Thousands of Toyota cars urgently recalled over defect with its seats

Toyota is recalling over 36,000 examples of its Kluger SUV due to a defect with its seats.

The recall affects both petrol and hybrid models.

“The involved vehicles are equipped with a second row 60/40 split, fold down bench seat which is constructed with a seat frame containing a seat-back mid-bar,” Toyota Australia says in its recall notice.

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“Certain points on the ends of the 40 per cent side of the seat-back mid-bar may not have been manufactured with the minimum radius requirements of UN ECE R.21.

“If a crash occurs while the 60 per cent or 40 per cent seat is stowed and the other part of the bench seat is folded down, the rear occupant could come into contact with the incorrectly manufactured mid-bar.

“If such a situation occurs, there may be an increased risk of injury to the rear occupant.”

• A total of 36,789 vehicles are affected, produced between March 4, 2021 and January 19, 2024
• The original recall notice and Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) list are attached here

If you own an affected vehicle, Toyota Australia will contact you. Owners will need to take their Kluger to a Toyota dealer to have a plug fitted to the mid bar, free of charge.

This fix will take approximately half an hour to complete, however Toyota advises that depending on the dealer’s work schedule you may need to make your Kluger available for a longer time.

If you have any further questions, you should contact your preferred Toyota dealer. You can also call the Toyota Recall Campaign Helpline on 1800 987 366 between 8am and 6pm AEST, Monday to Friday.

MORE: Everything Toyota Kluger