Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (front, side and curtain air bags, sensors and inflators).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2006 Toyota RAV4 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
"Takata recall", I had an accident in which my vehicle front end collided with a tree. My air bag did not deploy, and upper seat belt did not lock causing injury to my face. I was on a city street in motion. I was taken to hospital via ambulance.
About 8/13/15, my airbag light came on. On 8/20/15, I had a dealer diagnose the problem. They told me that the spiral cable is not working and my airbag will most likely not deploy if I am in an accident. When I went online to see what the spiral cable is many recall notices for my make and model of car began to show up in the search engine. The way that the service person described the problem to me is exactly what is documented in the recall notices, but my car is not covered by the recall. I have talked with both the dealer and a have gotten to a supervisor at Toyota, but am still waiting to hear back whether they are willing to do anything. I have also noticed in many chat rooms that many other RAV4 owners have had the problem outside of the recall. When I look at documents on the NHTSA website, there is a document from Toyota called part 573, defect information report. …
My RAV4--VIN: [redacted]--has a problem with the driver side airbag connector. When the warning light is on, it deactivates all of the airbags. It has become permanently on in recent days. It has become a safety hazard. When I start my vehicle and the automatic check up, the airbag light keeps lighting up. The airbag light on the dashboard would be on when stationary or in motion. It will keep on for the duration of the drive. The error code found by my independent mechanic is b1821. But my mechanic can not fix this problem. Even replacing the front driver seat May not fix the problem, according to my mechanics. It was a design problem with the connector. I have asked Toyota to fix this for free. Toyota refused.
How can I get Toyota to pay for the full amount of the spiral cable repair I had to make in November 2013, just prior to the recall? This was an expensive repair, and they have refused to fully reimburse the repair cost needed so I could drive a safe vehicle. I think they are refusing to do it because I didn't use the dealership--although I sent them the certified garage statement they requested as well as submitting the repair receipt, etc. I didn't use the dealership because they wanted much more to repair it and had a 4 week wait to get the parts and repair scheduled.
Tl contact owns a 2006 Toyota RAV4. While driving 45 MPH, the driver struck a concrete post and none of the air bags deployed. The weather was rainy, windy, and very cold. The driver suffered congestive heart failure and died. The vehicle has been repaired, but the contact does not want to drive the vehicle and does not believe that it is safe to drive. The dealer stated that the vehicle has major failures and should not be driven. A police report was filed. The contact has pictures. The powertrain was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 41,000.
On 7/2 afternoon around 4:20, after picking up parcel from post office downtown high point, nc with wife, while driving back home , speed about 25 MPH, my sided airbag deployed, no crash or accident, no warning light was on beforehand, pulled to vann yoke Toyota at high point and they said they will open up a case to investigate for such rare incident and since Toyota factory tech off for the holiday, not until coming Monday they will look at this. I still having tingling feeling at left side of my body.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Toyota RAV4. When the vehicle was started, the driver side air bag warning indicator illuminated. The indicator remained illuminated for a week or two before it dimmed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but the failure could not be duplicated. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 113,800.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Toyota RAV4. After the vehicle was started, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was serviced under NHTSA campaign number: 14V168000 (air bags); however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 134,313.
While driving the car the SRS warning light illuminated indicating that the air bags had been deactivated.pulled off of road immediately and turned the engine off.after waiting aprx. 5 min. Proceeded to restart engine and light went out.as I returned to the road after 2 min. The light illuminated again and has remained on.
I was heading through an intersection and struck an oncoming vehicle, which failed to yield to me. I struck him in the front passenger side section of a Ford ranger. The vehicle has not been repaired yet but is waiting for the other insurance company.
Related recalls
Air bags › Frontal › Driver side › Inflator module
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006-2008 RAV4, 2006-2010 Yaris, 2008-2010 Highlander, and 2009-2010 Tacoma, Corolla, Corolla Matrix and General Motors Pontiac Vibe vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the steering column assembly contains electrical connections to the driver's airbag module housed in a spiral cable…
Remedy: Toyota will notify the Toyota vehicle owners, and General Motors will notify the Pontiac Vibe owners. Toyota sent owners an interim notification letter in May 2014 to advise owners of the recall.
Airbag complaints in other RAV4 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are airbag problems on the 2006 Toyota RAV4?
NHTSA has 57 complaints about the air bags of the 2006 Toyota RAV4, 8% of the model year's 705 complaints. The component named most often is frontal (6 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2006 Toyota RAV4 airbag problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 14V-168 (inflator module, Apr 9, 2014). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2006 Toyota RAV4 airbag problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 90,000 miles, and 2% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 5 crashes, 0 fires and 3 injuries and 1 death to air bags problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.