Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (NYSE: TM, 7203 T) is recalling more than 15,000 2022-2024 model-year Lexus LX vehicles. The front passenger seat may have insufficient clearance between the seat frame and the stopper that can cause the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor to incorrectly detect the occupant. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, “Occupant Crash Protection.”*
The front passenger seat in the subject vehicles is secured to a seat frame, which is equipped with a stopper and has an Occupant Classification System (OCS) that provides input to the Supplemental Restraint System to determine the deployment strategy of the front passenger airbag system, depending on the occupant load. Due to a manufacturing error during a specific production period at a certain supplier’s plant [Toyota Boshoku Corporation – AutoCrat], some vehicles may have an insufficient clearance between the seat frame and the stopper when taking into account normal production variation. If there is insufficient clearance, interference can occur between the seat frame and the stopper if the seat height is adjusted to certain positions, depending on the occupant load applied,” Toyota said in the required safety defect recall filing (49 CFR § 573) made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) this morning.
“This interference can cause an OCS sensor to incorrectly measure the occupant load and the subject vehicles may not meet the requirements of FMVSS No. 208, paragraphs S5.1.1(b)(2), and S5.1.2(b). If an OCS sensor does not measure the occupant load correctly, the front passenger airbag system may not function as designed in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to an occupant in the front passenger seat,” Toyota said.
Chronology
- In July 2024, Toyota identified that a jig used by a seat frame supplier was incorrectly positioned during their production process because Toyota found one vehicle with the “Airbag OFF” indicator illuminated with the passenger seat occupied during the final 100% vehicle inspection at the assembly plant and interference was found between the seat frame and the stopper. Toyota began an investigation to understand if the potential effects of the incorrect jig position.
- From November 2024 to June 2025, Toyota identified, based on different potential occupant loads, that if the clearance is below 3.8 mm, there is a potential for the seat frame produced (using the incorrectly positioned jig) to contact the stopper.
- From July 2025 to March 2026, Toyota began a parts recovery activity to determine the amount of clearance between the seat frame and the stopper that could exist in the suspect field population. Toyota analyzed the recovered parts and identified certain seat frame assemblies with a clearance below 3.8 mm.
- In March 2026, Toyota conducted vehicle testing using different clearance amounts below 3.8 mm that were observed in the field. Toyota found that a seat frame with the lowest clearance observed in the field not only contacted the stopper, but also caused the OCS to misclassify the occupant based on the measured weight.
- On March 18, 2026, Toyota determined that it is possible for an inaccurate reading from OCS sensors to cause the front passenger airbag system to not function as designed in the event of a crash. Thus, the involved vehicles may not meet the requirements of FMVSS No.208, paragraphs S5.1.1(b)(2), and S5.1.2(b).
*AutoInformed on
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Lexus 2022-24 Model-Year Front Passenger Airbag Recall
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (NYSE: TM, 7203 T) is recalling more than 15,000 2022-2024 model-year Lexus LX vehicles. The front passenger seat may have insufficient clearance between the seat frame and the stopper that can cause the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor to incorrectly detect the occupant. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, “Occupant Crash Protection.”*
The front passenger seat in the subject vehicles is secured to a seat frame, which is equipped with a stopper and has an Occupant Classification System (OCS) that provides input to the Supplemental Restraint System to determine the deployment strategy of the front passenger airbag system, depending on the occupant load. Due to a manufacturing error during a specific production period at a certain supplier’s plant [Toyota Boshoku Corporation – AutoCrat], some vehicles may have an insufficient clearance between the seat frame and the stopper when taking into account normal production variation. If there is insufficient clearance, interference can occur between the seat frame and the stopper if the seat height is adjusted to certain positions, depending on the occupant load applied,” Toyota said in the required safety defect recall filing (49 CFR § 573) made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) this morning.
“This interference can cause an OCS sensor to incorrectly measure the occupant load and the subject vehicles may not meet the requirements of FMVSS No. 208, paragraphs S5.1.1(b)(2), and S5.1.2(b). If an OCS sensor does not measure the occupant load correctly, the front passenger airbag system may not function as designed in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to an occupant in the front passenger seat,” Toyota said.
Chronology
*AutoInformed on
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.