An electrical problem affecting certain 2012 Subaru Impreza four door cars will have 32,400 owners returning to their dealership for repairs. The affected vehicles are equipped with a capacitance type Occupant Detection Systems (ODS) in the front passenger seat.

According to the defect report filed with the NHTSA, if the passenger is using a device plugged into the accessory power outlet and/or touches a grounded metal part of the vehicle, while the ODS is on, the occupant control unit (OCU) may falsely register an abnormally high rise in the occupant’s capacitance. This could result in deactivation of the ODS. If this happens, a Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) will be stored in the vehicle’s memory, (B1650, B1760 and/or B1761), the airbag warning light will illuminate, and the passenger air bag indicator will illuminate “OFF”.

A Service Bulletin was issued in May 2012 to address this issue, however, some vehicles were not repaired under this protocol. Accordingly, Subaru will conduct a Part 573 recall and replace the OCU on all potentially affected vehicles. Owners wanting more information about the problem are asked to contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783. Subaru’s number for this recall is WQT-55 and the NHTSA campaign number is 15V-419.