• January 17, 2020Air bags

  Air Bags/Seat Belt Pretensioners may not Deploy

  NHTSA campaign 20V-024 · 2,891,976 vehicles potentially affected · Air bags

  The defect: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2011-2019 Corolla, 2011-2013 Matrix, 2012-2018 Avalon, and 2013-2018 Avalon Hybrid vehicles. During certain crashes, the air bag electronic control unit (ECU) may malfunction, possibly disabling the deployment of the air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners.

  The risk: In the event of a crash, air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners that do not deploy as intended may increase the risk of injury.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ECU and install a noise filter between the air bag control module and its wire harness, as necessary, free of charge. Owners were notified of the safety risk beginning March 2, 2020. A second letter notifying owners of the remedy repair will be mailed between March 16, 2020 and June 27, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 20TB03, 20TA03 and 20TA05.

• August 29, 2018Air bags

  Inner Seat Belt Buckle Magnet Missing

  NHTSA campaign 18V-569 · 19,354 vehicles potentially affected · Air bags

  The defect: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2012 Toyota Avalon vehicles. During a vehicle repair, the seat belt inner buckles may have been replaced with parts that may incorrectly tell the air bag management system that the seat belt is always buckled.

  The risk: If the seat belt is falsely interpreted as being buckled, in the event of a crash, the air bags may not deploy appropriately, increasing the risk of injury.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the seat belt assembly to verify that it is properly detecting being unbuckled, replacing the inner seat belt assembly as necessary, free of charge. The recall began September 19, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's number for this recall is J0S.

• January 28, 2015Electrical system

  Sub-Woofer Electrical Short

  NHTSA campaign 15V-047 · 51,495 vehicles potentially affected · Electrical system

  The defect: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Toyota Avalon vehicles manufactured February 9, 2010, to October 22, 2012. In the affected vehicles, the sub-woofer speaker located in the trunk may experience an intermittent electrical short which may cause damage to the integrated circuit (IC) in the audio amplifier. In some cases, the damaged IC may allow a constant electrical current flow to the sub-woofer.

  The risk: A constant electrical current flow may cause the sub-woofer to overheat, increasing the risk of fire.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the audio system amplifier and install a protective cover around the sub-woofer, free of charge. The recall began on July 1,2015. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371.

• October 17, 2013Air bags

  Clogged A/C Drain may cause Air Bags to Deploy

  NHTSA campaign 13V-442 · 802,769 vehicles potentially affected · Air bags

  The defect: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 Avalon, Avalon HV, Venza, Camry, and Camry HV vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the drain hose for the air conditioning condenser may become clogged causing water to accumulate at the bottom of the air conditioning condenser unit housing. The accumulated water may then leak through a seam in the housing onto the air bag control module potentially resulting in a short circuit of the module.

  The risk: A short circuit may cause the air bags to become disabled or inadvertently deploy. An inadvertent airbag deployment can increase the risk of injury or the possibility of a crash. An inoperative airbag can increase the risk of injury in a severe crash. The power steering assist could also become inoperable resulting in increased steering effort and can increase the risk of a crash at low speeds.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will seal the air conditioning condenser unit housing and install a protective cover on the airbag control module, free of charge. The recall began on February 5, 2014. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

Check by VIN

A campaign rarely covers every Avalon built in 2012. Enter your 17-character VIN to find the recall campaigns filed for your make, model and model year. The VIN is on the driver’s side of the dashboard (visible through the windshield), on the door-jamb label, and on your registration and insurance documents.

Vehicle identification number Find my recalls

Is a recall still open on your vehicle? Only NHTSA’s official VIN check can say whether a campaign applies to your exact vehicle and whether the repair has already been done.

Copy VIN and open NHTSA.gov

Your VIN is decoded with NHTSA’s public vPIC service to identify the make, model and year. It is not stored and is not added to any page address.

Other Toyota Avalon model years

• 2019 4
• 2018 2
• 2017 2
• 2016 3
• 2015 2
• 2014 4
• 2013 4
• 2011 1
• 2010 7
• 2009 7
• 2008 6
• 2007 6
• 2006 7
• 2005 7
• 2004 3
• 2003 2
• 2002 1
• 2001 2
• 2000 2

Common questions

Does the 2012 Toyota Avalon have any recalls?

Yes. NHTSA lists 4 campaigns for the 2012 Toyota Avalon: 20V-024 (Air Bags/Seat Belt Pretensioners may not Deploy); 18V-569 (Inner Seat Belt Buckle Magnet Missing); 15V-047 (Sub-Woofer Electrical Short); 13V-442 (Clogged A/C Drain may cause Air Bags to Deploy).

How do I know if my 2012 Toyota Avalon has an open recall?

Enter your VIN in NHTSA’s recall lookup. Most campaigns cover only part of a model year’s production, and the lookup also shows whether the repair has already been done on your vehicle.

Will the dealer charge to fix the 2012 Toyota Avalon?

No. Safety recall repairs are done free of charge by Toyota dealers. Quote the NHTSA campaign number when you book.