Toyota has issued a safety recall that applies to approximately 145,000 units of the Grand Highlander and the Lexus TX. The SUVs included in the campaign were built with a driver-side curtain airbag that might not deploy in an accident, which increases the risk of an injury.
While the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) hasn’t released details about the campaign, the Japanese company notes that the recall applies to Grand Highlander and TX models built during the 2024 model year. Both models were launched for 2024, so most of the examples built so far are included in the campaign. Toyota doesn’t mention the standard Highlander, which went on sale for 2019.
Toyota explained that the driver-side curtain airbag “may not deploy as intended during certain crashes” if the driver’s window is open. This increases the risk of an injury for the driver, and it also makes the recalled Grand Highlander and TX models non-compliant with federal safety regulations. Details about why the airbag might not deploy, such as which part is to blame for the problem, haven’t been released yet.
Engineers are currently developing a remedy for the problem, and owners of affected SUVs will be notified by mail by the middle of August 2024. In the meantime, Toyota and Lexus have both issued a stop-sale order for the 2024 Grand Highlander and the 2024 TX, according to industry trade journal Automotive News (subscription required). Production of both models has been stopped until the brand fixes the issue.
The NHTSA has published one customer complaint about a non-deploying airbag. In May 2024, a motorist from Georgia claimed that “the side [airbags] did not deploy” after a Grand Highlander was T-boned by another vehicle. There are no airbag-related complaints linked to the TX.
