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Subaru Ascent no deployment problems

12 of the 1,048 owner complaints about the Subaru Ascent describe airbags did not deploy in a crash, most of them for the 2022 model year.

owner complaints
12
worst model year
2022
typical mileage
17,500
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.

By model year

  • 2023
    1
  • 2022
    4
  • 2021
    1
  • 2020
    3
  • 2019
    3

Often reported together

Collision warning 3Fire or smoke 2

What owners say

Filed Mar 24, 2026 · Airbags, Engine · OH · crash · fire · 1 injury

The contact owns a 2019 Subaru Ascent. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at approximately 75 MPH, a deer ran across the highway and hit the left driver's side of the vehicle. The air bags did not deploy upon impact. A grayish smoke began to emit from the vehicle as the contact's wife immediately pulled off to the side of the road. Due to the damaged cause by the impact of the deer, the contact's wife had difficulty exiting the vehicle. The contact's wife used excessive force to open a crack in the door, which was enough to slide herself out of the vehicle. The vehicle became engulfed in flames soon after exiting the vehicle, and the authorities were called to the scene. The fire department arrived at the scene and managed to extinguish the fire. The contact's wife sustained bruising to her left shoulder, left leg, and left arm but did not seek medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was initially towed to an independent tow yard and was later towed to an insurance holding facility. The contact stated that the vehicle was destroyed as a result of the fire, but the insurance adjuster had yet to determine a final ruling on the vehicle. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer had yet been notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Mar 3, 2025 · Airbags · NY · crash · 1 injury

I hit a car that went through a red light. Despite hitting him squarely, and my front end bending, the airbags did not deploy

Filed Feb 15, 2025 · Airbags, Driver assistance · TX · crash · 2 injuries

Air Bags did not deploy going at 32 MPH and during a head on front collision.

Filed Jan 9, 2025 · Airbags, Engine · IL · crash · fire

I was in a front end collision with a deer. Upon impact there was heavy damage to my front end and smoke coming from my engine bay. Within minutes a fire started and only a couple minutes later the entire car was engulfed. No airbags deployed during the accident, there was no collision detected by smartlink and I wasn't even notified of any issues by starlink until the car was completely burnt down and getting doused in water. It is the middle of winter and I couldn't begin to imagine how horrible that would've been had I needed to remove my 3 children from their car seats or if I would've smacked my head and passed out. I was very lucky to walk away unharmed, but many valuables were lost in my car from this.

Filed Sep 2, 2024 · Acceleration, Airbags · FL · crash

There was a SUDDEN and UNINTENDED acceleration without the driver input while braking to park going approximately 1 - 2 MPH. Our safety was at risk. The vehicle was not in our control. A police report was generated. Rather than stopping we crashed into the apartment building causing significant damage to both the apartment and our vehicle. There were no warnings, no automatic braking to avoid the collision, the air bags did not deploy. The total damages are still being determined by the dealer and insurance company.

Filed Apr 3, 2024 · Airbags · 19,000 miles · TX · crash · 1 injury

The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Ascent. The contact stated that while making a left turn at approximately 5-10 MPH, another vehicle ran a red light and crashed into the front passenger's side bumper. The air bags did not deploy. The contact's chest struck the steering wheel, resulting in a fractured sternum. Medical attention was received. A police report was filed. The vehicle was first towed to the police impound lot, then to a body shop. The dealer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the manufacturer. The vehicle was not repaired and was not deemed totaled by the insurance company. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 19,000.

Filed Jun 26, 2023 · Driver assistance · NY · crash · 1 injury

I was driving slowly through a parking lot. I found a spot to park my car and noticed that there was a curb painted bright yellow so I knew I could not pull through. I started to turn into the parking spot with my foot on the brake when all of a sudden my car was speeding towards the curb and a tree. My foot was on the brake but the car did not stop nor did the forward collision feature work and the air bag did not deploy. The accident has been reported to both my insurance and the auto maker. The car will be inspected tomorrow.

Filed Mar 9, 2022 · Airbags · 30,000 miles · IL · crash · 1 injury

The contact owned a 2020 Subaru Ascent. The contact was driving approximately 35 MPH on a highway when the contact's husband lost consciousness causing him to crash into a truck. As a result, the event leads to a 4 vehicle collision. The driver was transported via ambulance to the hospital where it was confirmed that there were no injuries. The other occupants in the other vehicles did not sustain any injuries. A police report was filed. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 30,000. Case # [XXX] Goodman. Good morning this is a picture of my car and as it can be seen the airbags on either side did not deploy. Police report # is [XXX] date of accident and report was 3/5/2022. Thank you for your attention in this matter [XXX} and [XXX] Goodman (XXX) XXX-XXXX.

Filed Dec 9, 2021 · Airbags, Brakes · TX · crash · 2 injuries

Sudden unwanted rapid acceleration toward a building from parking lot causing head on collision: - Manual brakes failed - Automatic brakes did not engage - Airbags did NOT deploy after hitting an immovable object head on at least twice - Driver seatbelt did not lock - Starlink was not activated / notified - No collision warning was sounded (moot) Both driver and front passenger were severely injured and taken by ambulance to ER.

Filed Dec 11, 2020 · Airbags, Driver assistance · 9,500 miles · OR · crash · 1 injury

I was in an accident 11/29 at 9:45pm where I hit a cow. I was driving 55 on a straight highway that I'm very familiar with. The cow was standing in the entire lane of travel and I was able to veer into the other lane slightly and took the impact on the right side where I did not have any passengers. The subaru was totaled and I'm now having severe whiplash symptoms. I am reporting this as the airbags did not deploy and everyone who has seen the vehicle says they think they should have. Additionally, I do not remember my collision alerts beeping nor the subaru braking for me which have worked in the past. I only remember hitting the cow and then being completely stopped where we had the impact.

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Questions about the Subaru Ascent no deployment

Which Subaru Ascent years have airbags did not deploy in a crash problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2022 (4 complaints), 2019 (3 complaints) and 2020 (3 complaints).

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