2015 Subaru Forester airbags problems

Related recalls

• Recall 19V701000Oct 3, 2019366,282 vehicles
  AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION

  Subaru of America, Inc. (Subaru) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Forester vehicles equipped with heated seats. An electrical connection in the front passenger seat for the Occupant Detection System (ODS) may loosen.

  Risk: If the connection loosens, the front passenger airbag may deactivate even though the seat is occupied, increasing the risk of injury to the front passenger in the event of a crash.

  Remedy: Subaru will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, replace the ODS sensor mat harness, free of charge. The recall began February 11, 2020. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614. Subaru's number for this recall is WUM-98.

What owners say

1. Filed Sep 27, 2026MAAirbags

   The passenger seat belt went off when my beagle was jumping around on the front seat and I had made an appointment to bring it into the shop the dealer and the light was off but I had the appointment so I brought it in anyway and now the lights on all the time now and it's coming up on the screen too they just made the whole problem even worse and it did have the initial fix for the harness already but that did not work

   NHTSA complaint #11767237 · source
2. Filed Jul 1, 2026127,684 miUTAirbags

   The contact owns a 2015 Subaru Forester. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the passenger’s side air bag warning light illuminated, and the air bag module warning light was illuminated. The air bag occupant classification system was not operating as intended. The vehicle was taken to a local independent mechanic to be diagnosed, and an occupant detection system malfunction code was retrieved. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced…

   NHTSA complaint #11747820 · source
3. Filed Jun 27, 2026ORAirbags

   Codes for B1760 and B1650 present, intermittent SRS light for the passenger airbag. Passengers put at risk in event of crash. SRS sensor issues seem to be common for this vehicle according to online databases and dealership technicians.

   NHTSA complaint #11746865 · source
4. Filed Dec 5, 2025MIAirbagsElectrical SystemSeats & Seat Belts

   Passenger airbag sensor intermittently works and turns off when passenger is in the seat. Dashboard light for airbag is constantly on and passenger airbag is constantly off. Issues with seat sensor going off when no one is sitting in the passenger seat. Abs system error message. All identical to recall symptoms.

   NHTSA complaint #11703165 · source
5. Filed Oct 14, 2025CAAirbagsOther / Unknown

   Airbag light intermittently turns on to indicate that airbag may not deploy even if there is someone in the passenger seat. This is a known safety issue with a recall in 2019 but for some reason is affecting a much larger set of vehicles than in the recall, including mine.

   NHTSA complaint #11693312 · source
6. Filed Oct 10, 2025MIAirbags

   Getting an SRS Airbag system needs to be checked. Took the 2015 Subaru Forester to Williams Subaru in Lansing MI and they stated the code B1760 for the occupant detection system Mat was determined. The seat has not been wet and nothing spilled on it and was also determined dry by the repair specialist at time of service. They were able to reset sensor and did a test drive. Less than a week later when a passenger was in seat the warning SRS Airbag needs to be checked is back…

   NHTSA complaint #11692561 · source
7. Filed Sep 22, 2025COAirbags

   My passenger and rear airbags are not working due to a failure in this part: CUSHION AY OCPANTRH 64139SG002. I have been waiting for the part for around 10 months. My safety is put at risk as my airbags are not working and Subaru has not provided a solution while we are waiting for this part. I have asked for a rental car and they refused. It has been confirmed by multiple dealerships. The vehicle has been inspected by two licensed Subaru dealerships. There is a warning…

   NHTSA complaint #11688906 · source
8. Filed Sep 10, 2025PAAirbags

   I am reporting a recurring safety defect in my 2015 Subaru Forester (VIN: [XXX] ) that directly relates to Recall WUM-98 / NHTSA Recall 19V-701 (Occupant Detection System wiring harness). Original Recall (2019–2020): The Occupant Detection System (ODS) failed, disabling the passenger airbag. Subaru performed the recall remedy at that time. Reoccurrence (August 2025): The exact same defect reappeared. The SRS airbag warning illuminated and the passenger airbag was disabled…

   NHTSA complaint #11686202 · source
9. Filed Aug 26, 2025PAAirbags

   I own a 2015 Subaru Forester that was involved in the NHTSA recall ID 19V-701 - Subaru safety recall WUM-98 in 2020. My VIN is [XXX] and my dealer is Lancaster County Subaru in Lancaster, PA. For about four months in the end of 2019 until February of 2020 we were unable to use the passenger seat due to the air bag problem which was intermittent. This required either my wife or I to ride in the back. We could correct this error on a restart by moving the yellow ODS wire…

   NHTSA complaint #11683183 · source
10. Filed May 28, 2025ILAirbagsSeats & Seat Belts

    My vehicle has a capacitive sensor in the passenger seat that determines if someone is sitting in the seat and turns the airbag on or off accordingly. Starting towards the beginning of March, my vehicle stopped detecting if someone was sitting in that seat and permanently disabled the airbags. I took the vehicle in to a Subaru dealer to get this fixed, as I view airbags as necessary to the safety of passengers in the vehicle. As it turns out, there was a previous recall for…

    NHTSA complaint #11663506 · source
11. Filed Feb 8, 2025CAAirbagsSeats & Seat Belts

    Airbag/seatbelt system failure August, 2024. Passenger Occupant Detection System (ODS) failure. Detection system fails to correctly detect passenger in the seat. Sometimes it thinks there is no passenger, when there is one (will fail to deploy airbag in a crash); sometimes it thinks there is a passenger when there is none (requires seat belt to be buckled with no one in the seat). Recall (19V-701 -- ODS harness replacement) repairs were done to this vehicle Feb. 2020. New…

    NHTSA complaint #11641507 · source
12. Filed Jan 30, 2025MDAirbags

    SRS airbag system not registering that there is a passenger in the passenger seat and therefore the airbag is not turning on.

    NHTSA complaint #11639709 · source

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation public data. Complaints are submitted by owners and are not verified by NHTSA or by us; a complaint does not prove a defect exists. View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov Methodology