2008 Toyota Tacoma

Issue: 
This recall is for certain block heater kits installed on certain vehicles or sold as accessories at Toyota or Lexus dealerships. 

On certain vehicles, the engine block heater cable may not have enough heat protection and could be damaged by high temperatures. If this happens, the cable could short circuit while plugged in, and cause the wiring to overheat or melt. 

Note: This recall only affects the following block heater/cord part numbers: 

C014003034                         PK5A408J09                         PU14000904 
C014003151                         PK5A408J13                         PU14000905 
C014000885                         PK5A489J11                         PU14000907 
C014000888                         PK5A489J22                         PU14000909 
C014000907                         PK5A410H00                        PU14000911 
C014100904                         PU14000900                         PU14000913 
C014100907                         PU14000901                         PU14003571 
C014100911                         PU14000902                         PK5A489J14 
PK5A408J05                        PU14000903 

Safety Risk: 
Engine block heater wiring that overheats or melts could create the risk of a fire. 

Corrective Actions: 
Toyota recommends that you should stop using the engine block heater immediately. Toyota will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealer to disable the engine block heater. For some vehicles, the corrective actions for this recall are under development. For others, a new engine block heater cannot be installed, and the owner will receive a refund of the purchase price of the engine block heater.

On certain vehicles, the leaf springs in the rear suspension could fracture due to stress and corrosion.  If this were to occur, the broken leaf could move out of position and contact surrounding components, including the fuel tank.  If the broken leaf were to contact the fuel tank repeatedly, it could puncture the fuel tank.  This could result in a fuel leak which, in the presence of an ignition source, could result in a fire causing injury and/or property damage.  Correction: Dealers will replace the rear leaf spring assemblies with improved ones.

On certain vehicles equipped with an optional tonneau cover where the front-most panel can be opened with the vehicle ignition key, the lock cylinder could bind. If the lock cylinder were to bind in the open position, the panel may not remain closed and the tonneau cover assembly could separate from the vehicle while it is being driven. This could potentially result in property damage and pose a hazard to other road users. Correction: Dealers will affect repairs when service parts become available. In the interim, the panel release mechanism will be disabled or the tonneau cover removed, at the owner's choice.

On vehicles with the Access Cab body configuration, fasteners within the driver and passenger front seat belt assemblies could loosen if the access doors are repeatedly and forcefully closed over an extended period of time. Should the fasteners loosen completely, the seat belt may not properly restrain the occupant, which could increase the risk of injury in a crash or sudden stop. Correction: Dealers will replace the fasteners or the seat belt assemblies as necessary.

On certain vehicles, electrical circuitry in the steering wheel assembly may become damaged.  As a result, the driver's airbag may not function as intended, causing the instrument panel airbag warning lamp to illuminate.  Failure of the driver's airbag to deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted) could increase the risk of personal injury to the seat occupant.  Correction: Dealers will replace the spiral cable assembly.