Investigations
Frontal Air Bag Non-deployment
NHTSA Defect Petition DP11001 — closed, opened 2011-04-07 and involving the TOYOTA COROLLA.
NHTSA investigation DP11001 is a Defect Petition opened on 2011-04-07 and currently closed. The subject of record is TOYOTA COROLLA, which places this file inside the Office of Defects Investigation queue for TOYOTA. Latest activity on this investigation was logged on 2011-08-19 — NHTSA updates that field whenever an Information Request goes out, a supplement is filed, or a status change is recorded in the public docket.
A Defect Petition like DP11001 starts when a person or group formally asks NHTSA to investigate a specific alleged defect. Petitioners submit evidence, NHTSA reviews it within 120 days, and either grants the petition (opening a PE) or denies it with a written explanation in the Federal Register.
Investigators summarized the matter as follows: "The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a defect petition requesting that it open an investigation of model year (MY) 2008 Toyota Corolla vehicles for the failure of the frontal air bags to deploy during an al..." Investigations are the early-warning layer of the federal auto-safety system, sitting upstream of formal recalls and defect orders. Whether this one closes without action or escalates into an Engineering Analysis, the full history stays in the ODI archive so researchers, litigators, and buyers can pull the paper trail at any time. Related TOYOTA files, listed below, give context on whether this is an isolated concern or part of a broader pattern across the brand.
Investigation Summary
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a defect petition requesting that it open an investigation of model year (MY) 2008 Toyota Corolla vehicles for the failure of the frontal air bags to deploy during an alleged serious crash. The petitioner alleges that the frontal air bags in their MY 2008 Corolla failed to deploy during a 55-mph frontal impact with a large animal (a deer). The petitioner also filed a complaint with the agency (see ODI 10327470 for further details of the incident and the petition submitted to the agency). ODI has reviewed the petition, assessed consumer complaints on the MY 2008 Toyota Corolla and similar vehicles, analyzed statistics derived from NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) and its National Automotive Sampling System (NASS), and evaluated crash tests of the subject vehicles. Based on its review, ODI does not believe that a safety-related defect trend currently exists for air bag non-deployment in the subject vehicles. Therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize NHTSA's limited resources to accomplish the agency's safety mission, the petition is denied. However, the agency will continue to monitor this event and will take further action if warranted by changing future circumstances. For more information, see the Federal Register notice in the DP11-001 file (www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/defects).
About This Investigation Type
A Defect Petition (DP) is initiated when an individual or organization formally petitions NHTSA to investigate a potential safety defect. NHTSA reviews the petition and decides whether to open an investigation.
Other TOYOTA Investigations
Brake Actuator Valve Wear
Electrical problems / No-start
Joyson Passenger Side Air Bag Cushion
Battery Hold Down Bracket Thermal Events
Brake Actuator Valve Wear
Data from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Cross-references: NHTSA recall campaign API and NHTSA FARS where fatality records overlap. PlainCars does not rate or recommend vehicles. Learn more.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.