Investigations
Joyson Passenger Side Air Bag Cushion
NHTSA EQ EQ21001 — closed, opened 2021-04-07 and involving the TOYOTA TOYOTA.
NHTSA investigation EQ21001 is a EQ opened on 2021-04-07 and currently closed. The subject of record is TOYOTA TOYOTA, which places this file inside the Office of Defects Investigation queue for TOYOTA. Latest activity on this investigation was logged on 2021-12-01 — NHTSA updates that field whenever an Information Request goes out, a supplement is filed, or a status change is recorded in the public docket.
Investigators summarized the matter as follows: "In a Part 573 Report dated July 14, 2019, Mercedes Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) notified NHTSA of a safety-related defect in certain 2020 GLE350 4Matic and GLE450 4Matic vehicles. This filing was assigned Recall No. 19V-458. M..." 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
In a Part 573 Report dated July 14, 2019, Mercedes Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) notified NHTSA of a safety-related defect in certain 2020 GLE350 4Matic and GLE450 4Matic vehicles. This filing was assigned Recall No. 19V-458. MBUSA stated that these vehicles may have received Joyson Safety Systems (Joyson) passenger air bag assemblies that may cause a delayed or incomplete deployment of the air bag during a crash. On August 28, 2019, Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing (Toyota) notified NHTSA of a safety-related defect in certain 2003-2008 Corolla, 2005-2008 Corolla Matrix, and 2005-2008 Pontiac Vibe vehicles. This filing was assigned Recall No. 19V-627. Toyota stated that these vehicles may have received replacement Joyson Safety Systems (Joyson) air bag assemblies under a previous recall, and the replacement air bags may not unfold as designed during a crash. On January 23, 2020, General Motors, LLC (GM) notified NHTSA of a defect in certain 2003-2004 Pontiac Vibe vehicles. The GM filing was assigned Recall No. 20V-039. On March 4, 2021, Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) notified NHTSA of a defect in certain 2006-2008 Infiniti FX35 and FX45 vehicles. Nissan's filing was assigned Recall No. 21V-139. In both GM's and Nissan's recalls, affected vehicles were repaired under previous recalls, and the replacement air bags may not unfold as designed during a crash. The purpose of this EQ was to write to Joyson and other companies that might have purchased this equipment from Joyson, notify them of this defect in any vehicles they manufactured, and to ensure thorough safety recalls are conducted where appropriate. On April 8, 2021, NHTSA's Recall Management Division (RMD) notified Joyson of the EQ and issued an Information Request (IR) letter to Joyson. Responses from Joyson, dated between April 19, 2021 to July 21, 2021, are summarized as follows: Related to MBUSA 19V-458, MBUSA "inadvertently installed 11 prototype airbag modules into vehicles for the stream of commer
About This Investigation Type
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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.