Toyota Recalls 6.4 Million Cars — Details

In terms of cars recalled in the United States, Toyota’s recall involves two separate series of problems:

Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. today announced that it will conduct a voluntary safety recall involving approximately 1.3 million vehicles, including certain Model Year 2009-2010 Corolla, 2009-2010 Matrix, 2008-2010 Highlander, 2009-2010 Tacoma, 2006-2008 RAV4 and 2006-2010 Yaris vehicles.

The driver’s airbag module in the involved vehicles is attached to a spiral cable assembly with electrical connections that could become damaged when the steering wheel is turned. If this occurs, the air bag warning lamp will illuminate. In addition, the driver’s air bag could become deactivated, causing it to not deploy in the event of a crash.

Toyota is not aware of any injuries or fatalities caused by this condition.

Toyota is currently preparing the remedy for this condition. For all involved vehicles, a Toyota dealer will replace the spiral cable with an improved one. Once preparations are complete, Toyota will send an owner notification letter by first class mail and the remedy will be provided at no charge.

And:

Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. today announced that it will conduct a safety recall involving approximately 472,500 vehicles consisting of certain Model Year 2006-2010 Yaris Hatchback vehicles (approximately 158,000); certain Model Year 2007-2010 Yaris Sedan vehicles (approximately 250,500); and certain Model Year 2008-2010 Scion xD vehicles (approximately 64,000).

In the seat rail of the driver seat of the involved vehicles and also the front passenger seat of three-door models, the springs used for the mechanism which lock the seat rail in its adjusting positions could break. This can happen if the seat is adjusted forward and/or rearward with high frequency. If a seat rail spring breaks, the seat may not lock into the adjusted position. If the vehicle is operated with a broken seat rail spring, the seat could move in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the occupant.

If the condition is present, an occupant may notice the following:
If both of the springs have broken, the seat will not lock into the adjusted position.
In limited instances, if a spring has broken and becomes stuck in the seat rail, the seat may only be capable of forward movement.
Toyota is not aware of any accidents or injuries caused by this condition.

Toyota is currently preparing the remedy. Once preparations are complete, owners of vehicles subject to this safety recall will receive an owner notification letter by first class mail.

The remedy, when available, will involve replacement of the seat track assembly at no charge to the customer.