobile still had nothing on their site about it. I made a nuisance of myself about it too.

I may do it again because the whole thing still pisses me off.