- Toyota has announced the recall of about a million Toyota and Lexus vehicles from 2020 through 2022 model years.
- The problem is an incorrectly manufactured sensor in the front passenger seat that could short-circuit, potentially causing the airbag to fail in some kinds of crashes.
- The recall includes six Toyota and two Lexus models, among them the Camry, Corolla, RAV4, and Lexus RX.
Toyota has announced the recall of about a million vehicles over a sensor problem. The automaker says an Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor in the front passenger seat of these vehicles, all of which were from model years between 2020 and 2022, could short-circuit because of a manufacturing defect. The result, according to Toyota, is that the passenger airbag “may not deploy as designed” in some kinds of crashes.
Toyota did not give numbers of each vehicle but listed the following models from the Toyota lineup: 2020–2021 Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, RAV4, and RAV4 Hybrid; 2021 Sienna Hybrid; and 2020–2022 Camry and Camry Hybrid. The recall also includes the 2021 Lexus ES250; 2020–2021 ES350, RX350, and RX350H; and 2020–2022 ES300H.
The automaker said it will notify owners by mid-February 2024 and will inspect and replace the OCS sensors at no charge if they are defective. In the meantime, owners looking to find out whether their vehicle is included can check the Toyota or Lexus recall sites. This recall is not yet posted on the NHTSA recalls website but is expected to appear there soon.
Laura Sky Brown has been involved in automotive media for a very long time, and she sees it as her calling to guard the legacy and help ensure the continued high quality of Car and Driver. She was one of the first staffers at Automobile Magazine in the ’80s and has worked for many other car magazines and websites as a writer, editor, and copy editor ever since. It has been her privilege to edit many of the greats of automotive journalism over the years, including the ones who currently write for C/D.