Toyota Australia has today announced that it will initiate a safety recall affecting 28 replacement front seatbelts sold through Toyota dealerships parts departments from May 2022. The parts have been sold as replacement parts for a select range of Toyota Kluger, Corolla, RAV4, 86 and Camry vehicles in Australia.
There are no production vehicles impacted in the Australian market.
The front seat belt assemblies involved are service parts designed for certain Toyota models containing a seat belt retractor with a force-limiter function using a torsion shaft, which helps control the loads on the occupant applied by the shoulder belt after the seat belt retractor locks up during a collision.
For seatbelt assemblies involved, the torsion shaft may have been manufactured incorrectly at the supplier. In this condition, the force-limiter may not operate as designed, allowing the seat belt to extend further than intended after locking. This can increase the amount of forward displacement of the occupant, increasing the risk of an injury in the event of a collision severe enough to activate a force-limiter.
For affected vehicles, Toyota dealers will inspect the seatbelt serial number and, if required, replace the seatbelt assembly free of charge for vehicle owners.
It will require approximately 30 minutes to inspect/replace the seatbelt assembly. However, depending on the Dealer’s work schedule, owners may be required to make the vehicle available for a longer period of time.
