Blame it on the spiders — Toyota is. The car manufacturer said it will recall 870,000 vehicles to check whether the arachnids sneaked in and constructed webs that ultimately can block the air-conditioning units from properly draining and cause a short circuit in the airbags.
The water has no place to go but to drip into the airbag control module — and that causes a short circuit, CNN reported. Drivers would see the airbag warning light up, and in worst-case scenarios, the bag might actually deploy. The mischief-making spiders could also lead to a loss of power-steering, Toyota said, in the report.
The company reported three cases of undue airbag deployment and 35 instances of warning lights coming on in error, CNN reported. And the common denominator among the vehicles: The presence of spider webs.
Still, Toyota spokeswoman Cindy Knight said the company couldn’t say with 100 percent accuracy that spiders were to blame for the problem. But Toyota is recalling model year 2012 and 2013 Camrys, Venzas and Avalons, along with the hybrid versions of these cars.
Spider issues with vehicles aren’t unheard of. In 2011, Mazda recalled 52,000 of its Mazda6 sedans after discovering webs constructed inside a vent line were causing problems with the gasoline tank.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.