I have a 2007 Scion tC. The air bags did not deploy, and the ABS did not work! This happened in 2007. I was told nothing could be done, so I didn't push it any further. I just came across this site, so I thought I'd share my experience, and maybe, eventually, this issue will be resolved.
I was traveling on the highway, going approximately 70 mph. I pulled out behind someone to pass another car (and I gave a good amount of distance before I pulled out), when the car I pulled out behind slammed on their brakes for no reason and basically came to a stop. I slammed on my brakes and swerved to miss them. My wheels locked up even though I supposedly have ABS! I ended up fish tailing, I lost control, and I slammed into the guardrail on the right with the front of my car, completely destroying the front of the car, so that everything was pushed back towards the cabin and the engine was sitting on the ground.
I had to climb out a window, because both doors were jammed. The guardrail also left a perfect indentation all the way down the left side of the car. After hitting the guardrail, I then ricocheted back across the highway where the rear of the car hit the center median wall, and then the car spun back out into the middle of the lanes. My 2-month-old car was totaled! After all of this, the air bags did not deploy! Thankfully, I had my seat belt on!
The fire department said I most likely would have been thrown from the car if I wasn't wearing it. I was very lucky and walked away with just bumps, bruises, and a bit of stiffness. Toyota told me that I must not have hit the air bag sensors. The whole front of my car was smashed in, and I hit the guardrail basically head on! How did a sensor not get hit?
I even spoke with a lawyer. They told me that my medical bills were not high enough to make a claim, and because they weren't high enough, Toyota wouldn't do anything about it. That wasn't even the point I was trying to make by going to the lawyer. This is unsafe! And clearly, I'm not the only one that had this issue. I've been told the first couple years of the tC had airbags that were too sensitive, that they'd go off if a door was shut too hard. I think they overcompensated big time. This needs to be addressed before someone gets severely injured or worse!
