Car Recall Tracker

Home › Toyota › RAV4 › 20V734000

Toyota Avalon and RAV4 driver airbag may underperform in crash

NHTSA campaign 20V734000 · Reported 2020-11-25 · Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing

high How serious is it? About this label

In the event of a crash, an air bag that does not perform as designed can increase the risk of injury. The notice does not tell owners to stop driving.

What's wrong, in plain English

Inside the steering column are small pins designed to break in a crash so the column can collapse and absorb some of the impact. On these vehicles those pins may have been damaged while the vehicle was being built. If they are damaged, the driver's airbag may not perform the way it was designed to in a crash, which raises the chance of injury. These vehicles also fail a federal crash protection rule. Dealers replace the entire steering column.

What you should do

1. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see if your vehicle is covered.
2. Contact a Toyota dealer or Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331 (recall 20TB17/20TA17).
3. Have the steering column replaced at no charge.

Affected vehicles (4)

Who to contact

Toyota — official Toyota recall lookup

Customer service: 1-800-331-4331

Any franchised dealer for the brand can do the repair. Phone numbers are taken from manufacturer sites and recent NHTSA notices; if one has changed, the number in your own recall letter is the one to use.

The bigger picture

Official notice

Component
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
Summary
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Toyota Avalon and 2020 Avalon Hybrid, RAV4, and RAV4 Hybrid vehicles. Breakaway pins within the steering column, designed to absorb energy and reduce injury during a crash, could have been damaged during production, possibly affecting the performance of the driver's air bag in the event of a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
Safety risk
In the event of a crash, an air bag that does not perform as designed can increase the risk of injury.
Remedy
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering column, free of charge. The recall began December 18, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 20TB17/20TA17.

Verify your specific vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov. Recall repairs are free of charge by law.