B0081
0 owner reports and 5 manufacturer filings across 4 model years from Buick, Chevrolet.
Where B0081 shows up
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications and complaints| Model year | Filed under | Bulletins | Owner reports |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 Buick Verano | Electrical System | 2 | — |
| 2016 Buick Verano | Air Bags | 1 | — |
| 2017 Chevrolet Impala | Air Bags | 1 | — |
| 2016 Chevrolet Impala | Air Bags | 1 | — |
A model year appears here because the code is named in its record, not because every one of these vehicles sets it. Counts are mentions in the federal files, not failure rates — nobody publishes the denominator.
What it gets filed under
Manufacturer filings that name it
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communicationsService bulletins and campaigns whose filed summary names B0081. Quoting the document number at a service desk is often the fastest route to a diagnosis someone has already written down.
- N182188910 012019-03-20 · Electrical System
- N182188910-01 - Special Coverage. On some 2017 model year Buick Verano vehicles, the Passenger Presence Sensor (PPS) Module wire may have been pinched in the seat trim during seat assembly or servicing. If the wire is pinched Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) B0074 (0D or 0E) may intermittently set along with the Sensing and Diagnostic Module (SDM) setting B0081 (00). The fault and symptoms may be in
- N1821889102019-03-08 · Electrical System
- N182188910 - Special Coverage. On some 2017 model year Buick Verano vehicles, the Passenger Presence Sensor (PPS) Module wire may have been pinched in the seat trim during seat assembly or servicing. If the wire is pinched Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) B0074 (0D or 0E) may intermittently set along with the Sensing and Diagnostic Module (SDM) setting B0081 (00). The fault and symptoms may be inter
- PIE0407B2017-11-29 · Air Bags
- This engineering information ends the need for information from the field on vehicles that have the condition of Service Air Bag Indicator Illuminated and DTC B0081 and/or B0074-0D Set.
- 16-NA-1452017-07-18 · Air Bags
- This technical bulletin provides a procedure to replace the front passenger presence sensor to correct a customer concern on a service airbag light illuminated, the service airbag system message on the DIC, passenger airbag status indicator display OFF and DTC B0074 and B0081 set caused by an open or high resistance in the seat pad printed circuit.
What B0081 means
Source: SAE J2012 / OBD-IIB0081 sits in the generic range of the OBD-II standard, so it means the same thing on every vehicle sold in the United States — but WhichTrim does not carry a definition for it and will not invent one. What is on this page is the record: who named it and on what.
A stored code names the test that failed, never the part that caused it. It is the starting point of a diagnosis, not its conclusion — the same code has several possible causes and the cheap one is not always right.
Common questions about B0081
Source: NHTSA files and the OBD-II standardCan I keep driving with B0081 stored?
Nobody can answer that from the code alone, and a site that does is guessing. A steady light generally means the fault was logged and the vehicle is in a reduced-risk mode; a flashing light means stop soon, because a misfiring engine can destroy a catalytic converter in minutes. The safe read of this page is the mileage and the components, not permission.
Does a code mean the car is recalled?
No. Recalls are filed by campaign and matched by VIN, and none of them are triggered by a scan tool. If you want to know whether an open recall applies to one specific vehicle, check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls — that is the only source that settles it.
Why do the counts here differ from other sites?
Because these are not estimates. Every number on this page is a count of documents in NHTSA's own files: manufacturer communications that name the code in their filed summary, and owner complaints that name it in the narrative. We do not model, weight or extrapolate them.
Will clearing the code fix it?
Clearing turns the light off and erases the freeze-frame data a technician would have used to work out what happened. If the condition is still there the code returns, usually within a few drive cycles, and the diagnosis now starts from less information than before.