Toyota Australia has recalled more than 300,000 vehicles because of faults with the airbags and seats.

The Australian vehicles are part of a global recall of around 6.39 million vehicles - the largest by the carmaker in about five years.

The Australian recall includes about 180,000 current generation Hilux vehicles built between April 2004 and December 2009.

Toyota says there is an issue with a cable which may prevent the driver's airbag from deploying in an accident.

The company is also recalling nearly 120,000 previous generation Yaris hatchbacks and sedans, built between June 2005 and May 2010.

In those cars the spring which locks the driver's seat in position may break, and the company says that could increase the risk of injury in a crash.

Worldwide, the recalls include 26 Toyota models as well as the Pontiac Vibe and the Subaru Trezia, the company said in a statement.

The vehicles affected included the Corolla sedan and the RAV4 sport utility vehicle.

The recall included 1.08 million vehicles in Japan, 2.3 million in North America, about 770,000 in Europe, and another 62,000 in China, Toyota said.

In October 2012, Toyota announced a global recall of 7.43 million vehicles, including its popular Camry and Corolla models, over a possible fire risk, while in February it recalled 1.9 million of its signature Prius hybrid cars.

Last month, the Japanese automaker agreed to pay $1.3 billion to settle US criminal charges that it lied to safety regulators and the public as it tried to cover up deadly accelerator defects.

Dozens of deaths were blamed on the defects, which caused vehicles to speed out of control and fail to respond to the brake.

ABC/AFP