The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced the recalls of two different vehicles for the same reason. Toyota Motor North America, Inc. and Subaru of America, Inc. are each recalling over 1,000 Scion FR-S and Subaru BRZ vehicles, respectively, as a result of unclear information in the owner’s manual regarding the operation of the front passenger occupant supplemental restraint system (e.g., airbag).; and other shortcomings in the manual. As the result of these issues, according to the NHTSA, the Scion and Subaru vehicles are in violation of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 208, “Occupant Crash Protection.”
If a user follows the misinformation in the owner’s manual, there may be an increased risk of injury to the front passenger seat occupant in the event of certain crash conditions. The recalled vehicles include:
- Scion FR-S manufactured from March 22, 2012 through May 14, 2012; and
- Subaru BRZ manufactured from November 25, 2011 through May 25, 2012.
Subaru will notify owners and mail a corrected owner’s manual at no-cost, while Toyota will notify owners and mail corrected inserts for the owner’s manual, also at no-cost. This safety recall is expected to start in June 2012. For additional information, owners may call Subaru at (800) 782-2783, or Toyota at (866) 707-2466.
At Blume Forte, our NJ auto product liability lawyers are committed to protecting the rights of our clients with meritorious injury claims. To find out whether you may potentially be able to bring a civil action against an auto manufacturer, contact us for a no-cost consultation at 973-845-4421.