Toyota recently announced an emergency recall of the fifth-generation Prius. Due to insufficient waterproof performance of the rear door switch, the door may open automatically while driving. A total of 211,000 Prius vehicles have been recalled this time. In order to address this safety concern, Toyota has also confirmed three incidents of door automatic opening failures. Fortunately, these incidents did not cause any accidents.
According to reports from Bloomberg Law, the recall targets fifth-generation Prius manufactured between November 2022 and April 2024. The recall scope covers Japan, North America, Europe and Asia, with a total of 211,000 vehicles recalled, of which 135,000 vehicles were recalled in Japan. Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism stated that the insufficient waterproof performance of the rear door switch may cause internal parts to short-circuit during car washes or when exposed to large amounts of moisture. In the worst case scenario, the rear seat door may suddenly open while the vehicle is in motion, posing a great threat to the safety of the passengers.
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In order to solve this problem, Toyota has started to take temporary measures for affected vehicles at its sales points in Japan on the 17th of April to ensure that the doors can only be opened manually. Toyota said that once preparations are completed, it will replace parts for the affected vehicles free of charge to ensure the driving safety.
In addition, Toyota has received three reports of Prius doors opening while driving at low speeds. Fortunately, no accidents occurred and no one was injured. The first production in the Tsutsumi Plant in Aichi Prefecture, which produces Prius and Corolla in Japan, has been suspended since April 4 and was not expected to restart until the 18th.