Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2014 Chevrolet Volt owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Not long after purchasing my 2014 Chevrolet Volt, I got a warning light telling me to check my airbags. I immediately took my car to my local Chevrolet to be looked at. I was told "oh this happens a lot with the earlier Volts" and was quoted $1100+ to fix the issue. I took it to another shop and was quoted a similar amount, around $1000+ with parts and labor. The safety of myself and any passenger of mine is at risk indefinitely because of this issue. I cannot have any passengers sit in the front passenger seat because the airbag will toggle on/off even when there is an adult sitting in the sit and not moving around. The problem was not reproduced, but was confirmed by a mechanic at Chevrolet in Tallahassee. The only thing that mechanics tell me is that "this is a common issue" and upon looking into this issue online, there are many people having the same issue. …
Our 2014 Chevy Volt began to rarely give an audible chime with a: "Service Airbag" message on the Driver Information Center display, as well as the "Passenger Airbag" overhead panel display showing "On"-"Off"-"On", spontaneously back in 2018. Again, this was rare, but concerning. This became somewhat more common in the months that followed and is now a common annoyance on every drive. Because of personal circumstances, as well as the Coronavirus Pandemic, we have not driven this vehicle much over the past couple of years, and we have not taken the car in for service. It has not yet been inspected by any other entity other than myself. The alarms happen whether the passenger seat is occupied or not. …
Date above is approximate. The airbag sensor in the passenger side of the vehicle is faulty and causes a constantly cycling alarm when there is a passenger present. I believe this means that it is not accurately sensing the passenger and is turning the airbag on and off, making for a safety issue in the event of a crash. This is apparently a frequent issue and customers should not need to pay the $1,000 to fix the faulty sensor that could put a passenger at risk. https://www.gm-volt.com/threads/2013-passenger-presence-sensor-airbag-error.260945/page-2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGq_9T6om7g
Passenger airbag sensor is faulty. It is available for inspection upon request. My passenger is at risk if the airbag does not deploy in case of an accident. Yes, I found out that the sensor had been replaced before, which did not resolve the issue. No. I got notifications right away after purchasing the vehicle. This appears to be a very common issue for gen 1 and 2 Chevrolet Volts. 2012-2013 Volts have a recall for this system, but I found online that lots of people with 2014 Volts are having the same issue.
With only 80,000 miles on my volt, the dash is intermittently ringing and telling me to service my airbag, and turning off passenger airbags even though the car is clean accident free and damage free. Apparently this is a know issue, and very common. I'm confused why this $1000 repair and safety issue is not being recalled to be serviced by Chevy. It's very hazardous and costly, as well as incredibly common. I've read of at least 100 people having this identical issue.
Several times a the passenger side airbag with or without a passenger will say it has an issue and a warning will pop up on the dash for a few seconds and then go away. It has been doing this since I got the car used over 2 years ago. I'm not sure if this means the airbag will deploy or not. It simply says airbag warning then goes away. I took it to the chevy dealership and they didn't find any issue.
Service Airbag warning light comes on and off. Reading message boards for 2014 Chevy Volt, is seems that this is a defective Passenger Occupancy Sensor that happens on a lot of Volts. A dealer has confirmed that this is the problem and will cost $1,000-$1,200 to fix. Since this is a safety component and is failing regularly on all Volts, I believe the manufacturer should recall this item to be replaces.
Several months ago my "service airbag" light started randomly coming on. I thought at the time that it was due to a failing 12v battery. So I replaced the battery and initially, the warning went away. Then after about 3 weeks it started randomly coming on again. Then after another week or so, it would come on every time you drove the car, but I could just acknowledge the warning and it would stop. Now, just 2 days ago, that no longer works. It will come on every time you start the car and also randomly as you are driving down the road. In my 1.5 hour commute to work, it probably came on 40-60 times. Sometimes not for 5 or 10 miles, sometimes just as soon as you pushed the button, it would come on again. This is a known issue for volts and other GM vehicles and I've heard the problem is in the airbag sensor in the passenger seat. …
We have a 2014 Chevy Volt with approximately 88,000 miles. It is out of manufacturers warranty and recently our service airbag light came on. We took to dealer and they are asking us for roughly $850.00 to replace a passenger seat sensor. They tell us that our airbags will not work in an accident if we do not replace this sensor. I did a search on-line and this seems to be a common problem with the Chevy Volt. We purchased this car new and it's still in very good shape besides having this issue. Just wondering if any pressure can be placed on GM to step up here and fix what seems to be a flaw in their manufacturing process or product? After reading how many others have had the same issue and knowing that the airbags will not deploy if involved in a serious accident, it seems there's most certainly a safety issue here. Can anything be done about this?
My Volt is giving me a "service airbag soon" warning on startup. Car is kept in a garage. The dealership said it was because I cleaned my seat and got it too wet, but I used standard seat cleaner sparingly. Also, the drivers seat appears to receive the error and this seat has never seen any "moisture". Secondly, with no accidents or collisions, one of the front sonar sensors failed, with the dealership claiming it was due to bug buildup. Another $600 fix that I didn't do because it's nothing of my doing and that's an outrageous amount of money.
Airbag complaints in other Volt years
Frequently asked questions
How common are airbag problems on the 2014 Chevrolet Volt?
NHTSA has 32 complaints about the air bags of the 2014 Chevrolet Volt, 34% of the model year's 93 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2014 Chevrolet Volt airbag problems?
No. NHTSA lists no air bags recall for the 2014 Chevrolet Volt. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2014 Chevrolet Volt airbag problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 67,000 miles, and 13% before 25,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.