freekraz Posted July 4, 2017 Share Posted July 4, 2017 Hello all, I am working on a 2016 Forester that was in a rollover accident. None of the airbags went off, but the front seatbelts aren't working: * Driver's side belt is extended and slack and won't retract * Passenger's side belt is fully retracted but is pulled super-tight and won't extend. Are there airbag pre-tensioners that may be contributing to this? Any tips on removing A-pillar trim and investigating the belt inertia reels? Thanks, Jeff in Boston Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted July 5, 2017 Share Posted July 5, 2017 Sounds like it. Typically the entire reel/belt assembly has to be replaced when the pre-tensioners go off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Bob Posted July 5, 2017 Share Posted July 5, 2017 Replace the belts. It will be the whole belt/retractor/pretensioner assembly. B-pillar trim just snaps in, bottom half comes off first. May have to replace airbag control unit also. Strange that none of the bags deployed, had one not long ago that hit a deer and popped every bag in the car. That was fun to fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 7, 2017 Share Posted July 7, 2017 Yep, i've done it, though not on anything this new. Just replace the entire seat belt sets, they're one time use. On older stuff the ABS controller resets and doesn't need replaced. On newer stuff they may be one-time use components, I've replaced the air bags every time i've done collission repair on 2000+ stuff so I don't know if they actually need it or not. Older 1990's controllers weren't one-time use and didn't need replaced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike104 Posted July 7, 2017 Share Posted July 7, 2017 On my 2003 Forester the Airbag light came on and stayed on for a while. I replaced the Airbag controller from a similar vehicle at a pull and pay and the light went out. When changing seat covers I got the impression that the drivers seat had been replaced at some point (maybe the side air bag had deployed?). When the airbag light was on I got the code for Airbag Controller faulty which is why I replaced it. Finally figured out it was the Yellow Tab released then the Green Tab to get the connectors apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 7, 2017 Share Posted July 7, 2017 Finally figured out it was the Yellow Tab released then the Green Tab to get the connectors apart. Good point! They're complicated and sometimes require maiming to get apart. Those things are one nutty design. I don't know if it's heat, age, or what but some don't want to come apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Bob Posted July 7, 2017 Share Posted July 7, 2017 On the 2016, if the airbag ECU fires something, it will set a DTC that can not be cleared. (B11E0 for a rollover) and must be replaced. Good news is they are plug and play- no programming/configuration required. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike104 Posted July 8, 2017 Share Posted July 8, 2017 Not sure if this is applicable to the newer units but they list part numbers that they can reset: https://karmanauto.com/product/subaru-airbag-module-reset-repair-service If yours isn't listed maybe a quick email to them with the ABS ECU part number may be cheaper than replacing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freekraz Posted July 9, 2017 Author Share Posted July 9, 2017 Thanks to all for the useful information! One step closer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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