Toyota Recalls Yaris, Vibe, and Corolla Matrix for Air Bag Defect
Toyota is recalling 116,126 vehicles due to a defect in passenger frontal air bag inflators that may explode during deployment, posing a risk of serious injury or death.
What this means for you
Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 4/5 (Severe).
The hazard poses a serious risk of illness, injury, or structural failure. Stop using the product immediately and contact the manufacturer for a refund or repair.
Our severity reasoning: The source text explicitly states that the defect may result in 'serious injury or death' and involves a structural vehicle safety component (air bag inflator), which aligns with the rubric criteria for a Severe (4) rating.
Plain-English summary
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing is recalling 116,126 vehicles, including 14,585 model year 2010-2012 Yaris, 3,347 model year 2010 Pontiac Vibe, and 98,194 model year 2003-2008 Corolla Matrix. The Yaris and Vibe vehicles are located in specific states, while the Corolla Matrix vehicles are located throughout the U.S. and previously received an interim air bag inflator replacement.
The recall addresses a defect in certain air bag inflators used in the passenger frontal air bag modules. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation caused by long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling. If the passenger frontal air bag deploys in a crash, the inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, which could cause serious injury or death.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag assemblies with an alternate inflator free of charge. The recall began on January 29, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331 or the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.
The recalled product
- Product
- TOYOTA, PONTIAC COROLLA MATRIX, VIBE, YARIS
- Brand
- TOYOTA
- Manufacturer
- Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing
- Category
- Vehicle — Air Bag Inflator
- Affected units
- 116,126
Is your product affected?
Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.
Model numbers (3)
- COROLLA MATRIX
- VIBE
- YARIS
Distribution
Distributed nationwide across the United States.
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