VW Fox Safety System Faults: Active Hood Issue Alert

I had a very similar situation with my 2006 VW Polo diesel about 2 years ago. As someone who does basic maintenance but leaves complex repairs to professionals, I can share my experience. The crash detection system showed identical symptoms, airbag light, active hood warnings, and triggered actuators. The impact sensor and collision detection module were throwing multiple errors. After initial diagnosis, it turned out the acceleration sensor was defective, causing false triggers in the pedestrian safety systems. The repair took about 4 hours at my regular workshop. Total cost was 315€, which included: New acceleration sensor, System reset and recalibration, Testing of all related safety components Before you take it in, I would suggest: Document when the warnings first appeared, Note any recent incidents (even minor bumps), Check if the issue gets worse in wet weather Would you mind sharing: Have you had any recent work done on the car electronics? Did the warnings appear suddenly or gradually? Are there any other warning lights active? This could help determine if your Fox has the same underlying issue as my Polo did. The car electronics in these models are quite similar, and acceleration sensor failures were somewhat common in that generation of VWs.

Just had my latest service done at 19162km. The warnings appeared suddenly after hitting a deep pothole. No other work was done on the car electronics recently. The only active lights are the airbag and system fault warnings on the dash. I checked the hood release mechanism and noticed the spring actuator is fully extended, which seems to confirm a car sensor malfunction rather than an impact trigger. The collision detection system is probably getting false readings, similar to what you experienced. Thanks for the detailed cost breakdown, helps set expectations for the repair. Will have it checked by a certified workshop this week.

Thanks for the follow-up info about the pothole incident, that definitely supports the acceleration sensor theory. In my case, a similar jarring impact was what initially triggered the car electronics to malfunction. Since you mentioned the extended actuator, I will add that my repair also included resetting the active hood system after the sensor replacement. The pedestrian safety system needs a complete recalibration once the faulty car sensor is replaced to clear all system fault codes. One thing I forgot to mention in my previous reply, after the repair, my workshop recommended having the suspension checked too. The impact that damages these sensors can sometimes affect other components. In my case, the front strut mount had a hairline crack that needed attention. The total repair time might be a bit longer than my case since your actuator is already deployed. When I got mine fixed, they had to order a special reset tool for the active hood mechanism, which added about 50€ to the final bill. Keep us posted on what the workshop finds, would be interesting to know if its the same sensor issue causing your safety system warnings.

The hit to the pothole definitely explains those safety system warnings showing up suddenly. After reading your experience with a similar acceleration sensor problem, it makes sense that my Fox is having the same issue. The jarring impact probably damaged the car sensor, triggering all these system fault alerts. Interesting point about checking the suspension, will definitely have them look at that during the inspection. Makes perfect sense that a hit hard enough to confuse the crash detection system could have affected other components too. The 365€ total repair cost you mentioned (including the reset tool) gives me a good baseline for what to expect. Since my hood actuator is already deployed, I realize this might add some labor time to the job. Will update once the workshop diagnoses the problem. Really hoping its just the acceleration sensor and nothing more serious with the car electronics or safety systems. Thanks for all the detailed information, definitely feeling better prepared for the repair shop visit now.