Salvage Airbags: What Twelve Manufacturer Entries Say, and What Two Say About the Law
Short answer: this is the topic where the manufacturers agree. Not one of the twelve entries approves a used, salvaged or imitation restraint component. The verbs still range from prohibits to recommends, and two documents go past the parts question entirely and tell the installer they may be breaking federal law.
The obvious assumption is that agreement makes the wording unimportant. It does not, for two reasons. The first is that the weakest verb here sits on the same page as the strongest warning: Subaru only "does not recommend" a used airbag, and the same document says an installer may violate the Safety Act and be liable. Read the verb alone and you would file Subaru as the mildest document on this list. The second is that a parts position is not a procedure. Refusing a salvage airbag says nothing about what else has to come off the car after a deployment, and only two of these documents answer that.
These are manufacturer positions, not law. Two of them quote the law at you and this page quotes them back, as theirs. What federal law actually reaches after a repair is a separate question with its own page, and nothing here is legal advice.
The library lists twelve entries under airbags and restraints, covering 23 brands. Eight are documents written about restraints; four are sections of, or whole documents about, something wider, already read for another comparison on this site. Eleven are in the OEM1Stop library and General Motors' is on gmparts.com. Not one of the twelve entries approves a used restraint component. The verbs still differ and we have not flattened them: one prohibits, one does not support, one does not approve, two do not recommend, two are not validated, one calls it not an acceptable method of repair and four recommend new parts only.
Two of the twelve tell a repairer they may be breaking federal law, which is a sentence we have not found in any of the other documents we have read. It is theirs, quoted below, and this page does not repeat it as a claim of its own. One of these entries is one statement issued under a second letterhead (Acura under Honda's), so twelve entries are eleven distinct texts.
| Manufacturer | Brands covered | What the document says | Scanning | Invokes federal law | Document dated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Motors | Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Hummer, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Saturn | prohibits | not stated | the Safety Act | 2026-06-23 |
| Volvo Car USA | Volvo | does not approve | pre and post required | no | 2022-02 |
| Subaru of America | Subaru | does not recommend | not stated | the Safety Act | 2015-10-15 |
| Volkswagen of America | Volkswagen | not an acceptable method of repair | not stated | no | 2026-03-05 |
| American Honda Motor Co. (Acura) | Acura | recommends new parts only | not stated | no | 2007-10-01 |
| American Honda Motor Co. (Honda) | Honda | recommends new parts only | not stated | no | 2007-10-01 |
| Infiniti Americas | Infiniti | recommends new parts only | post required, pre encouraged | no | 2016-09-15 |
| Nissan North America | Nissan | recommends new parts only | pre and post recommended | no | 2016-06-20 |
| FCA US LLC (Stellantis) | Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Ram | does not support | not stated | no | 2025-12-01 |
| Hyundai Motor America | Hyundai | does not recommend | not stated | no | 2016-05 |
| Ford Motor Company (Ford) | Ford | is not validated | not stated | no | 2025-10-01 |
| Ford Motor Company (Lincoln) | Lincoln | is not validated | not stated | no | 2025-10-01 |
What happens after a deployment
Refusing a salvage airbag is where most of these documents stop. Two of the eight written about restraints go on to say what a deployment actually costs, and one names a repair and forbids it rather than naming a part. Counted across the eight, the actions named are inspect components even where nothing deployed (1), inspect seats and occupant weight sensors (1), inspect the clockspring (1), inspect the dashboard (1), inspect the steering column (1), refer to the repair manual for what must be replaced (1), replace collision sensors on the damaged side (1), replace pretensioners and buckles on occupied seats (1), replace the steering wheel (1) and road test the vehicle (1). An action a document does not name is an action that document did not name. The parts position is the answer to a different question from what else has to come off the car.
| Manufacturer | What the document says to do after a deployment | A repair it forbids |
|---|---|---|
| American Honda Motor Co. (Acura) | nothing beyond the parts position | none named |
| American Honda Motor Co. (Honda) | nothing beyond the parts position | none named |
| General Motors | nothing beyond the parts position | none named |
| Infiniti Americas | nothing beyond the parts position | none named |
| Nissan North America | nothing beyond the parts position | none named |
| Subaru of America | nothing beyond the parts position | none named |
| Volkswagen of America | inspect components even where nothing deployed; refer to the repair manual for what must be replaced | none named |
| Volvo Car USA | replace the steering wheel; inspect the clockspring; inspect the steering column; replace pretensioners and buckles on occupied seats; inspect the dashboard; inspect seats and occupant weight sensors; replace collision sensors on the damaged side; road test the vehicle | the dashboard in the area of a deployment |
Scanning, and the two marques that part company on it
Three of the twelve say anything about scanning a restraint system at all, and they do not say the same thing. The values in the table are the documents' own: post required, pre encouraged, pre and post recommended and pre and post required. Seven of the twelve tie the answer to warranty in terms. The rest do not address it, which is not a promise of coverage.
The rows worth reading twice
Subaru's verb and Subaru's warning are not the same strength. The position is that it does not recommend using any airbag part other than an original Subaru replacement. Four sentences later: an installer using a used or salvaged airbag may violate the Safety Act and be liable. We have held the coding at "does not recommend" because that is the verb the document uses, and the warning is quoted in full below so the gap is visible rather than resolved by us.
General Motors uses the same phrase here as on aftermarket parts: does not support and strictly prohibits. It adds the sentence a shop is most likely to need in an argument, which is that a restraint component from another model or model year may look similar, may even fit, and may still carry different internal elements or calibrations. And it repeats the Safety Act point in the regulatory-compliance section, in the same terms Subaru uses.
Volvo wrote a procedure, not a position. The document says the steering wheel is always replaced when its airbag deploys, because damage can occur that is not externally visible. The clockspring and steering column are inspected. Pretensioners and buckles on occupied seats are replaced. Seats and occupant weight sensors are inspected. Collision sensors on the damaged side are replaced after a curtain deployment. Pre- and post-repair scanning is required. The job ends with a road test to verify steering and braking. It is the only document in this topic that names a repair and forbids it: repairing the dashboard in the area of a deployment is not permitted.
Volkswagen makes the point that gets missed on a light hit. Components can need inspection where nothing deployed at all, and the answer to which ones is in the repair manual rather than in the position statement.
Nissan and Infiniti part company here, and it costs money. Everywhere else in this library those two carry the same text under two letterheads. On airbags they do not. Nissan strongly recommends pre- and post-repair system scans. Infiniti encourages the pre-repair scan where appropriate and requires the post-repair one. If you work on both marques, that is one document that recommends an operation and one that requires it. Our scanning comparison is where the wider version of that argument lives.
Honda and Acura recommend rather than refuse, and their stated reason is uncertainty rather than defect: there is no certainty of the history, quality, condition or compatibility of a salvaged component. That is an argument about what cannot be known, and it is nineteen years old.
Four of these entries are not standalone airbag documents. Stellantis, Ford and Lincoln each have a restraints section inside a wider document already read for the salvage comparison, and the sentence quoted here is that section speaking. Hyundai's entry is a general non-OEM parts statement that takes no position specific to restraints at all; it names the occupant restraint system once, to say genuine parts include it.
What this page is not saying
We are not saying any particular repair violates federal law. Two manufacturers say an installer may be liable. That is their sentence, and we quote it because it is on the page they published, not because we have assessed anyone's exposure. What federal law reaches after a repair is a separate page and it is not legal advice either.
We are not saying an insurer must pay for a new airbag. Whether one is owed on a given claim depends on the policy, the estimate and your state's rules. Our unfair claims settlement practices survey is where the state-law side lives.
We are not claiming the seven verbs are equivalent. "Strictly prohibits" and "recommends new parts only" are different instruments, and this page has not flattened them into one.
We do not claim an unnamed action is not owed. Ten of these documents say nothing about what a deployment costs beyond the parts. That is silence about a different question, not an answer to it, and the repair manual is where the answer lives.
We are not reproducing the documents. Each statement is its author's copyright. What is on this page is the position each takes, short quotes showing the coding is theirs rather than ours, and a link.
In their own words
One short quote per document, enough to show the coding above is theirs and not ours, with a link to the document. Read the document, not this page, before you rely on it in a file.
American Honda Motor Co. (Acura), 2007-10-01, on Acura. The document
AHM recommends that only new Honda or Acura air bag system components designed and designated for use in the specific Honda or Acura vehicle being repaired be installed in that vehicle.
One statement covering both marques, issued under each letterhead with the same text and the same date.
American Honda Motor Co. (Honda), 2007-10-01, on Honda. The document
AHM recommends that only new Honda or Acura air bag system components designed and designated for use in the specific Honda or Acura vehicle being repaired be installed in that vehicle.
Nineteen years old, and it recommends rather than refuses. Its stated reason is uncertainty rather than defect: there is no certainty of the history, quality, condition or compatibility of a salvaged component, which is an argument about what cannot be known rather than about what is wrong.
FCA US LLC (Stellantis), 2025-12-01, on Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Ram. The document
FCA US LLC does not support the use of any supplemental restraint system (SRS) component, seatbelt component or any other occupant protection component that has been removed from a vehicle previously damaged, flooded, burned, scrapped or removed from use for any other reason.
Not a standalone airbag statement. It is the restraints section of a wider document already read for the salvage comparison, and the sentence above is that section speaking.
Ford Motor Company (Ford), 2025-10-01, on Ford. The document
The use of salvaged, aftermarket, remanufactured or reverse-engineered restraint parts is not validated by Ford Motor Company.
Any vehicle damage or failure directly caused by the use of such components will not be covered or warranted under Ford Motor Company’s warranty or extended service plan.
Not a standalone airbag statement. It is the restraints section of a wider document already read for the salvage comparison, and the sentence above is that section speaking.
Ford Motor Company (Lincoln), 2025-10-01, on Lincoln. The document
The use of salvaged, aftermarket, remanufactured or reverse-engineered restraint parts is not validated by Lincoln.
Any vehicle damage or failure directly caused by the use of such components will not be covered or warranted under Lincoln’s warranty or extended service plan.
Not a standalone airbag statement. It is the restraints section of a wider document already read for the salvage comparison, and the sentence above is that section speaking.
General Motors, 2026-06-23, on Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Hummer, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Saturn. The document
Due to the critical nature of the design of supplemental restraint systems, GM does not support and strictly prohibits the use of any used, salvaged, or imitation parts for repair.
A repair establishment that knowingly makes a regulated safety system inoperative violates the Safety Act and becomes liable accordingly.
Any damage, failure, or nonperformance arising from the installation or presence of non-GM (aftermarket, salvage, recycled, reconditioned, or other) parts, accessories, or modifications is NOT COVERED under the GM New Vehicle Limited Warranty or any GM service plans.
The strongest verb in this topic and the same phrase GM uses on aftermarket parts: does not support and strictly prohibits. It also writes the flattest instruction here, that airbag parts from another vehicle or source are never to be used, and it warns that a similar-looking component from another model or model year may fit and still carry different internal elements or calibrations.
Hyundai Motor America, 2016-05, which is the date the library gives the file because the document carries none, on Hyundai. The document
HYUNDAI DOES NOT RECOMMEND THE USE OF COUNTERFEIT, GREY MARKET, AFTERMARKET , IMITATION , RECYCLED COLLISION REPAIR PARTS, ALTERNATE OR OTHER NON-ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT PARTS.
Not a standalone airbag statement. The library files this general parts position under airbags as well, and the document takes no position specific to restraints. It names the occupant restraint system once, to say genuine parts include it.
Infiniti Americas, 2016-09-15, on Infiniti. The document
INFINITI recommends that any repairs be performed by an experienced professional using only new Genuine OEM replacement parts designated for use on the specific INFINITI vehicle Supplemental Restraint System affected.
INFINITI strongly encourages pre-repair system scans where appropriate, and requires post-repair system scans to ensure internal trouble codes are addressed.
INFINITI’s New Vehicle Limited Warranty, and Limited Warranty on replacement parts do not apply to any parts other than genuine original equipment parts.
The Nissan statement almost word for word, and then it parts company on the sentence that costs money. Nissan strongly recommends pre- and post-repair scans. Infiniti encourages the pre-repair scan where appropriate and requires the post-repair one. Everywhere else in the library these two marques carry the same text under two letterheads; here they do not, and the difference is a billable operation.
Nissan North America, 2016-06-20, on Nissan. The document
Nissan North America recommends that any repairs be performed by an experienced professional using only new Genuine Nissan replacement parts designated for use on the specific Nissan vehicle Supplemental Restraint System affected.
When repairing a Nissan Supplemental Restraint System, Nissan strongly recommends pre- and post-repair system scans to ensure internal trouble codes are addressed.
Nissan North America’s New Vehicle Limited Warranty, and Limited Warranty on replacement parts do not apply to any parts other than Genuine Nissan original equipment parts.
The dates disagree by four years, the document headed June 20, 2016 and the library filing it as 8-7-20, which is the third Nissan document in this library with the same gap.
Subaru of America, 2015-10-15, on Subaru. The document
Due to the criticality of vehicle air bag systems to passenger safety, Subaru does not recommend using any air bag parts or components other than original Subaru replacement parts.
An installer using a used or salvaged air bag may violate the Safety Act and be liable.
Subaru does not warrant any component except a new replacement.
The gap between its verb and its warning is the widest in this topic. The coding rule holds the position at does not recommend because that is the verb, and the same page tells an installer they may be breaking federal law and personally liable. A shop reading only the first half would take this for the mildest document here.
Volkswagen of America, 2026-03-05, on Volkswagen. The document
Aftermarket, salvage, or remanufactured SRS airbag system parts do not meet the exacting specifications of Genuine Volkswagen Parts and therefore are not an acceptable method of repair on any Volkswagen vehicle.
Even in minor collision impacts where the SRS airbag does not deploy, various components must be thoroughly inspected for damage.
Aftermarket, salvage, and remanufactured parts or failure of another Volkswagen part caused by the installation or improper performance of an aftermarket, salvage, or remanufactured part is not covered under Volkswagen’s New Vehicle Limited Warranty.
It sends the reader to the repair manual rather than listing components, and it makes the point most easily missed on a light hit: components can need inspection where nothing deployed at all.
Volvo Car USA, 2022-02, which is the date the library gives the file because the document carries none, on Volvo. The document
Volvo Car USA does not approve of replacing SRS system components with anything other than genuine Volvo Car replacement parts.
Pre- and Post-repair scanning is required when working with SRS systems.
When the steering wheel airbag deploys, the steering wheel must always be replaced. Damage can occur which is not externally visible.
Repairing the dashboard in this area is not permitted.
Less a position than a procedure. It is the only document in this topic that works through what a deployment costs component by component, and the only one that names a repair and forbids it rather than naming a part. It also ends the job with a road test to verify steering and braking. No date appears in the document; the date shown is the one the library gives the file.
What we could not read, and how the derived rows work
Four rows are not separate readings. They point at a PDF already read for the salvage or the aftermarket comparison, and their quote and warranty reading are taken from that register by link address at build time rather than read a second time. Where the source document has a restraints section, that section is what this page quotes. Where it does not, the row says so rather than presenting a general parts sentence as an airbag position. The build refuses if the two registers disagree.
The coding is checked twice, by two different pieces of code. The register builder matches each verb against its quote with one set of patterns and the checker does it again with a separate set written in a different language. Two independent readings that have to agree is worth more than one helper both sides trust.
Volvo carries no date in the document. The date shown is the one the library gives the file.
Nissan's dates disagree by four years, the document headed June 20, 2016 and the library filing it as 8-7-20. That is the third Nissan document in this library with the same gap.
We have not read the underlying repair procedures. Volkswagen and Volvo both point at theirs for the actual component list, and we have not gone through that door.
We have not checked what any state adds. Several states have their own rules about salvage airbags on top of the federal position, and none of that is on this page.
Sources
- The OEM1Stop position statement library, read 2026-08-22, 109 distinct documents across eleven topics. Eleven of the twelve entries here came from it.
- General Motors' supplemental restraint systems position statement, hosted by GM at gmparts.com, read 2026-08-23.
- The twelve documents themselves. Every one is linked in the section above.
- 17 U.S.C. s 102(b), s 103(b) and s 107, read 2026-08-23 at uscode.house.gov, and US Copyright Office Circulars 14 and 33, read the same day at copyright.gov. These are why this page states positions and quotes briefly rather than reproducing documents.
Every claim in the tables is generated from data/oem/airbag-positions.json. The build refuses if a coding is not carried by its quote, if a scan coding is not carried by its scan sentence, if a law is recorded that its own quote does not name, if a derived row has drifted from its source register, or if this page states a count the rows do not support.
Related
- Salvage and recycled parts: what fifteen manufacturer entries actually say
- Pre and post repair scanning: what fifteen manufacturers actually require
- Aftermarket, salvage and recycled parts: what seventeen manufacturer position statements say
- Make inoperative: what federal law reaches after a repair
Corrections
- 2026-08-23. First publication.
General consumer information: not legal, insurance, or financial advice. Requirements, coverage, and practices vary by state, policy, and manufacturer.