TOYOTA COROLLA HATCHBACK 2020 (in English) Owner's Guide
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For safety and security
Airbag sensor assembly
Your vehicle is equipped with ADVANCED AIRBAGS designed 
based on the US motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS208). The 
airbag sensor assembly (ECU) cont rols airbag deployment based on 
information obtained from the sensors etc. shown in the system 
components diagram above. This in formation includes crash sever-
ity and occupant information. As the airbags deploy, a chemical  
reaction in the inflators quickly  fills the airbags with non-toxic gas to 
help restrain the motion of the occupants.
■If the SRS airbags deploy 
(inflate)
●Slight abrasions,  burns, bruising 
etc., may be sustained from SRS 
airbags, due to the extremely high 
speed deployment (inflation) by 
hot gases.
●A loud noise and white powder will 
be emitted.
●Parts of the airbag module (steer-
ing wheel hub, airbag cover and 
inflator) as well as the front seats, 
parts of the front  and rear pillars, 
and roof side rails, may be hot for 
several minutes. T he airbag itself 
may also be hot.
●The windshield may crack.
●The interior lights will turn on auto-
matically. ( P.395)
●The emergency flashers will be 
turned on automatically. ( P.460)
●For Safety Connect subscribers, if 
any of the followin g situations 
occur, the system is designed to 
send an emergency call to the 
response center, notifying them of 
the vehicle’s location (without 
needing to push the “SOS” button) 
and an agent will attempt to speak 
with the occupants to ascertain 
the level of emergency and assis-
tance required. If the occupants 
are unable to communicate, the 
agent automatically  treats the call 
as an emergency and helps to dis-
patch the necessary emergency 
services. ( P.58) • An SRS airbag is deployed.
• A seat belt pretensioner is acti-
vated.
• The vehicle is involved in a severe  rear-end collision.
■SRS airbag deployment condi-
tions (SRS front airbags)
●The SRS front airbags will deploy 
in the event of an impact that 
exceeds the set  threshold level 
(the level of forc e corresponding 
to an approximately 12 - 18 mph 
[20 - 30 km/h] frontal collision with 
a fixed wall that does not move or 
deform).
However, this threshold velocity will 
be considerably higher in the follow-
ing situations:
• If the vehicle strikes an object,  such as a parked vehicle or sign 
pole, which can move or deform 
on impact
• If the vehicle is involved in an 
underride collision, such as a colli-
sion in which the front of the vehi-
cle “underrides”, or goes under, 
the bed of a truck
●Depending on the type of collision, 
it is possible that only the seat belt 
pretensioners will activate.
●The SRS front airbags for the front 
passenger will not activate if there 
is no passenger sitting in the front 
passenger seat. However, the 
SRS front airbags for the front 
passenger may deploy if luggage 
is put in the seat, even if the seat 
is unoccupied. 
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●The SRS seat cushion airbag on 
the front passenger seat will not 
operate if the occupant is not 
wearing a seat belt.
■SRS airbag deployment condi-
tions (SRS side and curtain 
shield airbags)
●The SRS side and curtain shield 
airbags will deploy i n the event of 
an impact that exceeds the set 
threshold level (the level of force 
corresponding to the impact force 
produced by an approximately 
3300 lb. [1500 kg] vehicle colliding 
with the vehicle cabin from a 
direction perpendicular to the 
vehicle orientation at an approxi-
mate speed of 12 - 18 mph [20 - 
30 km/h]).
●Both SRS curtain shield airbags 
may deploy in the event of a 
severe side collision.
●Both SRS curtain shield airbags 
will deploy in the  event of vehicle 
rollover.
●Both SRS curtain shield airbags 
may also deploy in the event of a 
severe frontal collision.
■Conditions under which the 
SRS airbags may deploy 
(inflate), other t han a collision
The SRS front airbags and SRS 
side and curtain shield airbags may 
also deploy if a serious impact 
occurs to the underside of your vehi-
cle. Some examples are shown in 
the illustration.
●Hitting a curb, edge of pavement 
or hard surface
●Falling into or jumping over a deep 
hole
●Landing hard or falling The SRS curtain shield airbags may 
also deploy under the situations 
shown in the illustration.
●The angle of vehicle tip-up is mar-
ginal.
●The vehicle skids and hits a curb 
stone.
■Types of collisions that may not 
deploy the SRS airbags (SRS 
front airbags)
The SRS front airbags do not gener-
ally inflate if the vehicle is involved 
in a side or r ear collision,  if it rolls 
over, or if it is involved in a 
low-speed frontal  collision. But, 
whenever a collis ion of any type 
causes sufficient forward decelera-
tion of the vehicle, deployment of 
the SRS front airbags may occur.
●Collision from the side
●Collision from the rear
●Vehicle rollover 
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For safety and security
■Types of collisions that may not 
deploy the SRS  airbags (SRS 
side and curtain shield airbags)
The SRS side and curtain shield air-
bags may not activate if the vehicle 
is subjected to a c ollision from the 
side at certain angl es, or a collision 
to the side of the vehicle body other 
than the passenger compartment.
●Collision from the s ide to the vehi-
cle body other than the passenger 
compartment
●Collision from the s ide at an angle
The SRS curtain shield airbags do 
not generally inflate if the vehicle is 
involved in a rear  collision, if it 
pitches end over end, or if it is 
involved in a low-speed side or 
low-speed fron tal collision.
●Collision from the rear
●Pitching end over end
■When to contact your Toyota 
dealer
In the following ca ses, the vehicle 
will require inspecti on and/or repair. 
Contact your Toyota dealer as soon 
as possible.
●Any of the SRS airbags have 
been inflated.
●The front of the v ehicle is dam-
aged or deformed, or was 
involved in an accident that was  not severe enough to cause the 
SRS front airbags to inflate.
●A portion of a door or its surround-
ing area is damaged, deformed or 
has had a hole made in it, or the 
vehicle was involved in an acci-
dent that was not severe enough 
to cause the SRS side and curtain 
shield airbags to inflate.
●The pad section of the steering 
wheel, dashboard near the front 
passenger airbag or lower portion 
of the instrument panel is 
scratched, cracked, or otherwise 
damaged.
●The seat cushion surface is 
scratched, cracked, or otherwise 
damaged. 
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●The surface of the seats with the 
SRS side airbag is scratched, 
cracked, or otherwise damaged.
●The portion of the front pillars, rear 
pillars or roof side rail garnishes 
(padding) containing the SRS cur-
tain shield airbags inside is 
scratched, cracked, or otherwise 
damaged.
WARNING
■SRS airbag precautions
Observe the following precautions 
regarding the SRS airbags.
Failure to do so may cause death 
or serious injury.
●The driver and all passengers in 
the vehicle must wear their seat 
belts properly.
The SRS airbags are supple-
mental devices t o be used with 
the seat belts.
●The SRS driver airbag deploys 
with considerable force, and 
can cause death or serious 
injury especially if the driver is 
very close to the airbag. The 
National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration (NHTSA) 
advises:
Since the risk zone for the driver’s 
airbag is the first 2 - 3 in. (50 - 75 
mm) of inflation, placing yourself 
10 in. (250 mm) from your driver 
airbag provides you with a clear 
margin of safety. This distance is 
measured from the center of the 
steering wheel to your breast-
bone. If you sit less than 10 in. 
(250 mm) away now, you can 
change your driving position in 
several ways:
• Move your seat to the rear as  far as you can while still reach-
ing the pedals comfortably.
• Slightly recline the back of the  seat.
Although vehicle designs vary, 
many drivers can achieve the 
10 in. (250 mm) distance, even 
with the driver seat all the way 
forward, simply by reclining the 
back of the seat somewhat. If 
reclining the back of your seat 
makes it hard to see the road, 
raise yourself by using a firm, 
non-slippery cushion, or raise 
the seat if your vehicle has that 
feature.
• If your steering wheel is adjust- able, tilt it downward. This 
points the airbag toward your 
chest instead of your head and 
neck.
The seat should be adjusted as 
recommended by NHTSA above, 
while still maintaining control of 
the foot pedals, steering wheel, 
and your view of the instrument 
panel controls. 
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For safety and security
WARNING
●If the seat belt extender has 
been connected to the front 
seat belt buckles but the seat 
belt extender has not also been 
fastened to the latch plate of the 
seat belt, the SRS front airbags 
will judge that the driver and 
front passenger are wearing the 
seat belt even though the seat 
belt has not been connected. In 
this case, the SRS front airbags 
may not activate correctly in a 
collision, resulting in death or 
serious injury i n the event of a 
collision. Be sure to wear the 
seat belt with the seat belt 
extender.
●The SRS front passenger air-
bag also deploys with consider-
able force, and can cause death 
or serious injury especially if the 
front passenger is  very close to 
the airbag. The front passenger 
seat should be as far from the 
airbag as possible with the seat-
back adjusted, so the front pas-
senger sits upright.
●Improperly seated and/or 
restrained infants and children 
can be killed or seriously injured 
by a deploying airbag. An infant 
or child who is too small to use 
a seat belt should be properly 
secured using a child restraint 
system. Toyota strongly recom-
mends that all infants and chil-
dren be placed in the rear seats 
of the vehicle and properly 
restrained. The rear seats are 
safer for infants and children 
than the front passenger seat. 
(
P. 4 5 )
●Do not sit on the edge of the 
seat or lean against the dash-
board.
●Do not allow a child to stand in 
front of the SRS front passenger 
airbag unit or sit on the knees of 
a front passenger.
●Do not allow the front seat occu-
pants to hold items on their 
knees. 
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WARNING
●Do not lean against the door, 
the roof side rail or the front, 
side and rear pillars.
●Do not allow anyone to kneel on 
the passenger seat toward the 
door or put their head or hands 
outside the vehicle.
●Do not attach anything to or 
lean anything against areas 
such as the dashboard, steering 
wheel pad and lower portion of 
the instrument panel.
These items can become pro-
jectiles when the SRS driver, 
front passenger and knee air-
bags deploy.
●Do not attach anything to areas 
such as a door, windshield, side 
windows, front or rear pillar, roof 
side rail and assist grip. (Except 
for the speed limit label 
P.481)
●Do not hang coat hangers or 
other hard objects on the coat 
hooks. All of these items could 
become projectiles and may 
cause death or serious injury, 
should the SRS curtain shield 
airbags deploy.
●If a vinyl cover is put on the area 
where the SRS driver’s knee 
airbag will deploy, be sure to 
remove it.
●Do not use sea t accessories 
which cover the parts where the 
SRS side airbags and SRS seat 
cushion airbag inflate as they 
may interfere with inflation of 
the SRS airbags. Such acces-
sories may prevent the side air-
bags and seat cushion airbag 
from activating correctly, disable 
the system or cause the side 
airbags and seat cushion airbag 
to inflate accidentally, resulting 
in death or serious injury.
●Do not strike or apply significant 
levels of force to the area of the 
SRS airbag components or the 
front doors.
Doing so can cause the SRS 
airbags to malfunction.
●Do not touch any of the compo-
nent parts immediately after the 
SRS airbags have deployed 
(inflated) as they may be hot. 
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For safety and security
WARNING
●If breathing becomes difficult 
after the SRS airbags have 
deployed, open a door or win-
dow to allow fresh air in, or 
leave the vehicle if it is safe to 
do so. Wash off any residue as 
soon as possible to prevent skin 
irritation.
●If the areas where the SRS air-
bags are stored, such as the 
steering wheel pad and front 
and rear pillar ga rnishes, are 
damaged or cracked, have 
them replaced by your Toyota 
dealer.
●Do not place anything, such as 
a cushion, on the front passen-
ger’s seat. Doing so will 
disperse the passenger’s 
weight, which prevents the sen-
sor from detecting the passen-
ger’s weight properly. As a 
result, the SRS front airbags for 
the front passenger may not 
deploy in the event of a colli-
sion.
■Modification and disposal of 
SRS airbag system compo-
nents
Do not dispose of your vehicle or 
perform any of the following modi-
fications without consulting your 
Toyota dealer. The SRS airbags 
may malfunction or deploy 
(inflate) accidentally, causing 
death or serious injury.
●Installation, removal, disassem-
bly and repair of the SRS air-
bags
●Repairs, modifications, removal 
or replacement of the steering 
wheel, instrument panel, dash-
board, seats or seat upholstery, 
front, side and rear pillars, roof 
side rails, front door panels, 
front door trims or front door 
speakers
●Modifications to the front door 
panel (such as making a hole in 
it)
●Repairs or modifications of the 
front fender, front bumper, or 
side of the occupant compart-
ment
●Installation of a grille guard (bull 
bars, kangaroo bar, etc.), snow 
plows, winches or roof luggage 
carrier
●Modifications to the vehicle’s 
suspension system
●Installation of electronic devices 
such as mobile t wo-way radios 
and CD players
●Modifications to your vehicle for 
a person with a physical disabil-
ity 
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SRS warning light
Front passenger seat belt reminder light
“AIR BAG OFF” indicator light
“AIR BAG ON” indicator light
Front passenger occupant classification system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front passenger occupant 
classification system. This system detects the conditions of 
the front passenger seat and activates or deactivates the front  
passenger airbag and seat cushion airbag.
System components
WARNING
■Front passenger occupant 
classification system precau-
tions
Observe the following precautions 
regarding the front passenger 
occupant classification system.
Failure to do so may cause death 
or serious injury.
●Wear the seat belt properly.
●Make sure the front passenger’s 
seat belt plate has not been left 
inserted into the buckle before 
someone sits in the front pas-
senger seat. 
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For safety and security
WARNING
●Make sure the “AIR BAG OFF” 
indicator light is  not illuminated 
when using the seat belt 
extender for the front passenger 
seat. If the “AIR BAG OFF” indi-
cator light is illuminated, discon-
nect the extender tongue from 
the seat belt buckle, and recon-
nect the seat belt. Reconnect 
the seat belt extender after 
making sure the “AIR BAG ON” 
indicator light is illuminated. If 
you use the seat belt extender 
while the “AIR BAG OFF” indi-
cator light is illuminated, the 
SRS airbags for the front pas-
senger may not activate, which 
could cause death or serious 
injury in the ev ent of a collision.
●Do not apply a heavy load to the 
front passenger seat or equip-
ment (e.g. seatback pocket).
●Do not put weight on the front 
passenger seat by putting your 
hands or feet on the front pas-
senger seat seatback from the 
rear passenger seat.
●Do not let a rea r passenger lift 
the front passenger seat with 
their feet or press on the seat-
back with their legs.
●Do not put objects under the 
front passenger seat.
●Do not recline t he front passen-
ger seatback so far that it 
touches the rear seat. This may 
cause the “AIR BAG OFF” indi-
cator light to be illuminated, 
which indicates that the SRS 
airbags for the front passenger 
will not activate in the event of a 
severe accident. If the seatback 
touches the rear seat, return the 
seatback to a position where it 
does not touch the rear seat. 
Keep the front passenger seat-
back as upright as possible 
when the vehicle is moving. 
Reclining the seatback exces-
sively may lessen the effective-
ness of the seat belt system.
●If an adult sits i n the front pas-
senger seat, the “AIR BAG ON” 
indicator light i s illuminated. If 
the “AIR BAG OFF” indicator is 
illuminated, ask  the passenger 
to sit up straight, well back in 
the seat, feet on the floor, and 
with the seat belt worn correctly. 
If the “AIR BAG OFF” indicator 
still remains illumi nated, either 
ask the passenger to move to 
the rear seat, or if that is not 
possible, move  the front pas-
senger seat fully rearward.
●When it is unavoidable to install 
a forward-facing child restraint 
system on the front passenger 
seat, install the child restraint 
system on the front passenger 
seat in the proper order. 
(
P. 4 7 )
●Do not modify or remove the 
front seats.
●Do not kick the  front passenger 
seat or subject it to severe 
impact. Otherwise, the SRS 
warning light m ay come on to 
indicate a malfu nction of the 
front passenger occupant clas-
sification system. In this case, 
contact your Toyota dealer 
immediately. 
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■Adult*1
■Child*4
WARNING
●Child restraint systems installed 
on the rear seat should not con-
tact the front seatbacks.
●Do not use a seat accessory, 
such as a cushion and seat 
cover, that covers the seat 
cushion surface.
●Do not modify or replace the 
upholstery of the front seat.
Condition and operation in the front passenger occupant 
classification system
Indicator/warning  light
“AIR BAG ON” and “AIR BAG OFF” indicator lights“AIR BAG ON”
SRS warning lightOff
Front passenger’s seat belt  reminder lightOff*2 or flashing*3
Devices
Front passenger airbagActivated
Front passenger seat cushion air- bagActivated*2 or 
deactivated
*3
Indicator/warning  light
“AIR BAG ON” and “AIR BAG OFF” indicator lights“AIR BAG OFF” or 
“AIR BAG ON”
*4
SRS warning lightOff
Front passenger’s seat belt  reminder lightOff*2 or flashing*3
Devices
Front passenger airbagDeactivated or 
activated
*4
Front passenger seat cushion air- bagDeactivated or 
activated
*4, 2