2011 Toyota Tacoma

I purchased a vehicle from a car dealer "as is" with a clean title. About two months after purchase I took it to a mechanic after I got an airbag light and he told me the vehicle was missing airbags and was in a hard enough collision that it caused the airbags to deploy. This was not listed on the Carfax report and was not disclosed to me. I would have never purchased a vehicle if I knew it was missing airbags.

The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Tacoma. The contact stated that over time the horn intermittently became inoperable; however, the horn operated while in the middle of making a turn. The contact was concerned about the failure because the horn and the air bag in the steering wheel were connected by the clockspring. No warning lights were illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired because the VIN was not associated with a recall related to the failure. The local dealer confirmed that the VIN was not included in a recall related to the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 88,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING 35-40 MPH, THERE WAS A SLIGHT CLUNKING NOISE IN THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE WHILE BRAKING OR MAKING A RIGHT TURN. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE REAR LEAF SPRING FRACTURED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. ADDITIONALLY, THE CLOCKSPRING FRACTURED AND WAS REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V604000 (SUSPENSION). GAULT TOYOTA (LOCATED AT 2205 NORTH STREET, ENDICOTT, NY 13760) AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 90,500.

'TAKATA RECALL' THE STEERING WHEEL APPEARS TO HAVE A BULGE AT THE AIRBAG SEAMS. BOTH MY PERSONAL MECHANIC AND THE WORKERS AT THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP HAVE STATED THIS IS A DEFECT INVOLVING THE AIRBAG WHERE THE COVER HAS DETACHED FROM THE SENSORS OR A COIL. THE SEPARATION IS INTERNAL. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN INVOLVED IN ANY ACCIDENTS AND WAS PARKED(STATIONARY) WHEN THE BULGE OCCURRED.

MANY TOYOTAS WERE RECALLED BECAUSE OF THE AIRBAGS BUT I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY MY TRUCK WAS NOT. LAST YEAR MY HORN STARTED TO ACT UP AND SOMEONE AT THE TOYOTA REPAIR CENTER COMMENTED THAT IT MAY BE DUE TO THE AIRBAGS. JUST TO LOOK AT IT THERE IS A CHARGE OF OVER $100.00 TO REPAIR IT WOULD COST ME OVER $200.00 NOW MY HORN WORKS WHEN WHEN I PUSH THE PANIC BUTTON BUT NOT IN THE STEERING COLUMN. I THOUGHT I READ THAT THERE WERE OTHER VEHICLES IN THE SAME YEAR THAT WERE RECALLED.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 TOYOTA TACOMA. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE HORN FAILED TO WORK WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE SPIRAL CABLE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE REPAIR WOULD COST $500. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THERE WAS NO RECALL AND COULD NOT ASSIST. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 48,000. UPDATED 06/29/17*LJ *CN

HORN STOPPED WORKING AT APPROXIMATELY 48,000 MILES. AFTER TROUBLESHOOTING THE PROBLEM, I DISCOVERED THAT THE ISSUE WAS RELATED TO THE SPIRAL CABLE. ABOUT 2 MONTHS AFTER THE HORN STOPPED WORKING, THE STEERING WHEEL CONTROLLED PHONE FUNCTION BEGAN AUTO-ACTIVATING INTERMITTENTLY WITH THE WORDS "TALKING" APPEARING ON THE RADIO DISPLAY (THIS FUNCTION IS ALSO RELATED TO THE SPIRAL CABLE). I AM VERY CONCERNED THAT THE AIR BAG MAY SOON BECOME INOPERABLE IF THE AIR BAG ELECTRICAL CONTACTS ON THE SPIRAL CABLE FAIL. WHILE MY VEHICLE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN A RECALL FOR THIS ISSUE, I UNDERSTAND THAT TOYOTA DID FILE A PART 573 DEFECT INFORMATION REPORT WITH NHTSA FOR SELECTED 2009-2010 TACOMA VEHICLES. THE VEHICLE HORN IS CONSIDERED A SAFETY DEVICE, AND AS A RESULT OF THIS FAILURE, MY VEHICLE HORN BECAME INOPERABLE. MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE AIR BAG WILL NOT FUNCTION AS DESIGNED WHEN THE SPIRAL CABLE CONTACTS FOR THE AIR BAG FAIL. I WOULD EXPECT THAT THIS TYPE OF SAFETY CRITICAL DEVICE BE DESIGNED TO LAST FOR THE USEFUL SERVICE LIFE OF THE VEHICLE. FAILURE AFTER LESS THAN 6 YEARS (AND 48,000 MILES) IS MUCH SOONER THAN SHOULD BE EXPECTED FOR THIS TYPE OF VEHICLE. I WOULD APPRECIATE IF NHTSA WOULD CONSIDER THIS INFORMATION ALONG WITH OTHER RELATED INFORMATION IN YOUR POSSESSION TO DETERMINE IF THERE IS A BASIS FOR FOLLOW-UP WITH TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION TO PROVIDE A REMEDY FOR VEHICLE OWNERS THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED PREMATURE SPIRAL CABLE FAILURE THAT AFFECTS MULTIPLE VEHICLE SAFETY DEVICES. *TR