If you're trying to figure out how to turn eyesight off subaru because the system is chirping at you or fighting your steering in a construction zone, you aren't alone. While Subaru's safety suite is generally a lifesaver, there are plenty of times when you just want the car to stop hovering over your shoulder. Maybe you're heading through a car wash, or maybe the sensors are getting confused by heavy rain or a mountain road with weird lane markings. Whatever the reason, getting it to shut up isn't always as intuitive as you'd hope.
Depending on which year your Subaru was made, the process changes a bit. The older models usually have physical buttons you can just mash, while the newer ones bury the settings deep inside that giant tablet-style touchscreen. Let's break down exactly how to handle this so you can get back to driving without the constant backseat driving from your dashboard.
The old-school way: physical overhead buttons
If your Subaru is from the mid-2010s up until around 2020 or 2021 (depending on the model), you likely have the "button" version. Look up by your rearview mirror, near the map lights and the sunroof controls if you have them. You should see a couple of buttons with icons that look like a car drifting out of its lane or a car about to rear-end another one.
To turn off the Pre-Collision Braking or the Lane Departure Warning, you can't just tap them. Subaru designed these to be hard to accidentally trigger, so you have to press and hold the button for about two to three seconds. You'll hear a short beep, and an orange light will pop up on your instrument cluster. That orange light is your confirmation that the system is off.
It's worth noting that these are two separate systems. If you want the car to stop beeping when you drift near a line, hold the Lane Departure button. If you're worried the car is going to slam on the brakes while you're pulling into a tight garage, hold the Pre-Collision Braking button. Most people find the lane departure stuff way more annoying than the braking assist, but it's good to know how to kill both if you're in a pinch.
Managing the newer 11.6-inch touchscreens
Subaru went all-in on the big vertical screens recently, and if you've got a newer Outback, Forester, or Crosstrek, those physical overhead buttons are probably gone. Now, everything is tucked away in the software. This can be a bit of a pain if you're already driving, so it's usually better to do this while you're parked.
First, tap the "Settings" icon on the main screen—it usually looks like a little gear. From there, you want to look for the "Car" tab or an icon that looks like a small vehicle. Once you're in that menu, you'll see a list for "EyeSight." This is where you can toggle everything. You can switch off the Lane Departure Prevention, the Pre-Collision Braking, and even the "Lead Vehicle Acquisition" beep (that's the one that tells you the car in front of you moved while you were checking your phone at a red light).
The catch? EyeSight resets every single time you turn the car off. It's a safety feature mandated by their internal policies, so if you hate Lane Keep Assist, you're going to have to dive into that menu every time you start the engine. It's annoying, yeah, but it's how they keep their five-star safety ratings.
Why would you even want to turn it off?
A lot of people ask why anyone would want to disable safety tech, but if you've actually driven a Subaru for more than a week, you know exactly why. The most common reason is the automated car wash. If you leave EyeSight on while those big brushes are spinning toward your windshield, the cameras might think you're about to have a massive head-on collision. The car could slam on the brakes while you're on the conveyor belt, which is a great way to get rear-ended by the guy behind you or jump the tracks.
Another big one is off-roading or driving in deep snow. EyeSight is calibrated for paved roads with clear markings. If you're crawling up a muddy trail or navigating a blizzard, the cameras get overwhelmed. In the snow, specifically, the Pre-Collision Braking can sometimes get "scared" by a big cloud of powder or a snowbank, causing the car to jerk. Turning it off gives you full manual control back, which is what you want when conditions are sketchy.
Then there's the "beeping fatigue." On long road trips, if you're driving on narrow backroads, the Lane Departure Warning can be incredibly sensitive. If you're constantly hugging the line to give a cyclist space or avoiding a pothole, the car will chirp at you incessantly. Turning it off for a few miles can save your sanity.
When EyeSight turns itself off
Sometimes you don't even have to look up how to turn eyesight off subaru because the car does it for you. If you see a message saying "EyeSight Disabled" with a big yellow slash through the icon, it usually means the cameras are "blind."
This happens a lot in the morning if your windshield is fogged up or covered in frost. Since the EyeSight cameras are mounted inside the glass, they need a clear view. If they can't see, they quit. It also happens when you're driving directly into a very bright sunrise or sunset. The glare overwhelms the sensors, and the system just gives up until the lighting improves.
If your EyeSight is off and won't come back on even in perfect weather, check your windshield. A tiny rock chip or even a smudge of grease right in front of the camera lenses can shut the whole thing down. It's a finicky system, but that's because it's trying to be as precise as possible.
Dealing with the steering wheel controls
On some specific trims and older models, you might find some EyeSight toggles on the steering wheel itself. Usually, these buttons control the Adaptive Cruise Control and the Lane Keep Assist (the one that actually nudges the wheel).
If you just want to use "normal" cruise control without the car slowing down automatically when it sees someone ahead of you, you can usually do that. On most Subarus, if you hold down one of the distance setting buttons (the ones with the bars) while cruise control is on but not set, it will switch from Adaptive to Conventional. You'll see the icon change on your dash. This is a lifesaver if you're a driver who hates the way the car brakes "nervously" when someone merges into your lane three car lengths ahead.
A quick safety reminder
Even though we're talking about how to shut it off, I should probably mention that EyeSight really is one of the best systems out there when it's working right. It's credited with a massive reduction in rear-end collisions. So, while it's great to know how to turn it off for the car wash or a tricky dirt road, it's probably a good idea to leave it on for your daily commute.
The "Pre-Collision Throttle Management" is another part of the system that people occasionally want off. That's the feature that cuts power if it thinks you're about to drive into a wall (like if you accidentally put the car in Drive instead of Reverse in a parking lot). It's saved a lot of storefront windows, but if you're trying to pull out into fast-moving traffic and the car thinks you're too close to a curb, it can feel like the engine is bogging down. Knowing how to toggle that in the settings menu can save you a lot of frustration.
Wrapping it up
Whether you have the physical buttons overhead or the new fancy touchscreen, turning off EyeSight is pretty straightforward once you know the secret handshake (usually a long press or a trip into the "Car" menu). Just remember that the car is going to "forget" your preference every time you pull the key or hit the start button. It's a bit of a repetitive chore, but it's part of the Subaru experience. Just keep that windshield clean, know where your buttons are, and you'll be able to tell the car to take a break whenever you need some peace and quiet.