Car part lawsuits: what owners say about airbag sensors and battery drain
Defective car parts are components that, according to the people suing, do not work the way drivers expect, from safety sensors to electrical systems. Several lawsuits make claims about specific parts in Nissan and Subaru vehicles. One concerns a passenger seat sensor in the Nissan Altima, and another concerns battery drain in some Subaru vehicles. This page lists each case and where it stands. These are allegations, and the companies may dispute them.
Lawsuits still in court
Nobody can file a claim in these yet. Many class action lawsuits end without a settlement, so some of these may never open for claims.
- Nissan Altima Airbag Sensor lawsuitLawsuit filed · Not open for claims yetOwners say the Altima's passenger seat sensor can fail to detect an adult, so the airbag may not deploy
Claims closed
The deadline to file a claim has passed for these settlements.
- Subaru Battery Drain settlementA lawsuit said a design defect in some Subaru vehicles can drain the battery
What is defective car parts?
Modern cars rely on many electronic parts working together. Two kinds come up in these lawsuits.
The first is a passenger seat sensor, sometimes called an occupant classification system. It is a set of sensors in the front passenger seat that estimates who is sitting there, so the car can decide whether the passenger airbag should be turned on or off. Carmakers use these systems so the airbag responds differently for an adult than for a child or an empty seat. The Nissan Altima airbag sensor lawsuit says the Altima's sensor can fail to detect an adult passenger, so the airbag may not deploy.
The second is the electrical system that keeps a car's battery charged. When the car is off, some parts still draw a small amount of power. The Subaru battery drain case said a design defect in some Subaru vehicles can drain the battery.
When a vehicle has a safety-related defect, the federal government has a process for it. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recalls page, owners can look up open safety recalls on their vehicle by entering its vehicle identification number (VIN), the 17-character code found on the dashboard and registration. A recall and a lawsuit are separate things, and a lawsuit can be filed whether or not a recall exists.
These are allegations, and the companies may dispute them.
Sources
Products named in these lawsuits
Being on this list means a lawsuit names the product. It does not mean a court has found anything wrong with it.
- Nissan Altima
- Subaru vehicles