Dash Wiring Problems of Mazda B3000

The air bag indicator light on my dashboard stayed lit, indicating a problem. I immediately took the vehicle to brown's Mazda @ 7400 richmond highway in alexandria, va on 9/9/1999. They ran the truck through numerous diagnostic tests until informing me that the wiring harness had a short in it, and would need to be replaced. They further indicated that the harness was not a part of the manufacturer's 60,000 mile warranty on safety equipment. I said that it was the air bag that was showing up as malfunctioning, therefore, it was an airbag or safety related item. They only agreed to replace the part, but I would be responsible for the 6 hours of labor. I noticed from TSB#97-24-14, Nov 97 that the wire harness terminal repair kit was a recall problem for the 1998 Ford ranger pick-up. My 1999 Mazda pickup and the Ford ranger are essentially identical vehicles. My question is, has there been a lot of problems with the wiring harness, vis a vis, the air bag system on 1998 Mazda pickup trucks? I've only had the vehicle 18 months, and I admit, I've put on a lot of miles (59,624 at time of the malfunction), however, I find it strange that the harness goes out right around the magic 60,000 warranty mark.

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