B1349: Driver Airbag Stage 1 Shorted

Circuit fault

What B1349 means

The driver airbag loop runs from the SRSCM, through the dash harness, up the steering column, across the clockspring, and into the inflator in the wheel. The module watches the voltage on that loop closely. When battery voltage appears where it should not, the module stores B1349 and shuts the system down, since an unintended voltage source on a firing circuit is a serious condition.

The clockspring is the piece that makes this circuit different from every other one. It is a coiled ribbon that keeps the airbag connected while the wheel turns, and it sits right next to horn, cruise, and audio control wiring. A chafed or shifted ribbon can put those circuits in contact with the airbag loop.

Common causes

• A worn or damaged clockspring shorting the airbag loop to an adjacent circuit
• Steering column wiring pinched during column, horn, or switch work
• An aftermarket steering wheel or accessory wired into the column harness
• Chafed insulation in the dash harness between the module and the column
• A connector at the module or the clockspring with a bridged terminal

Crash data or hardware fault?

This is a live electrical condition, which makes B1349 a circuit code. The module rechecks the loop constantly and the code goes inactive once the voltage is gone. Crash data is written once at deployment and stays in the module regardless of how many times codes are cleared.

Does our reset clear it?

Clearing B1349 leaves the short in place, and the module finds it again on the next self test. Repair the clockspring or the harness first. Once the vehicle side is right, a module that is locked with crash data from a deployment is what our mail-in reset service handles.

Which makes throw it

Kia stores B1349 for the driver airbag first stage circuit. Its passenger side counterpart uses a different number in the same block, so the code tells you which side of the dash to start on.

What to do next

Look at the clockspring before anything else, because it is the moving part in this circuit and the most common source of a short. Check for aftermarket wiring tapped into the column while you have the shrouds off. If the clockspring and column wiring are clean, measure the loop from the module connector to find where the voltage is entering. We stock genuine OEM Kia driver airbags and clocksprings. Related codes: B1346, B1353, B1B03.