There is a common issue with these makes and models with the drivers side knee air bag having issues with connecting which cause the SRS light go on the dashboard. I called Lexus corporate office and local dealer and they said there was a recall but it expired in 2020. From the research i did, this was a small window and there shouldn’t have been an expiration on the recall for something that is a safety hazard. Because of this, they are charging thousands for this issue that has affected hundreds of thousands of vehicles.
2006 Lexus IS: airbag warning light
12 of the 143 complaints about the 2006 Lexus IS describe airbag warning light.
- owner complaints
- 12
- of this car's complaints
- 8%
- typical mileage
- 108,000
- recalls
- 1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 3 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below
Airbag warning light by model year
What owners say
Many people have have issues with the SRS warning light coming on and not going off. This issue seems to stem from harness connection issues that Lexus is aware of and have acknowledged. This needs to be fixed asap!
Hello ,I am in Seattle Washington. I’m emailing about my Lexus IS250 2006. A few months ago I took my car to the dealership to get the passenger airbag recall done. Immediately after getting that recall fixed. My airbag light on my vehicle came on. We did not think anything of it, we thought it would come off over time. Time has gone by the light has not gone off. So today we took our vehicle to Lexus of Bellevue. They told us that there was an issue with the driver side airbag harness. Something about tension on it or it Deteriorating. The dealership is now saying that my car is not safe. That none of the safety features airbags or seatbelts will work due to this light being on. They will not be covered because there is no recalls for this harness. I have done much research online this is a common well known issue with Lexus. Now my car is a paperweight. I do not feel safe driving my family or disabled family member in this vehicle. This part is located under the dash and has absolutely nothing to do with how me and my husband maintain or take care of our vehicle. This is Lexuses issue and should be addressed and recalled. Any help in where or how to address this further. Or any help and how to take this higher would be appreciated. At this point is my car totaled? Safe to be on the road? Ok to be insured? They are charging us 200, just to tell us the issue. Not to fix it, didn’t even take the dash apart. How do they know even know what the issue is without taking it apart? To fix this issue it will be a total of over 600. Help!!!
A known problem in this year of lexus is250. The knee bag wiring harness was constructed too short (lexus has a tsb regarding this, # L-SB-0007-19). The airbag warning light will often come on and stay on. When the light is on the airbag system is inoperable. Having an inoperable airbag system is a great safety concern. A mechanic at a local shop used the scan tool and identified the airbag code as related to the wiring harness for the knee air bag. This should be a recall since it is a known problem and it renders the vehicle unsafe due to inoperable air bags. If this isn't an unsafe problem justifying a recall I dont know what is. Thank you.
The vehicle had the front airbags replaced under a national recall. After having the recall done, I received, by usps mail, a "customer support program notification - zlj" sent to me from the manufacturer describing an extended warranty, as issues have occurred with the new drivers side knee airbag inflator triggering the SRS light to come on after the work was done based on faulty crimping. This vehicle is a second vehicle and does not get driven very often. In june of 2020, I noticed the airbag light coming on intermittently when first starting the car. I remembered the notice and called the dealer. I was told on june 15th that the harness would need to be replaced and the warranty ended on june 12th, 2020. They are refusing to repair the new harness that was installed under recall. I was quoted $2700 out of pocket for the repair. The dealer installed a known defective part, and are now refusing to perform the necessary repairs. See attached photo for more information. The replacement parts should be limited by mileage, not by time, as the vehicle has only been driven a few thousand miles since the work was performed. The faulty crimping in the replaced harness should be a new recall.
The SRS airbag light randomly comes on at variable times. After running the analysis with a bosch obd1200, it appears that the drivers side knee squib circuit is showing an open fault. When the seat is moved back, the wiring harness fails. Its believed that the factory installation of the wiring harness is too short, causing strain on the harness connector. This causes a fault on the airbag module and renders the drivers side knee airbag inoperable. This should be considered a safety concern and a recall should fix this issue.
Airbag light indicator is on and lexus insisted they replace the entire wiring harness for over 2k due to safety issues. The price of this repair for an electrical fault is obscene and is a common issue with this model of lexus according to owner forums.
L-sb-0167-08 the SRS airbag light is on for awhile. This is a well known defect and issue with these vehicle. A faulty wire harness. There is tsb but it is only covered under warranty. I find it surprising that this is not considered a safety recall given the potential harm and risk of the airbag not deploying due to a faulty harness.
My lexus is 250 air bag light came on. I took it in for service and lexus of las vegas and they informed me that the wiring harness needs to be replaced because lexus designed the part wrong. I learned that if I'm in an accident that my safety system will not work. Lexus needs to replace my death trap now. Fix the wiring harness.... [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
The airbag light is now constantly displaying red on my dashboard. Nalley lexus of smyrna ga stated that there is a short in the wire harness and it needs to be repaired at a cost of $3300 or the airbags will not work in the event of a crash. From reading online in the lexus owners blogs, this is very common and I have read in the forums that lexus, in 2006, 2007, installed a wiring harness that was too short. The harness plugs become loose and in some cases the wire insulation becomes chafed and shorts out the airbag system. I am not aware where the poster got their information but I, along with others think this is should be a saftey recall.
The passenger side airbag warning light on my vehicle turned on. When I took my vehicle to lexus for a recall I had them check why the light was on. They told me the air bag wiring harness needs to be replaced at a cost of $2546. They also said this is a common issue that lexus is well aware of and issued a tsb for it in 2008 but would only cover the repair under the initial warranty period because they had not received enough complaints to make a recall. Well now 6 years after they issued the tsb I'm sure there has to be enough complaints because a simple google search shows how many cars are affected by this problem. The biggest issue is the airbags will not deploy in the event of and accident until the repair is made. I contacted lexus corporate twice and both times they were not willing to help. I believe lexus should cover this repair since it is a major safety concern and lexus is well aware of the problem. *tr updated 8/30/2017
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 lexus is250. The contact stated the air bag warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and a diagnostic test was performed which located a failure code in the air bag wiring harness. The air bag harness needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 79,000. Updated 06/05/2014*lj updated 06/09/2014
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
Air bags
- What is wrong
- On certain vehicles, due to improper assembly of the air bag inflator, which is used in the side air bag, the curtain shield air bag, and the knee air bag assembly, some inflators were produced with an insufficient amount of the heating agents necessary for proper air bag deployment. In this condition, the expansion force of the gas may be insufficient to properly inflate the air bag when the SRS system is activated during a crash.
- Risk
- This may increase the risk of injury to the occupant in the involved seating position in the event of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the specific SRS air bag. The recall began on april 6, 2006. Owners may contact toyota at 1‑888‑270‑9371, scion at 1‑866‑548‑1851, or lexus at 1‑800‑255‑3987.
Recall number 06V096000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2006 Lexus IS airbag light
Is airbag warning light a common problem on the 2006 Lexus IS?
12 of 143 owner complaints about the 2006 Lexus IS (8%) mention airbag warning light. The model year with the most reports is 2006.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2006 Lexus IS?
There is 1 recall and 3 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2006 Lexus IS?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history