Toyota, Honda Recall Millions of Vehicles

Toyota and Honda, two of the biggest automakers in Japan, are recalling millions of cars due to safety issues in their respective models.

According to a statement released by Toyota, the company is ordering a recall of 3.4 million cars due to potentially defective equipment that could hurt passengers in a crash. A total of 2.9 million of these cars are in the United States.

Toyota said the recall was prompted because the affected vehicles were thought to have defective electronic control units (ECU), which are supposed to aid in passenger protection in the event of a crash.

The purpose of the ECU is to communicate with the vehicle’s sensors and trigger the airbags and seatbelt pretensioners during a collision to lower the risk of injury.

Toyota said the ECU in the recalled cars might not work due to noises that could interfere with its connectivity, which could “lead to incomplete or non-deployment of airbags and/or seatbelt pretensioners.”

Models affected by the Toyota recall that covers North America, Central America, and South America include the Corolla, Corolla Matrix, Avalon, and Avalon HV with build dates between 2010 and 2019.

Toyota is set to notify affected customers in the United States by mid-March. They are advised to get their cars checked at the nearest Toyota dealership where they will be offered a new noise filter if necessary.

In a separate announcement, Honda said it is also recalling 2.7 million cars, Acuras in particular, with build dates between 1996 and 2003. The cars are believed to have been equipped with problematic Takata airbag inflators without the “appropriate seals” for proper deployment.

Of these vehicles, 2.4 million are in the United States while 300,000 are in Canada.

Honda, however, clarified that the recall is not related to the massive Takata recall that has hounded automakers for years.