Toyota Warns 50,000 Owners To Stop Driving Immediately For Airbag Fix [Update: GM Joins Recall]

Toyota issued a “Do Not Drive” advisory on Monday and urged owners of 50,000 older Toyotas to get immediate recall repairs for another deadly Takata airbag recall. This announcement affects some 2003-2004 Toyota Corollas and Corolla Matrix models, and 2004-2005 RAV4s with Takata airbag inflators.

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Updated Tuesday, January 30, 2023 8:30 a.m. EST – General Motors also issued a Do Not Drive advisory on the 2003-2004 Pontiac Vibe, which are basically the same vehicle as the Toyota Matrix and were built at the same plant as some of the recalled Toyotas.

As a reminder, these faulty Takata airbag inflators can explode and literally shoot metal shrapnel directly at your face at extremely high velocity, which poses an obvious and very dire safety risk.

On affected RAV4s, the killer airbag inflators are only on the driver’s side. On affected Corollas and Corolla Matrix models, the recall involves the front passenger airbag only. In some cases, some of the Corollas and Corolla Matrix vehicles included in this recall are also involved in a second recall concerning possible random airbag deployment. Reuters reports,

There have been prior “Do Not Drive” warnings issued by other automakers for vehicles with older Takata air bag inflators after fatal crashes. Toyota declined to answer if the “Do Not Drive” warning had been prompted by a serious injury or fatal incident involving one of the vehicles.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration did not immediately comment.

Chrysler-parent company Stellantis (STLAM.MI) in July warned 29,000 owners of 2003 Dodge Ram pickups to immediately stop driving pending repairs after one person was killed when a Takata air-bag inflator exploded.

The Takata airbag inflator recall is the largest recall ever issued in the history of automotive safety recalls, and more than 67 million airbag inflators have been recalled in the United States alone, and more than 100 million worldwide.

If you drive a car that’s included in this recall, please take your car to the dealer and have them confirm that your car is safe. If someone you know drives one of the affected cars, please make sure they are aware of the recall, since this is a serious safety concern that could leave drivers or passengers mangled, sometimes even without an accident occurring. Since this recall affects older models, owners might not consider that their older car could still be recalled.