The passenger presence sensor is failing or failed because every time someone sit in there the airbag turns on and off repeatedly every 2-3 mins and gives a service airbag warning and if no one is sitting in the passenger seat then it just stays on. Could be really dangerous if a wreck happens while it’s glitching in the off mod…
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The passenger presence sensor is failing or failed because every time someone sit in there the airbag turns on and off repeatedly every 2-3 mins and gives a service airbag warning and if no one is sitting in the passenger seat then it just stays on. Could be really dangerous if a wreck happens while it’s glitching in the off mode and could cause death. Multiple people have had this problem with the volts and there is even a thing you can by to completely bypass the airbag going off which shows how common the problem is if there is a solution to eliminate it in an unsafe/not factory manner
NHTSA ODI #11720796
Mileage unknown · Oct 25, 2025
Air Bags
The passenger occupancy sensor gives a false positive. The only way I can get rid of the beeping is plug in the seatbelt. I have read on Reddit forums that this is a very common problem with 2013 volts, but for some reason there isn't a recall. This is a safety issue. Thank you!
NHTSA ODI #11695594
Mileage unknown · Jul 28, 2025
Air BagsSeats
Front passenger seat sensor intermittently fails, causing the Passenger Airbag indicator to switch to OFF (even if a passenger is present) with an accompanying "Service Airbag" message on the dashboard and illumination of the service airbag light. This occurs usually driving above 25mph, but can happen stationary, and lasts for …
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Front passenger seat sensor intermittently fails, causing the Passenger Airbag indicator to switch to OFF (even if a passenger is present) with an accompanying "Service Airbag" message on the dashboard and illumination of the service airbag light. This occurs usually driving above 25mph, but can happen stationary, and lasts for anywhere from 5 seconds to a minute (more commonly shorter). The issue appears some weeks more than others, usually activating most days a week but sometimes have a week or two where it does not happen.
NHTSA ODI #11676789
Mileage unknown · Jan 17, 2025
Air Bags
Passenger presence does not detect people in it and makes it unsafe for passenger without airbags. This got closed and was state that there was a Chevy program to fix this as cited in the closing . I have called all over Chevy and there is no one who knows anything about this at all. If you know it or if they just started it to…
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Passenger presence does not detect people in it and makes it unsafe for passenger without airbags. This got closed and was state that there was a Chevy program to fix this as cited in the closing . I have called all over Chevy and there is no one who knows anything about this at all. If you know it or if they just started it to make it go away, please tell with with whom I can contact within Chevy to start the process
NHTSA ODI #11636406
Mileage unknown · Jul 19, 2024
Air Bags
Repeats constantly..."service airbag". Appears to stop for somewhat variable lengths of time with passenger in front seat. Seems to be related to presence sensor.
NHTSA ODI #11603460
Mileage unknown · Feb 27, 2024
Air BagsSeats
I have a 2013 Volt. Passenger Presence pad in the passenger front seat caused the "Airbag Service" warning light. It is very common. So many people have suffered from it. It cost over $1000. But it is not a recall.
NHTSA ODI #11574144
Mileage unknown · Jan 20, 2024
Air BagsSeatsUnknown Or Other
The passenger side seat airbag sensor is malfunctioning. A message displaying “Service Airbag” comes up and the airbag light comes on. This happens numerous times during a typical drive (around 20 minutes) The airbag is turned off while the message and light is displayed. This issue has been occurring for about a year or two now…
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The passenger side seat airbag sensor is malfunctioning. A message displaying “Service Airbag” comes up and the airbag light comes on. This happens numerous times during a typical drive (around 20 minutes) The airbag is turned off while the message and light is displayed. This issue has been occurring for about a year or two now. Starting around 90k miles, currently has 111k miles. I’ve done my research on this issue and many other Volt owners have this issue. Which is caused by a defect in the passenger side sensor mat in the seat that can fold over itself with normal use, causing the issue.
NHTSA ODI #11566665
Mileage unknown · Dec 21, 2023
Air Bags
Airbag Sensor Service light keeps going off. Passenger side.
NHTSA ODI #11561316
Mileage unknown · Sep 24, 2023
Air Bags
Intermittent warning for front passenger airbag. Module saying service airbag comes on and off when front passenger is occupying seat. Just a quick anecdote just had car inspected warning does not appear while someone is occupying front seat, nor does it appear if someone is occupying rear seats.
NHTSA ODI #11546243
Mileage unknown · Aug 26, 2023
Air BagsSeats
The airbag for the passenger seat is faulty and turns off and on, took it to the dealership and they said it was a $1000 to fix it. Said it was a bad wiring harness
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Camero, Sonic, and Volt vehicles. The driver-side air bag inflator may explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the driver-side air bag module, free of charge. On some 2013 Volt vehicles, the steering wheel will be replaced as well, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 23, 2023. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300 and Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N232413120.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Chevrolet Volt vehicles. An update to the Hybrid Powertrain Control Module 2 (HPCM2) may have disabled the cell balancing function causing a low-voltage condition.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the voltage drops, the vehicle may lose propulsion, increasing the risk of crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the HPCM2, free of charge. The recall began July 24, 2018. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 18215.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Volt vehicles manufactured August 25, 2010, to June 26, 2013. If the driver exits the vehicle without turning off the electrical system, the battery may drain low enough that the gasoline engine will automatically start itself to recharge the electric battery.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the engine runs for an extended period of time in an enclosed space, there may be a build up of carbon monoxide, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the engine management software to limit the time that the stationary vehicle can be left in the ON position, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14617.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Electrical System:ignition
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Volt vehicles manufactured August 25, 2010, to June 26, 2013. If the driver exits the vehicle without turning off the electrical system, the battery may drain low enough that the gasoline engine will automatically start itself to recharge the electric battery.
Consequence: If the engine runs for an extended period of time in an enclosed space, there may be a build up of carbon monoxide, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the engine management software to limit the time that the stationary vehicle can be left in the ON position, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14617.
Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:gasoline
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Volt vehicles manufactured August 25, 2010, to June 26, 2013. If the driver exits the vehicle without turning off the electrical system, the battery may drain low enough that the gasoline engine will automatically start itself to recharge the electric battery.
Consequence: If the engine runs for an extended period of time in an enclosed space, there may be a build up of carbon monoxide, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the engine management software to limit the time that the stationary vehicle can be left in the ON position, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14617.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
2
DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds
Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.
PE19013 · Passenger Sensing System
Opened Sep 17, 2019 · Closed Jul 2, 2021
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger
In September 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE19-013 to assess the potential safety related effects of a malfunction of the Passenger Sensing System (PSS) in 2012-2013 Model Year (MY) Chevrolet Volt vehicles. Consumers reported that due to a malfunction of the PSS, the air bag system malfunction indicator light (MIL) was activated. Many of the complaints noted the malfunction occurred after the warranty period expired and mentioned high repair costs as a major deterrent to the repair of the vehicle.The PSS sensor mat is embedded in the front passenger seat cushion and is intended to detect child seats and small statured occupants who could be harmed by deployment of the frontal passenger air bag. The PSS may develop a malfunction due to bunching of the sensor mat in the seat trench. The bunching of the sensor mat could cause the mat to repeatedly fold in the same location. Over time, the repeated folding can cause an increased resistance in the sensor mat. An increased resistance in the PSS sensor mat is detected as a fault in the air bag system diagnostic. If this fault is detected, a diagnostic trouble code will be stored in the air bag control unit and the air bag MIL will illuminate.Further, if the fault is detected, the passenger frontal and knee air bags will be suppressed in a crash of sufficient severity to warrant a commanded deployment regardless of the nature of size of the occupant of the front passenger seat.The report counts shown above include only those reports that specifically address the issue covered by this investigation, failure of the PSS sensor mat. Reports alleging only that the air bag light is on with no cause stated, or where a different cause was otherwise identified, were excluded as the air bag light could be illuminated for system faults other than a PSS malfunction.The subject vehicles have been in service for approximately ten (10) years. An analysis of General Motors (GM) warranty data for the subject vehicles, including a comparison with other agency and manufacturer data pertaining to similar occupant detection system failure investigations, indicates the subject vehicles experience a comparatively low complaint rate for this issue given the number of years the vehicles have been in service.GM has instituted a cost reduction program for the repair/replacement of the PSS in the subject vehicles. Based on this cost reduction program as well as:1) a comparatively low warranty rate; 2) no reported injuries, deaths or asymmetric deployments; and 3) the age of the vehicles; ODI is closing this Preliminary Evaluation. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety related defect does not exist. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by new circumstances.The ODI complaints cited above can be viewed at www.nhtsa.gov under the following ODI identification numbers in a separate attachment.
2013 Chevrolet Volt Problems, Complaints & Recalls | Skip That Year
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