"off" remains illuminated on my passenger airbag light whether or not someone is sitting in the passenger seat. It's actually somewhat rare to see "on" illuminated. There was a recall on this model for airbag issues but my vehicle specifically was not recalled. My vehicle was recalled for catalytic converter but I'm still getting codes. Most of the problems the Sonic has been recalled for, my vehicle has symptoms of but I get cannot afford to pay repair cost up front and I cannot find a mechanic who would be willing to take the steps to report my vehicle should've been apart of the recall.
Chevrolet Sonic airbag light comes on
27 of the 955 owner complaints about the Chevrolet Sonic describe airbag warning light, most of them for the 2014 model year.
- owner complaints
- 27
- worst model year
- 2014
- typical mileage
- 46,000
Is there a fix? There are 5 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Trouble codes mentioned
B0081 1
What owners say
Air bag light on. There are 4 codes in the SDM, due to an internal fault in the sensing diagnostic module. The dealership states that it has to be replaced and will cost close to $1100 to have repaired and to clear all of the codes.
1st at 20k miles (2019) my car wouldn't start, stuck late night. Called aaa, battery had dead cell so I purchased one for $200. Months later found out it was covered under the warranty. I started smelling coolant (2019). Dealer said it was the water pump. It was covered under warranty. Started smelling coolant again (2019), it was a valve, wasn't covered. The car wouldn't start, dead cell in the battery again (2020) started smelling coolant (2020), needed a new radiator, wasn't covered under warranty. Started smelling fumes & had a leak. It was the purge solenoid needed replacing, another $500. Two months ago (nov 2020) the ambient sensor went out $450. Now today (jan 5, 2021) the airbag light is on and I'm told it's the internal sdm fault and will be close to a $900 repair.
The airbag warning light keeps going on and off. This has been going on for approx 2 months.
Engine is running rough with no check engine light. Also air bag light is on with no collisions for it to appear.
I've realized and noticed in my vehicle; that some things aren't electronic set correct. My air bag light for passenger; does not turn on when I have a passenger. Some days it will be on and other times it will not. My screen glitches here and there and not working correctly even with touch. A few buttons on the steering will are not as well working for some reason. My fuel gage for miles changes and not set up correctly with pump. It will show 280 when full the. Move up maybe 15 minutes later then back down. Not like it was when I first purchase my vehicle.
The passenger side airbag light was going back and forth from on to off for a few weeks, as well as the airbag service light on he dash, now the light stays on the dash and the the airbag stays in the off position.
Takata recall the air bag light comes on and off. When the light is on I call on star and they say its a defect in deploy diagnostic code b0081 and when I take it in the light is off. I dont want to get in an accident and then the air bag not deploy
Tl* the contact owns a 2014 chevrolet sonic. The contact stated that the air bag warning indicator intermittently illuminated. The contact was concerned that the air bag might deploy. The contact took the vehicle to felix chevrolet (located at 3330 s figueroa st, los angeles, ca 90007, (213) 290-1925) where it was diagnosed that the passenger side air bag internal sensor had a shortage and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided case number: 9-5085721017. The approximate failure mileage was 37,365.
Tl* the contact owns a 2014 chevrolet sonic. The contact stated that the air bag warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to gary russ chevrolet (1420 bypass 72 ne, greenwood, sc 29649, (864) 229-2521) where it was diagnosed that the connector needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified and referred the contact to the local dealer. The failure mileage was 90,000.
Related recalls
Air bags: frontal: driver side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Camero, Sonic, and Volt vehicles. The driver-side air bag inflator may explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect.
- Risk
- An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the driver-side air bag module, free of charge. On some 2013 Volt vehicles, the steering wheel will be replaced as well, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 23, 2023. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300 and Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N232413120.
Recall number 23V516000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014 Chevrolet Sonic vehicles manufactured July 28, 2014, to August 1, 2014. Due to a loss of electrical connection in the steering column, in the event of a severe crash, the driver's frontal air bag deployment may be limited to the first-stage deployment only instead of the intended first-stage and second-stage deployments.
- Risk
- If only the first-stage of the driver's frontal air bag deploys without the additional second-stage, the driver has an increased risk of injury during a crash.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will test the terminals in the IP harness clock spring coil connector and replace any loose terminals, free of charge. The recall began in October 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is 14537.
Recall number 14V543000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles manufactured December 2, 2011 to July, 16, 2012, Chevrolet Cruze vehicles manufactured December 7, 2011 to July 25, 2012, Chevrolet Sonic vehicles manufactured December 5, 2011 to August 2, 2012, and Chevrolet Camaro vehicles manufactured December 1, 2011 to June 11, 2012. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
- Risk
- If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The recall began on July 25, 2014. Chevrolet owners may contact GM at 1‑800‑222‑1020. Buick owners may contact GM at 1‑800‑521‑7300. Note: This is an expansion of recalls 12V‑522 and 13V‑023.
Recall number 14V300000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic, and model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
- Risk
- If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on February 13, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1‑800‑521‑7300.
Recall number 13V023000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- General Motors is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Cruze, and Chevrolet Sonic vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
- Risk
- If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal airbag, that airbag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
- Remedy
- General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on January 11, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1‑800‑521‑7300.
Recall number 12V522000 · Recall details
Questions about the Chevrolet Sonic airbag light
Why does the airbag light come on in the Chevrolet Sonic?
Owners who report it most often also describe won't start, check engine light and adaptive cruise control problems, and the codes they mention most are B0081.
Which Chevrolet Sonic years have airbag warning light problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2014 (8 complaints), 2015 (7 complaints) and 2012 (6 complaints).
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