The government has opened an investigation of 2004-2005 Toyota Sienna minivans after receiving complaints that the liftgate had failed, causing the hatchback door to close on motorists.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a notice dated Aug. 2 that it has received eight complaints and four reports of injuries involving the liftgate unexpectedly closing on a persons head or body.
The investigation involves 393,313 Sienna minivans from the 2004-05 model years.
In March 2004, Toyota issued a technical service bulletin to owners of the 2004 Sienna saying that the liftgate struts had been redesigned to help prevent seal damage and gas leakage.
Toyota spokeswoman Ming-Jou Chen said Monday that the automaker was cooperating in the investigation but it was too early to know if the problems were linked to the issues that led to the service bulletin.
Some investigations by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration lead to vehicle recalls.
