Toyota Recall 2.3 Million Vehicles with Accelerator Faults
;)
;)
Japanese company admits second problem with accelerator pedals in the US.
Toyota’s impeccable reputation in the automotive industry for performance and consistency was tarnished yesterday after the manufacturer announced a recall of 2.3 million vehicles across the US to fix accelerator issues.
Irv Miller vice president of the TMS Group announced on Toyota’s US website: “Our investigation indicates that there is a possibility that certain accelerator pedal mechanisms may, in rare instances, mechanically stick in a partially depressed position or return slowly to the idle position. Consistent with our commitment to the safety of our cars and our customers, we have initiated this voluntary recall action.”
The recall is a further embarrassment for the car company as Toyota had to recall some 4.2 million vehicles last year again with issues over the accelerator pedals. The initial recall was due to a problem with the placing of floor mats in Toyota cars which trapped the pedals. The new problem is more worrying where the pedal mechanism can become worn, causing the accelerator to pause whilst depressed.
Toyota recommended that in the event of the accelerator sticking, customers should not repeatedly pump the brakes as this would damage the brake mechanism making it harder to bring the vehicle to a halt.
As damaging as another recall is to the company’s reputation, a recall is preferable to more traffic incidents. 17 crashes and 5 fatalities have already been ascribed to Toyota vehicles in the US as a possible result of faulty accelerator problems. Shares in the company dipped by 4 per cent yesterday in Tokyo as a reaction to the news.
Toyota Recall Vehicle Makes and Years
2009-2010 RAV4,
2009-2010 Corolla,
2009-2010 Matrix,
2005-2010 Avalon,
2007-2010 Camry,
2010 Highlander,
2007-2010 Tundra,
2008-2010 Sequoia
The company announced that there was no risk to its Scion or Lexus division vehicles.
I just rented a 2010 Corolla from Enterprise in Latham NY. When I called them this a.m. to get a different car, the manager, Joe assured me the problem had been fixed on the car I had. He said they did not have time to bring me a different vehicle.
How can it possibly be fixed if Toyota themselves don’t even know what exactly causes the problem?