2023 Ford Transit

23L02 – Passenger Airbag Deactivation Switch Instructions Not in Owner’s Manual – 2022-2023 Ford Transit

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NHTSA ID Number: 10237457

Manufacturer Communication Number: 23L02

Summary

Certain 2022 & 2023 Model Year Transit Vehicles

Passenger Airbag Deactivation Switch Instructions Not in Owners Manual

 

May 26, 2023

Special Field Action 23L02
Certain 2022 & 2023 Model Year Transit Vehicles
Passenger Airbag Deactivation Switch Instructions Not in Owner’s Manual

 

AFFECTED VEHICLES

Vehicle Model Year Assembly Plant Build Dates
Transit2022Kansas CityFebruary 26, 2021 through August 26, 2022
Transit2023Kansas CityMarch 7, 2022 through March 17, 2023

US population of affected vehicles: 119,687 Affected vehicles are identified in OASIS and FSA VIN Lists.

 

REASON FOR THIS ACTION 

In all the affected vehicles, the printed Owner’s Manual does not have instructions on the operation of the Passenger Airbag ON/OFF switch.  The Passenger Airbag ON/OFF switch and the Passenger Airbag Status Indicator function as designed.

 

SERVICE ACTION

Customers will be mailed an Owner’s Manual addendum with the missing information. Customers are instructed to add the addendum to their Owner’s Manual. For unsold vehicles, Dealers are responsible to update the Owner’s Manual before delivery. This service will be performed on affected vehicles at no charge to the vehicle owner. The updated Owner’s Manual insert is included as Attachment III. The Passenger Airbag Deactivation information is also available through Ford Pass and on the FordeBay logo Website.

 

OWNER NOTIFICATION MAILING SCHEDULE

Owner letters and Owner’s Manual inserts with instructions are expected to be mailed the week of May 30, 2023.

 

EXPIRATION DATE

This program has an expiration date of May 30, 2024. We encourage dealers to complete this service as soon as possible.

 

SOLD VEHICLES

Owner’s Manual inserts are being mailed to owners.

 

STOCK VEHICLES

  • Correct all affected units in your new vehicle inventory before delivery.
  • Use OASIS to identify any affected vehicles in your used vehicle inventory.

 

TITLE BRANDED / SALVAGED VEHICLES

Affected title-branded and salvaged vehicles are eligible for this Field Service Action.

 

PARTS REQUIREMENTS

Stock Vehicles: The Owner Manual insert for in-stock vehicles can be found in Attachment III.

Sold Vehicles: Owner Manual inserts are being mailed directly to customers of the affected vehicles.

 

Transit Owner’s Manual Addendum

The information in this addendum supplements the information contained in the following:

  • Transit Owner’s Manual (202107).
  • Transit Owner’s Manual (202203).

The information contained in this publication was correct at the time of going to print.  In the interest of continuous development, we reserve the right to change specifications, design or equipment at any time without notice or obligation.  No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, stored in a retrieval system or translated into any language in any form by any means without our written permission. Errors and omissions excepted.

 

Table of Contents

Airbags

Switching the Passenger Airbag On and Off – 3

 

SWITCHING THE PASSENGER AIRBAG ON AND OFF

WARNING: Even with advanced restraints systems, properly restrain children 12 and under in a rear seating position. Failure to follow this could seriously increase the risk of injury or death.

WARNING: The front passenger airbag is not designed to offer protection to an occupant in the center seating position.

WARNING: Your vehicle may have an airbag deactivation switch. Before driving, always look at the switch to make sure it is in the appropriate position. Failure to put the switch in the proper position can increase the risk of serious injury or death in a crash.

The front passenger airbag on and off switch has indicators that illuminate, indicating that the front passenger frontal airbag is either on or off. The indicators are near the center of the instrument panel.

Note: The indicators illuminate for a short period of time when you switch the ignition on to confirm it is functional.

Switch PositionPassenger Airbag Status IndicatorPassenger Airbag
OffOFF: IlluminatedDisabled
ON: Not Illuminated
OnOFF: Not IlluminatedEnabled
ON: Illuminated

 

Switching the Passenger Airbag Off

WARNING: If the light does not illuminate when the passenger airbag switch is off and you switch the ignition on, have the passenger airbag switch serviced immediately by a qualified technician.

WARNING: To avoid switching on the airbag, always remove the ignition key with the switch in the off position.

WARNING: If your vehicle has rear seats, always transport children who are 12 and younger in the rear seat. Always use seatbelts and child restraints properly. Do not place a child in a rear facing infant seat in the front seat unless your vehicle is equipped with an airbag on and off switch and the passenger airbag is turned off. This is because the back of the infant seat is too close to the inflating airbag and the risk of a fatal injury to the infant when the airbag inflates is substantial.

The passenger airbag on and off switch is in the glovebox.

 

  1. Insert the ignition key, turn the switch to OFF and hold in OFF while removing the key.
  2. When you switch the ignition on, the passenger airbag off light illuminates briefly, momentarily shuts off and then switches back on. This indicates that the passenger airbag is deactivated.

 

Switching the Passenger Airbag On

WARNING: The seatbelts for the driver and right front passenger seating positions are specifically designed to operate together with the airbags in certain types of crashes. When you switch off your airbag, you not only lose the protection of the airbag, you also may reduce the effectiveness of your seatbelt system. If the passenger does not meet the requirements stated in the National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration or Transport Canada deactivation criteria, switching off the airbag can increase the risk of serious injury or death in a crash.

WARNING: If your vehicle has rear seats, always transport children who are 12 and younger in the rear seat. Always use seatbelts and child restraints properly. Do not place a child in a rear facing infant seat in the front seat unless your vehicle is equipped with an airbag on and off switch and the passenger airbag is turned off. This is because the back of the infant seat is too close to the inflating airbag and the risk of a fatal injury to the infant when the airbag inflates is substantial.

WARNING: If the passenger airbag off light is illuminated when the passenger airbag switch is on and the ignition is on, have the passenger airbag switch serviced immediately by a qualified technician.

The passenger airbag remains off until you switch it back on.

  1. Insert the ignition key and turn the switch to ON.
  2. The passenger airbag off light briefly illuminates when you switch the ignition on. This indicates that the passenger airbag is operational.

The passenger side airbag should always be on, and the passenger airbag off light should not be illuminated, unless the passenger is a person who meets the requirements stated either in Category 1, 2 or 3 of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration or Transport Canada deactivation criteria which follows.

The vast majority of drivers and passengers are much safer with an airbag than without. To do their job and reduce the risk of life threatening injuries, airbags must open with great force, and this force can pose a potentially deadly risk in some situations, particularly when a front seat occupant is not properly buckled up. The most effective way to reduce the risk of unnecessary airbag injuries without reducing the overall safety of the vehicle is to make sure all occupants are properly restrained in the vehicle, especially in the front seat. This provides the protection of seatbelts and permits the airbags to provide the additional protection they were designed to provide. If you choose to deactivate your airbag, you are losing the very significant risk reducing benefits of the airbag and you are also reducing the effectiveness of the seatbelts. Seatbelts in modern vehicles are designed to work as a safety system with the airbags.

 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Deactivation Criteria-Excluding Canada

WARNING: This vehicle has special energy management seatbelts for the driver and right front passenger. These particular seatbelts are specifically designed to work with airbags to help reduce the risk of injury in a crash. The energy management seatbelt gives or releases additional seatbelt webbing in some accidents to reduce the concentration of force on an occupant’s chest and to reduce the risk of certain bone fractures and injuries to underlying organs. In a crash, if the airbag is off, this energy management seatbelt might permit the passenger wearing the seatbelt to move forward enough to have a serious or fatal injury. The more severe the crash, and the heavier the occupant, the greater the risk. Make sure the airbag is on for any passenger who does not qualify under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration deactivation criteria.

  1. Infant. An infant, less than 1 year old, must ride in the front seat because:
  • The vehicle has no rear seat.
  • The vehicle has a rear seat too small to accommodate a rear-facing infant seat.
  • The infant has a medical condition which, according to the infant’s physician, makes it necessary for the infant to ride in the front so that the driver can constantly monitor the child’s condition.

 

  1. Children age 1 to 12. Children age 1 to 12 must ride in the front seat because:
  • The vehicle has no rear seat.
  • Although children ages 1 to 12 ride in the rear seat(s) whenever possible, children ages 1 to 12 sometimes must ride in the front because no space is available in the rear seat(s) of your vehicle.
  • The child has a medical condition which, according to the child’s physician, makes it necessary for the child to ride in the front seat so that the driver can constantly monitor the child’s condition.

 

  1. Medical condition. A passenger has a medical condition which, according to his or her physician:
  • Causes the passenger airbag to pose a special risk for the passenger.
  • Makes the potential harm from the passenger airbag in a crash greater than the potential harm from turning off the airbag and allowing the passenger, even if belted, to hit the dashboard or windshield in a crash.

 

Transport Canada Deactivation Criteria-Canada Only

WARNING: This vehicle has special energy management seatbelts for the driver and right front passenger. These particular seatbelts are specifically designed to work with airbags to help reduce the risk of injury in a crash. The energy management seatbelt gives or releases additional seatbelt webbing in some accidents to reduce the concentration of force on an occupant’s chest and to reduce the risk of certain bone fractures and injuries to underlying organs. In a crash, if the airbag is off, this energy management seatbelt might permit the passenger wearing the seatbelt to move forward enough to have a serious or fatal injury. The more severe the crash, and the heavier the occupant, the greater the risk. Make sure the airbag is on for any passenger who does not qualify under the Transport Canada deactivation criteria.

  1. Infant: An infant, less than 1 year old, must ride in the front seat because:
  • The vehicle has no rear seat.
  • The rear seat in my vehicle cannot accommodate a rear-facing infant seat.
  • The infant has a medical condition which, according to the infant’s physician, makes it necessary for the infant to ride in the front seat so that the driver can monitor the infant’s condition.

 

  1. Children age 12 or under: Children age 12 or under must ride in the front seat because:
  • The vehicle has no rear seat.
  • Although children age 12 and under ride in the rear seat whenever possible, children age 12 and under have no option but to sometimes ride in the front seat because rear seat space is insufficient.
  • The child has a medical condition that, according to the child’s physician, makes it necessary for the child to ride in the front seat so that the driver can monitor the child’s condition.

 

  1. Medical condition: A passenger has a medical condition that, according to his or her physician:
  • Poses a special risk for the passenger if the airbag deploys.
  • Makes the potential harm from the passenger airbag deployment greater than the potential harm from turning off the airbag and experiencing a crash without the protection offered by the airbag.

 

Index

A

Airbags – 3

S

Switching the Passenger Airbag On and

Off – 3

 

2 Affected Products

Vehicle

MAKEMODELYEAR
FORDeBay logoTRANSIT2022-2023

 

1 Associated Document

Manufacturer Communications

May 26, 2023
Special Field Action 23L02

https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls?nhtsaId=10237457

MC-10237457-0001.pdf 12558.791KB


⬇ Download PDF (11.98 MB)

 

 

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Last update on 2026-05-30 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

 

 

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