The contact owns a 2011 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the passenger’s side seat near the hip area between the passenger and the door had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The dealer referred the contact to the manufacturer. The manufacturer confirmed that due to the mileage on the vehicle, the manufacturer was not obligated to assist with the repair. The failure mileage was 230,000.
2011 Subaru Outback: airbag warning light
14 of the 653 complaints about the 2011 Subaru Outback describe airbag warning light.
- owner complaints
- 14
- of this car's complaints
- 2%
- typical mileage
- 10,000
- recalls
- 9
Is there a fix? There are 9 recalls and 15 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below
Airbag warning light by model year
What owners say
Loss of steering wheel electronic functions including paddle shifters radio volume and Airbag light illuminated. Looked up faults and found the federal safety agency campaign ID 10V283000 which describes cable damage from Subaru manufacturing. According to Subaru and the federal safety agency, our vehicle was manufactured 2 months after "Affected" vehicles. Subaru unwilling to work on problem as it is not listed in affect vehicles, yet clearly the problems found are exact match to campaign list. I will seek outside confirmation of failure and then request the federal safety agency to update the affect vehicles list so Subaru can fix a safety issue for all affected vehicles.
The passenger seat airbag indicator, with an adult sitting in the seat, randomly shows the airbag on/off. There is no consistency to whether the airbag will show as functioning, which makes the system non-functioning by any measure. This is a key safety feature that subaru advertises and sells vehicles by and it simply does not function. Subaru has not acknowledged that there is an issue and their service department claims that they cannot find and error code indicating there is an issue. The implication being that I am making up the issue. This seems to be a similar issue to what was outlined in the 2012 subaru impreza airbag sensor recall. Both cases involve the passenger airbag sensor failing with an adult sitting in the seat. If you never know if the airbag is going to work, it is a failure of the system. This isn't a problem that is going to be recognized or fixed without a mandatory recall or a lawsuit.
The airbag indicator for the passenger will not remain on, even though the passenger meets the required weight.
With no passenger seated, the seat belt chime started ringing. To try to stop it, I latched the passenger seat belt. Chiming continued. I notice the air bag warning light was lit. I drove the car straight to my subaru dealer and was told the passenger side air bag sensor had failed. I was also told the only way to fix it was to replace the seat at well over $1000. I was still left with the problem of the seat belt chime. The dealership wouldn't disable the chime so I searched the internet for a solution. What I found is that this is a very common problem with 2011 outbacks. I did also find out how to disable the seat belt chime. Because this is such a costly repair and a common problem, I have to believe there are many subaru owners driving around with unprotected passengers having disabling their seat belt chimes and having no air bag protection. In fairness to subaru, I contacted customer service and they offered to split the cost of the repair. It will still cost me $798 for what should be a simple repair but because of poor engineering, a replacement seat. I would appreciate you looking into this matter.
We have a subaru outback that we purchased in may 2011. In january 2013 the airbag indicator began to turn off randomly while I was seated in the front passenger seat. It happens intermittently and without any change in behavior or movement on my part we have brought the car to the dealer and they say there is not a problem with the system. I have called the subaru company and they say the system is operating as designed and since the dealer cannot find the problem there is none. The company also state there have been complaints by other people my weight. (117 lbs.) they also state that the airbag will not inflate if the indicator for the airbag is off. I have expressed my fear of not having an airbag in case of an accident to no avail. I feel that this is a serious problem that needs to be addressed .
First I will say I am an adult female weighing 120 lbs, sufficient weight to activate airbags. We just purchased this car and went for long trip and I noticed my air bag light was off. I tried to adjust positions and sometimes I could get it to come back on, only to find a few minutes later that is off again, this process was repeated the whole 7 hour trip. We were traveling on snow covered roads so this was very upsetting to not have the air bags working. This is a serious problems that needs to be fixed. What good are safety features in a car if they do not work properly.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 subaru outback. The contact stated that the air bag light would intermittently illuminate when someone was seated in the front passenger seat. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer on several occasions and the contact was informed that the vehicle could not be repaired unless the failure was duplicated. The failure mileage was 10 and the current mileage 11,500. Updated 03/14/12
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 subaru outback. The contact stated that the passenger air bag warning light illuminated intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who advised the contact that the body type of the seat occupant was causing the passenger air bag light to illuminate intermittently and that there was nothing that could be done to correct the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 1,000 and the current mileage was 2,300.
There seems to be a problem with the front passenger air bag activation sensor. My wife, who weighs approx. 125 lbs, often sits in that seat. The air bag sensor light might go on, or it might not. Sometimes she can shift her weight and have it come on. Other times it doesn't matter what she does, it will not go on. We can be riding along with the air bag light on and all of a sudden, for no reason, it will go off. Then, inexplicably, it might, or might not, come back on. I brought the car to a local subaru dealer who informed me that this is the way the air bag system is made and that there is nothing they can do about it. They said that it is against federal law for them to make any adjustments and that I should just make sure my wife wears her seat belt when we're driving. This is a major irritant, since neither of us can be sure if the passenger air bag will actually deploy should we be in an accident. It seems like something should be done about this, especially now that I've searched this site and found that I am not the only one to experience this problem with the passenger air bag sensor. I joke with my wife that we might need to fatten her up to save her life, but for some reason she just doesn't think it's funny. Maybe you folks can look into the problem and do something about it.
Passenger airbag light goes on and off randomly when I am sitting in the passenger seat. I am 5'3 110lbs. The sensors were recalibrated when I took it to the dealer the first time. The problem continued. Even if you sit in one spot and not move the sensor will turn on and off randomly. The dealership still doesn't know how to fix the problem. I was told the sensors have trouble sensing 70-90lbs of weight. I am over that therefore there should be no issue. I now own a car that the airbag might be on or off if I was ever in a collision. This is a huge safety concern!
The passenger side front air bag indicator randomly showed the status 'on' or 'off' when the seat was occupied by an adult passenger. No pattern could be identified for the indication although we tried every perturbation of sitting, fastening seat belt, closing door, starting engine, etc. The vehicle was returned to the dealer for repair. The passenger seat sensor(s) was replaced as defective, now the indicator never indicates 'on', always 'off' regardless of actions as above. The vehicle was returned a second time, this time it was determined that the sensor(s) were being inhibited because of seat covers distributing the weight in such a way as to 'fool' the sensors. It took a 180 lb. Person to activate the sensor, [a 170 lb. Person did not] with the seat covers on, the sensors appeared to operate correctly without the seat covers. This raises the question of weight distribution, are large buttocks required given that there are multiple weight sensors in the seat, how about a small framed 120 lb adult. The answer is clear, the passenger air bag should always be on unless manually turned off by the user. Subaru must provide a programming option to the owner to default the airbag status to always 'on'. My toyota and honda both provides a key lock option to disable the unit, default is, and should be required, to be 'on'. This is a safety issue, and subaru is opening themselves to class actions, and heaven forbid the first accident when the unit fails to deploy because it was not armed because of quirky weight distribution requirements. I believe that a preventive recall should be ordered if subaru does not unilaterally provide an always 'on' default option for the vehicle.
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (STI included), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators with alternate inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1‑800‑955‑9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKA-20.
Recall number 20V001000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1‑800‑955‑9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKB-20.
Recall number 20V002000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Forester, 2003-2006 Baja, 2004-2011 Impreza, 2004-2014 WRX (including STI), 2003-2014 Legacy and Outback, and 2005-2006 Saab 9-2X vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began January 7, 2020. Subaru owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614. Saab owners may contact the Saab Customer Assistance Center at 1‑800‑955‑9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKC-20.
Recall number 20V003000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Forester, 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, Legacy, and 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru has notified owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614. Subaru's number for this recall is TKA-19.
Recall number 19V007000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Outback, and Legacy vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru is notifying owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614. Subaru's number for this recall is TKB-19.
Recall number 19V008000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Tribeca, WRX, Legacy and Outback vehicles, 2010-2011 Impreza vehicles and 2010-2013 Forester vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru is notifying owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑844‑373‑6614. Subaru's number for this recall is TKC-19.
Recall number 19V009000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2009-2013 Legacy, Forester, Tribeca, WRX and Outback vehicles, and 2009-2011 Impreza vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An explosion of an inflator within the passenger frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on February 9, 2018. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑800‑782‑2783. Subaru's number for this recall is TKA-18.
Recall number 18V012000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2005-2006 Subaru Baja, 2006-2011 Impreza (including WRX and STI models), 2006-2012 Tribeca, 2009-2012 Forester, Legacy, Outback, and 2012 WRX vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began March 6, 2017. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑800‑782‑2783. Subaru's number for this recall is TKA-17.
Recall number 17V014000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Legacy, Outback, 2009-2011 Legacy, Outback, Forester, 2006-2011 Impreza, Tribeca, 2003-2006 Baja, and 2006 Saab 9-2x vehicles originally sold or that have ever been registered in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." These vehicles may be equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
- Risk
- An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Subaru will notify their owners. General Motors will notify Saab owners. Dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began August 26, 2016. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1‑856‑488‑8500. Saab owners may contact GM at 1‑800‑955‑9007. Subaru's number for this recall is TKA-16.
Recall number 16V358000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2011 Subaru Outback airbag light
Is airbag warning light a common problem on the 2011 Subaru Outback?
14 of 653 owner complaints about the 2011 Subaru Outback (2%) mention airbag warning light. The model year with the most reports is 2008.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2011 Subaru Outback?
There are 9 recalls and 15 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2011 Subaru Outback
Stalling 179Headlights 122Shudder 52CVT failure 44Check engine light 29Transmission failure 23Brake failure 17Overheating 16Adaptive cruise 15Jerking 15Loss of power 15Warning lights 12Hesitation 10Ball joint 9Sudden acceleration 8ABS 7Grinding brakes 6Harsh shifting 6Power steering loss 6Won't start 6No deployment 5Fire or smoke 5
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