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2012 Scion Iq Recalls & Complaints

1

open safety recall on record

Serious

23 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.87 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

Serious12V528000

Air Bags

If the cable for the OCS becomes damaged, the front passenger airbags may not deploy or they may deploy inappropriately for the passenger's size and position.

Remedy & full details

Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will install a protective cover on the OCS weight sensor cable. The recall began on December 20, 2013. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

Toyota is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 Scion IQ vehicles manufactured July 31, 2011, through October 12, 2012. The cable for the Occupant Classification System (OCS) may become damaged when sliding the passenger seat forward or backward.

Complaint volume

23 this model-year 8 median, same year

Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.

What owners reported happened

4Crashes
0Fires
3Injuries
0Deaths

Across 23 complaints. Severity Index 0.87.

Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.

What owners report most

Structure · Body6 · 26%Air Bags4 · 17%Engine4 · 17%Unknown Or Other3 · 13%Vehicle Speed Control2 · 9%Steering1 · 4%Power Train1 · 4%Exterior Lighting1 · 4%
  1. Structure:Body — 6 reports
  2. Air Bags — 4 reports
  3. Engine — 4 reports
  4. Unknown Or Other — 3 reports
  5. Vehicle Speed Control — 2 reports
  6. Steering — 1 reports
  7. Power Train — 1 reports
  8. Exterior Lighting — 1 reports
  9. Seat Belts — 1 reports

What to do

  1. Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
  2. Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
  3. Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.

Other model years

2012 · 2013 (1) · 2014

Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.

Questions

Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?

Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.

Do I pay for recall repairs?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.

Why are there complaints but no recalls?

Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.