Skip to main content

Subaru Recall Alert: Outback And Legacy Defective Air Bags, They May Not Deploy

Subaru recalled specific Outback and Legacy models for defective airbags. See which model year and if your vehicle is on the list.
2020-2021 Subaru Outback recall

Subaru of America and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have announced a recall of the Subaru Outback and Legacy midsize models. The new Subaru recall is for defective airbags. 

Which model year Subaru Outback and Legacy vehicles are recalled? 

Subaru of America recalls certain 2020-2022 Outback midsize SUVs and 2020-2022 Legacy midsize sedan vehicles. 

What is the Outback and Legacy recall issue?

Subaru says the airbag may not deploy during a crash and can increase the risk of injury.

How many vehicles are affected?

Subaru says the total potential number of units affected is 118,723. The number of potentially affected Outback vehicles is 103,114, and the number of potentially affected Legacy vehicles is 15,609. 

What is the issue with the Subaru Outback and Legacy airbags?

Subaru says a capacitor in the Occupant Detection System (ODS) sensors may crack and short circuit on the front passenger seat. The defect can prevent the front passenger airbag from deploying in a crash.

Description of the Safety Risk: 

If the short circuit occurs, the SRS airbag system warning lamp will illuminate, the front passenger's frontal airbag OFF indicator will illuminate, and the front passenger airbag may not deploy in certain crashes as designed, increasing the risk of injury to an occupant in the seat. 

Description of the Cause: 

A combination of alternate component sub-suppliers used during short-term natural disaster recovery and supplier processing could result in capacitor cracking.

Identification of any Warning That Can Occur: 

The SRS airbag system warning lamp and the front passenger's frontal airbag OFF indicator will illuminate.

Subaru says they are aware of 253 warranty claims related to this issue. Subaru is not aware of any injuries resulting from this condition. 

What is the remedy for this latest Subaru recall?

Dealers will replace all (four) ODS sensors on the front passenger seat free of charge. Interim letters informing owners of the safety risk are expected to be mailed on May 21, 2024. 

Subaru says remedy parts will not be available so that an interim owner notification letter will be mailed to customers. Once sufficient remedy parts are available, a final owner notification letter will be mailed to customers. 

2020-2022 Subaru Outback and Legacy owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-844-373-6614 for more information. Subaru's number for this recall is WRA-24. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236

The Subaru recall VIN lookup link can be found here. 

In other Outback and Legacy recall news, Subaru issued a recall for 2021-2023 Outback, Crosstrek, Forester, and Legacy vehicles for an issue with the backup lights and rearview camera that may prevent the reverse lights from illuminating and the reverse camera from displaying, increasing the risk of a crash.  

Thanks for reading, everyone. See you tomorrow for my latest Subaru Report story.

I am Denis Flierl, a top Torque News and Subaru reporter since 2012. I’ve invested over 30 years in the automotive industry in a consulting role, working with every major car brand. I am an experienced Rocky Mountain Automotive Press member. You'll find my expert Subaru analysis here. Follow me on my The Dirty Subaru website, Dirty Subaru blog, X SubaruReport, All Subaru, WRXSTI, @DenisFlierl, Facebook, and Instagram.

photo credit: Subaru USA

Automotive News
Subaru
Subaru Legacy
Subaru Outback News and Reviews