2016 SUBARU WRX Owners Manual

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
. Ensure that the backward-forward po-
sition and seatback of front passenger ’ s
seat are locked into place securely by
moving the seat back and forth.
If the ON indicator still remains illuminated
while the OFF indicator turns off after
taking relevant corrective actions de-
scribed above, relocate the child restraint
system to the rear seat and immediately
contact your SUBARU dealer for an
inspection.
NOTE When a child who has outgrown a child
restraint system or a small adult is
seated in the front passenger ’ s seat,
the SUBARU advanced frontal airbag
system may or may not activate the
front passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbag
depending on the occupant ’ s seating
posture. Children should always wear a
seatbelt when sitting in the seat irre-
spective of whether the airbag is
deactivated or activated. If the front
passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbag is acti-
vated (the ON indicator remains illumi-
nated while the OFF indicator turns off),
ensure that no article is placed on the
seat other than the occupant.
If the ON indicator still remains illumi-
nated while the OFF indicator turns off
despite the fact that the actions noted above have been taken, seat the child/
small adult in the rear seat and im-
mediately contact your SUBARU dealer
for an inspection. Even if the system
has passed the dealer inspection, it is
recommended that on subsequent trips
the child/small adult always take the
rear seat.
Children who have outgrown a child
restraint system should always wear the
seatbelt irrespective of whether the airbag
is deactivated or activated.
! Conditions in which front passen-
ger ’ s SRS frontal airbag is activated
The front passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbag
will be activated for deployment upon
impact when any of the following condi-
tions are met regarding the front passen-
ger ’ s seat.
. When the seat is occupied by an adult.
. When certain items (e.g. jug of water)
are placed on the seat.
! If the passenger ’ s frontal airbag
OFF indicator illuminates and
the ON indicator turns off even
when the front passenger ’ s seat
is occupied by an adult
This can be caused by the adult incor-
rectly sitting in the front passenger ’ s seat.
1. Turn the ignition switch to the “ LOCK ” / “ OFF ” position.
2. Ask the front passenger to set the
seatback to the upright position, sit up
straight in the center of the seat cushion,
correctly fasten the seatbelt, position his/
her legs out forward, and adjust the seat to
the rearmost position.
3. Turn the ignition switch to the “ ON ”
position.
If the OFF indicator remains illuminated
while the ON indicator remains off, take
the following actions.
1. Turn the ignition switch to the “ LOCK ” /
“ OFF ” position.
2. Make sure that the front passenger
does not use a blanket, seat cushion, seat
cover, seat heater or massager, etc.
3. If wearing excessive layers of clothing,
the front passenger should remove any
unnecessary items before sitting in the
front passenger ’ s seat, or should sit in a
rear seat.
4. Turn the ignition switch to the “ ON ”
position and wait 6 seconds to allow the
system to complete self-checking. Follow-
ing the system check, both indicators turn
off for 2 seconds. Now, the ON indicator
should illuminate while the OFF indicator
remains off.
If the OFF indicator still remains illumi-1-44

nated while the ON indicator remains off,
ask the occupant to move to the rear seat
and immediately contact your SUBARU
dealer for an inspection.
! How to contact the vehicle manu-
facturer concerning modifications
for persons with disabilities that
may affect the advanced airbag
system
Changing or moving any parts of the front
seats, rear seat, seatbelts, front bumper,
front side frame, radiator panel, instrument
panel, combination meter, steering wheel,
steering column, tire, suspension or floor
panel can affect the operation of the
SUBARU advanced airbag system. If
you have any questions, you may contact
the following SUBARU distributors.
of Columbia>
Subaru of America, Inc.
Customer Dealer Services Department
P.O. Box 6000
Cherry Hill, NJ 08034-6000
1-800-SUBARU3 (1-800-782-2783)
Subaru Hawaii
2850 Pukoloa Street, Suite 202,
Honolulu, HI 96819-4467
808-839-2273

Shen ’ s Corporation dba Prestige Automo-
bile
491, East Marine Corps Drive, Route 1
Dededo, Guam 96921-6225
671-633-2698

Trebol Motors
P.O. Box 11204, San Juan, Puerto Rico
00910
787-793-2828

Subaru Canada, Inc.
Consumer Support Department
560 Suffork Court, Mississauga, Ontario
L5R 4J7
1-800-894-4212
There are currently no SUBARU distribu-
tors in any other U.S. territories. If you are
in such an area, please contact the
SUBARU distributor or dealer from which
you bought your vehicle. Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
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Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
! Operation
A) Driver ’ s side
B) Passenger ’ s side
1) SRS AIRBAGs deploy as soon as a collision occurs.
2) After deployment, SRS AIRBAGs start to deflate immediately so that the driver ’ s vision is not
obstructed. The SRS airbags can function only when
the ignition switch is in the “ ON ” position.
The SUBARU advanced frontal airbag
system is designed to determine the
activation or deactivation condition of the
front passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbag
depending on the characteristic of item
(s) or person on the front passenger ’ s seat
monitored by the front passenger ’ s occu-
pant detection system sensor. For this
reason, only the driver ’ s SRS frontal
airbag may deploy in the event of a
collision, but this does not mean failure
of the system.
If the front sub sensors and the impact
sensors in the airbag control module
detect a predetermined amount of force
during a frontal collision, the control
module sends signals to the airbag
module(s) (only driver ’ s module or both
driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s modules)
instructing the module(s) to inflate the
SRS frontal airbag(s). On driver ’ s side, the
SRS knee airbag also inflates with the
SRS frontal airbag.1-46

The driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s SRS
frontal airbags use dual stage inflators.
The two inflators of each airbag are
triggered either sequentially or simulta-
neously, depending on the severity of
impact, in the case of the driver ’ s SRS
frontal airbag and depending on the
severity of impact and the characteristic
of item(s) or person on the seat in the case
of the front passenger ’ s SRS frontal
airbag.
After deployment, the SRS airbag imme-
diately starts to deflate so that the driver ’ s
vision is not obstructed. The time required
from detecting impact to the deflation of
the SRS airbag after deployment is short-
er than the blink of an eye.
Both when only the driver ’ s SRS frontal
airbag deploys and the driver ’ s and front
passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbags deploy,
the driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s seatbelt
pretensioners operate at the same time.
Although it is highly unlikely that the SRS
airbag would activate in a non-accident
situation, should it occur, the SRS airbag
will deflate quickly, not obscuring vision
and will not interfere with the driver ’ s
ability to maintain control of the vehicle.
When the SRS airbag deploys, a sudden,
fairly loud inflation noise will be heard and some smoke will be released. These
occurrences are a normal result of the
deployment. This smoke does not indicate
a fire in the vehicle.
CAUTIONDo not touch the SRS airbag system
components around the steering
wheel and dashboard with bare
hands right after deployment. Doing
so can cause burns because the
components can be very hot as a
result of deployment.
The driver ’ s SRS frontal airbag and front
passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbag are de-
signed to deploy in the event of an
accident involving a moderate to severe
frontal collision. They are not designed to
deploy in most lesser frontal impacts
because the necessary protection can be
achieved by the seatbelt alone. Also, they
are not designed to deploy in most side or
rear impacts or in most roll-over accidents
because deployment of only the driver ’ s
SRS frontal airbag or both driver ’ s and
front passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbags
would not help the occupant in those
situations. The driver ’ s and front passen-
ger ’ s SRS frontal airbags are designed to
function on a one-time-only basis. SRS airbag deployment depends on the
level of force experienced in the passen-
ger compartment during a collision. That
level differs from one type of collision to
another, and it may have no bearing on
the visible damage done to the vehicle
itself.
! Example of accident in which the
driver ’ s/driver ’ s and front pas-
senger ’ s SRS frontal airbag(s)
will most likely deploy
A head-on collision against a thick con-
crete wall at a vehicle speed of 12 to 19
mph (20 to 30 km/h) or higher activates
only the driver ’ s SRS frontal airbag or both
driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s SRS frontal
airbags. The airbag(s) will also be acti-
vated when the vehicle is exposed to a
frontal impact similar in fashion andSeat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
– CONTINUED –1-47

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
magnitude to the collision described
above. ! Examples of the types of acci-
dents in which it is possible that
the driver ’ s/driver ’ s and front
passenger ’ s SRS frontal
airbag(s) will deploy Only the driver ’ s SRS frontal airbag or
both driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s SRS
frontal airbags may be activated when the
vehicle sustains a hard impact in the
undercarriage area from the road surface
(such as when the vehicle plunges into a
deep ditch, is severely impacted or
knocked hard against an obstacle on the
road such as a curb).1-48

! Examples of the types of accidents in which deployment of the driver ’ s/
driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbag(s) is unlikely to occur 1) The vehicle strikes an object, such as a
telephone pole or sign pole.
2) The vehicle slides under the load bed of
a truck.
3) The vehicle sustains an oblique offset
frontal impact.
4) The vehicle sustains an offset frontal
collision.
5) The vehicle strikes an object that can
move or deform, such as a parked
vehicle.
There are many types of collisions which
might not necessarily require deployment
of driver ’ s/driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s
SRS frontal airbag(s). In the event of
accidents like those illustrated, the dri-
ver ’ s/driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s SRS
frontal airbag(s) may not deploy depend-
ing on the level of accident forces in-
volved.Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
– CONTINUED –1-49

Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
! Examples of the types of acci-
dents in which the driver ’ s/dri-
ver ’ s and front passenger ’ s SRS
frontal airbag(s) will basically
not deploy
The driver ’ s and front passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbags are designed not to deploy
in most cases if the vehicle is struck from
the side or from behind, or if it rolls onto its
side or roof, or if it is involved in a low-
speed frontal collision.
1) First impact
2) Second impact
In an accident where the vehicle is
impacted more than once, the driver ’ s
and/or front passenger ’ s SRS frontal
airbag(s) will deploy only once on the first
impact.
Example: In the case of a double collision,
first with another vehicle, then against a
concrete wall in immediate succession,
once either or both of the driver ’ s and front
passenger ’ s SRS frontal airbags is/are
activated on the first impact, it/they will not be activated on the second impact.
& SRS side airbag and SRS
curtain airbag
The SRS side airbag is stored in the door
side of each front seat seatback.
Inamoderatetoseveresideimpact
collision, the SRS side airbag on the
impacted side of the vehicle deploys
between the occupant and the door panel
and supplements the seatbelt by reducing
the impact on the occupant ’ s chest and
waist. The SRS side airbag operates only
for front seat occupants.
The SRS curtain airbag on each side of
the cabin is stored in the roof side
(between the front pillar and a point over
the rear seat).
Inamoderatetoseveresideimpact1-50

collision, the SRS curtain airbag on the
impacted side of the vehicle deploys
between the occupant and the side
window and supplements the seatbelt by
reducing the impact on the occupant ’ s
head.
In a frontal collision, SRS curtain airbags
on both sides of the vehicle deploy
between the occupant and the side
window and supplement the seatbelt by
reducing the impact to the occupant ’ s
head.
WARNINGThe SRS side airbag and SRS
curtain airbag are designed only to
be a supplement to the primary
protection provided by the seatbelt.
They do not do away with the need
to fasten seatbelts. It is also impor-
tant to wear your seatbelt to help
avoid injuries that can result when
an occupant is not seated in a
proper upright position. WARNING. Do not sit or lean unnecessarily
close to either front door. The
SRS side airbag is stored in both
front seat seatbacks next to the
door, and it provides protection
by deploying rapidly (faster than
the blink of an eye) in the event of
a side impact collision. However,
theforceofSRSsideairbag
deployment may cause injuries
if your head or other parts of the
body are too close to the SRS
side airbag.
. Since your vehicle is equipped
with SRS curtain airbags, do not
sit or lean unnecessarily close to the front or rear door on either
side. Also, do not put your head,
arms or hands out of the window.
The SRS curtain airbag on each
side of the cabin is stored in the
roof side (between the front pillar
and a point over the rear seat),
and it provides protection by
deploying rapidly (faster than
the blink of an eye) in the event
of a side impact. However, the
force of its deployment may
cause injuries if your head is
too close to it.
WARNING
Do not rest your arm on either front
door or its internal trim. It could beSeat, seatbelt and SRS airbags/*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag)
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