NEWS
Corolla recall extended
Toyota has updated airbag repair process, requiring a return visit to the dealer for some ownersA recall first announced in April last year has resurfaced as a consequence of Toyota's decision to update the repair process.
The recall, for front passenger airbags fitted to nearly 20,000 units of Corolla, Avensis Verso and Lexus SC430 sold in Australia, involved replacing the front passenger airbag, which may have been assembled with faulty propellant wafers.
Subsequently, however, Toyota has elected to additionally replace the airbag inflator in all the affected vehicles, including those that have already had the airbag itself replaced. Toyota stresses that this is not a new recall as such. It's a procedural change only.
This will inevitably mean some owners need to return to the servicing dealership for this work to be done, although, confusing the issue further, some owners have already had both the airbag and the inflator replaced.
"It's not a new recall..." a Toyota spokesperson has explained to motoring.com.au. "Previously... we asked customers to come in with their car and we inspected the vehicle. Some of those airbags were replaced, depending on the serial number.
"What we're now doing as a precautionary measure – because we're not sure we had the complete list of serial numbers – we're now changing the process. We're going to change the airbag inflators in all the vehicles in that time period.
"We'll cross-reference our records and if our records show that someone did have [both] replaced, we just won't contact that person."
The vehicles concerned were built between January 2001 and May 2003. Owners will receive advice from Toyota in the mail, indicating they should return the vehicle to their preferred Toyota dealer "as soon as parts become available."
Toyota anticipates downtime of as little as 2.5 hours for the Toyota-badged vehicles, but the Lexus SC430 will require 5.5 hours of labour. Some customers have already had both the airbag and the inflator replaced, and will not be recontacted by the company. Toyota has set up a helpline for further information about the recall; owners are encouraged to dial 1800 643 242 to set their minds at ease.
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Written byKen Gratton
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Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
If the price does not contain the notation that it is "Drive Away", the price may not include additional costs, such as stamp duty and other government charges.
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