Recall 11V245000

AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW

Report Date
20110421
Component
AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
Affected Vehicles
4 models

Defect Description

TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2008 HIGHLANDER, HIGHLANDER HYBRID, AND MODEL YEAR 2007-2008 RAV4 VEHICLES. IN THE CURTAIN SHIELD AIRBAG (CSA) SYSTEM, THERE ARE TWO SENSORS IN THE AIRBAG SENSOR ASSEMBLY WHICH ARE DESIGNED TO DETECT VEHICLE ROLL ANGLE. IF ONE OF THESE SENSORS MALFUNCTIONS, THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT (MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT: MIL) WILL ILLUMINATE AND THE ROLL DETECTION SYSTEM WILL BE SUSPENDED; HOWEVER, THE AIRBAG CSA REMAINS AVAILABLE IN THE EVENT OF A SIDE CRASH. IF BOTH SENSORS FAIL NEARLY SIMULTANEOUSLY AFTER INITIAL AIRBAG SYSTEM CHECK, THE CSA AND THE SEAT BELT PRETENSIONER COULD BE INADVERTENTLY ACTIVATED.

Safety Consequence

INADVERTENT ACTIVATION OF THE CSA AND/OR THE SEAT BELT PRETENSIONER CAN CAUSE INJURY TO A VEHICLE OCCUPANT.

Remedy

TOYOTA WILL REPLACE THE AIRBAG SENSOR ASSEMBLY WITH A NEW ONE CONTAINING IMPROVED ROLL RATE SENSORS, FREE OF CHARGE. TOYOTA INTENDS TO SEND AN INTERIM OWNER NOTIFICATION TO OWNERS EARLY TO MID-MAY, 2011 WHEN SUFFICIENT PARTS AND REMEDY BECOMES AVAILABLE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.

Affected Vehicles

Year Make Model
2007 TOYOTA RAV4
2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER
2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER HYBRID
2008 TOYOTA RAV4

Check your vehicle: Visit NHTSA.gov and enter your VIN to see if your specific vehicle is affected.