Toyota Issues 'Do Not Drive' Advisory For Thousands Of Vehicles Over Exploding Airbag Risk

In a recent development, Toyota Motor Corporation TM has issued a Do Not Drive advisory for specific models due to a Takata airbag recall.

What Happened: On Wednesday, Toyota issued an immediate advisory against driving certain model year 2003-2004 Corolla, 2003-2004 Corolla Matrix, and model year 2004-2005 RAV4 vehicles in the United States. This decision is a part of the ongoing Takata airbag recalls. Approximately 50,000 vehicles are affected by this advisory.

The airbags in these vehicles are subject to an urgent safety recall. Due to the age of the vehicles, if the airbag deploys, there is a higher risk of it exploding and releasing sharp metal fragments, which could be injurious or even fatal to drivers or passengers. Toyota is urging owners not to drive these vehicles until the free safety recall repair has been completed. The company is offering various free repair options, such as mobile repair, towing to the dealership, vehicle pickup and delivery, or other alternate transportation options.

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Toyota will repair or replace the airbags for free and notify known owners of these vehicles every month through various communication channels. Owners can check if their vehicle is involved in a safety recall by visiting Toyota.com/recall or nhtsa.gov/recalls and entering their Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) or license plate information.

Why It Matters: This is the latest in a series of challenges for Toyota. In December, the company recalled about a million vehicles in the U.S. due to issues related to airbag deployment. The recall included model year 2020-2022 Toyota and Lexus vehicles.

Moreover, Toyota recently faced another setback when it halted the shipment of 10 vehicle models due to certification irregularities with the diesel engines delivered by its supplier, Toyota Industries Corporation.

Despite these challenges, Toyota’s Chairman, Akio Toyoda, has projected a maximum market share of 30% for battery electric vehicles, leaving the majority to other fuel technologies.

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