Last week, Toyota issued a press release stating that approximately 1 million vehicles feature OCS sensors that may short. The sensors in question may have been improperly manufactured. By whom? Unfortunately, the supplier wasn't named in the automaker's release. On the other hand, documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reveal the supplier's name.
One of the most valuable companies on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the Aisin Corporation is controlled by none other than Toyota. At the moment of reporting, Toyota Motor Corporation and Toyota Industries Corporation are listed with voting ratios of 24.80 and 7.68 percent, respectively. Other notable shareholders include The Master Trust Bank of Japan (9.89 percent voting ratio) and Denso (4.81 percent). Speaking of which, Toyota Motor and Toyota Industries also have a big say in Denso's business.
Turning our attention back to the recall, no fewer than 999,901 vehicles were manufactured with Aisin sensors that may short circuit in time. According to the report attached below, Aisin may have deformed the circuit board during production. This, in turn, could result in a cracked capacitor that allows moisture to enter, thus resulting in a short circuit.
Before going any further, it should be noted that a vehicle's occupant classification system is programmed to determine the weight of the front passenger. Based on the occupant's weight, the supplemental restraint system determines the airbag deployment strategy of the front passenger airbag.
In the event of a failed sensor, the occupant classification system doesn't provide input to the supplemental restraint system. When this occurs, the SRS warning lamp and passenger airbag off lamp will illuminate. Toyota informed retailers nationwide to inspect the potentially shorted OCS sensors and – if necessary – replace them with properly manufactured sensors. The faulty sensors bear part numbers 89105-0E040 and 89107-0E040 in Toyota's parts system.
Photo: Toyota
Aisin estimates that 0.2 percent of the affected vehicle population could feature cracked capacitors, meaning 1,999.8 vehicles. Affected nameplates comprise the Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Sienna Hybrid, the Lexus ES 250, ES 300h, ES 350, RX 350, and RX 450h. Model years range between 2020 and 2022, whereas build dates range from May 2020 to November 2021.
Owners will be informed of Aisin's blunder in the period between February 4, 2024 and February 18, 2024 via first-class mail. Owners can verify whether their vehicles are recalled by running the 17-character VIN on Toyota USA's or the NHTSA's website.
Of the aforementioned nameplates, the Avalon and its hybrid version are both gone. The large sedan was discontinued at the end of the 2022 model year due to worsening sales. Toyota moved a meager 19,460 units during calendar year 2021 in the US market, whereas the mid-size Camry sold 313,795 units.
The Avalon may be gone, but remember that the Lexus ES is the closest thing to the Toyota Avalon nowadays. Not only does it feature the TNGA-K platform of the Avalon, but its wheelbase is identical as well (113.0 inches or 2,870 millimeters). The ES currently starts at $43,190 sans destination charge, which is similar money to the best-equipped Avalon for the 2022 model year. More specifically, the Touring used to retail at $43,075 in December 2021.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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