Battery Disconnect Mode

[Tomaz]

I'm still looking for an answer to the battery disconnect mode. Apparently in a accident the battery cable has an explosive device that severs the battery cable to prevent fires.

I can understand the usefulness of this feature. But in the event of an impact that leaves the car drivable but in an unsafe location, I would like to know how to manually "jumper" the disconnect.

So my questions are;

1. What triggers the disconnect? Airbag activation or a separate sensor?

2. Where is the disconnect physically located?

Thanks for the help. I can easily imagine a stormy night or unsavory neighborhood where having survived the accident, my next action, would be to drive to a safer place.

[Zulu95]

From the wiring CD:
Safety battery terminal (battery isolation)

To reduce the risk of fire in the event of a frontal impact, the firing circuit for battery isolation is also activated when the airbag is triggered.

In this case, a gas generator (safety battery terminal) isolates the heavy-current lead (terminal 30) from the battery to the starting motor/alternator.

E46 4-cylinder model left-hand drive

Because no increased risk of fire can be ascertained when the battery is installed in the engine compartment, the safety battery terminal will be omitted as of March 2002 (03/2002) from all E46 LHD models with 4-cylinder engines.

You would need to patch a standard battery terminal into the positive battery cable to get around this feature.