Sealbelt retractors are cited as the cause for a massive recall by Toyota, affecting all FJ Cruisers between the dates of 2007 and 2013.
According to Toyota US, the ‘suicide door’ setup that the FJ Cruiser has can lead to problems as the seatbelt retractor is mounted on the rear door. The following quote is taken from that site:
“Due to insufficient strength of the access door panel, cracks may develop in the panel if the access door is repeatedly and forcefully closed over an extended period of time. If cracks occur in the panel around the lower retractor anchor, the seat belt retractor could become detached, which could increase the risk of injury to an occupant in the event of a crash.”
This fault will affect the 5,000 FJ Cruisers sold in Australia since the 2011 launch. Owners will be receiving letters in the mail soon for directions on rectifying the problem.
This announcement has blighted recent news that the FJ cruiser was getting some new goodies as standard fitment. The retro-styled FJ has received an upgrade in fuel capacity with a new 82-litre sub tank being thrown on top of the existing 72-litre main tank.
If fuel consumption does sit at the posted combined cycle of 11.4 litres/100km, this should see you getting almost 1,400 kays before having to refuel the 159 litre capacity. Our research indicated that real-world consumption is more around the 13.5 litres/100km mark, which will give a range of around 1,170km. In terms of range, over 1,000 klicks is nothing to sniff at in our books.
Toyota has also added some offroad electrickery to the FJ through a system called CRAWL. It’s a ‘feet off’ system that allows the car to control braking and throttle in a variety of offroad situations.
