The defect
ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A FRONT PASSENGER POWER SEAT, WHEN INSTALLING CERTAIN REAR-FACING INFANT CHILD SEAT BASES ONTO THE SEAT WITH AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH SEATBELT TENSION, IT MAY BE POSSIBLE TO UNSEAT A COMPONENT CALLED THE BUCKLE STATUS SWITCH FROM THE SEAT BELT BUCKLE.
The risk
IF THE SWITCH BECOMES UNSEATED, THE FRONT PASSENGER OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM MAY MISTAKE THE REAR-FACING CHILD RESTRAINT FOR AN UNBELTED ADULT OCCUPANT, AND MAY NOT SUPPRESS THE DEPLOYMENT OF THE FRONT PASSENGER AIRBAG.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FRONT PASSENGER SEATBELT BUCKLE STATUS SWITCH. THIS SAFETY IMPROVEMENT CAMPAIGN (SSC 40M) BEGAN ON DECEMBER 20, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331 OR LEXUS AT 1-800-255-3987..
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by OVSC
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Lexus ES 330 | 2004 |
| Lexus ES330 | 2005 |
| Toyota Camry | 2004, 2005 |
Components: SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lexus ES 330 | 2004 | 153 | 1 |
| Lexus ES330 | 2005 | 141 | 2 |
| Toyota Camry | 2004 | 638 | 3 |
| Toyota Camry | 2005 | 721 | 5 |
Other seat belts recalls in 2004
36 of the 601 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2004 concerned the seat belts; TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC. filed 95 campaigns in all.
| 04V608000 18 Dec 2004 | WINNEBAGO INDUSTRIES, INC. |
| 04V592000 15 Dec 2004 | VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC |
| 04V593000 15 Dec 2004 | PORSCHE CARS NORTH AMERICA, INC. |
| 04V582000 10 Dec 2004 | MAZDA NORTH AMERICAN OPERATIONS |
| 04V550000 18 Nov 2004 | HONDA (AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO.) |
| 04V532000 2 Nov 2004 | DAIMLERCHRYSLER CORPORATION |
| 04V407000 17 Aug 2004 | GENERAL MOTORS CORP. |
| 04V403000 17 Aug 2004 | NEWMAR CORPORATION |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2004