Toyota Recalls 121,260 bZ EVs in China Over Suspension, Braking and Steering Software Faults

China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) published three recall notices on November 4 covering 121,260 Toyota bZ electric vehicles sold in China — the bZ3X electric SUV and the bZ7 sedan, both developed through Toyota's Chinese localization push. A separate campaign covers 55,477 Land Cruiser Prado and Lexus GX 550h hybrid SUVs over a fuel-line defect.

Three separate bZ campaigns

The filings break down as follows:

• bZ3X (S2026M0124V) — 100,175 vehicles, built Feb 27, 2025 to Mar 26, 2026: the nuts securing the front suspension stabiliser bar links may have insufficient axial clamping force. They can loosen during driving, causing abnormal noises or, in extreme cases, detaching and affecting vehicle stability. GAC Toyota will replace the affected nuts free of charge.
• bZ7 (S2026M0125V) — 18,130 vehicles, built Oct 28, 2025 to Aug 3, 2026: the Comfort Stop (CST) software may restrict braking-force output under certain low-speed conditions, increasing stopping distances and collision risk.
• bZ7 (S2026M0126V) — 2,955 vehicles, built Mar 10 to May 15, 2026: a software issue involving the front recognition camera during an over-the-air update could cause unintended steering wheel movement when Integrated Cruise Assist (ICA) is activated.

GAC Toyota will address both bZ7 software defects through free OTA updates. The recalls follow a separate July 2026 bZ7 campaign covering roughly 24,000 vehicles over software faults in the smart Bluetooth module and thermal management controller.

Why this matters for the wider market

The bZ3X was launched in China in March 2025 and developed with Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC) as part of Toyota's shift toward locally directed EV development, with engineers from three Chinese R&D operations consolidated under the Intelligent ElectroMobility R&D Centre by Toyota (IEM by Toyota) in 2023. The recalls do not establish a link between that development approach and the defects, but they do land as Toyota's China-built EVs face their first major quality gauntlet in the world's most competitive EV market.

For Canadian buyers, the bZ3X and bZ7 are not currently sold in North America, so there is no direct recall impact here. The takeaway is broader: software-defined EV faults — from braking logic to camera-based driver assistance — are now showing up in recall filings at a rate that matches traditional mechanical defects, and the bZ7's two software campaigns in under six months are a case study in that trend.

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