AUTOMAKER ADMITS WIDE-RANGING PROBLEMS

+ Click to Enlarge RUNAWAY LEXUS: An ES350 similar to this one has crashed, killing four people, in California's San Diego area after its accelerator apparently got stuck under the floor mat in November, 2009.

January 22, 2010
By David Bailey and Kevin Krolicki

Toyota is to recall 2.3-million vehicles in the US to fix potentially faulty accelerators in an admission of more wide-ranging problems with dangerous acceleration in its vehicles.

The recall marked an acknowledgment that potential safety problems on Toyota vehicles run deeper than the automaker at first announced and broadened a recall that already ranked as its largest yet.

The moves have threatened Toyota's reputation for market-leading quality and safety at a time when the automaker's US sales are under pressure.

Toyota had previously maintained that there was no evidence of a mechanical fault linked to reports of bursts of unintended acceleration that prompted the recall of about 4.2-million vehicles last year.

The recall announced on Thursday is separate from the earlier action that Toyota said was meant to address the risk that the accelerator pedals could become jammed by loose or improperly installed floor mats. About 1.7-million Toyota vehicles are subject to both recalls, Toyota said.

Models covered by the latest recall include the 2009 and 2010 RAV4; the 2009 and 2010 Corolla; the 2009 and 2010 Matrix; the 2005 to 2010 Avalon; the 2007 to 2010 Camry; the 2010 Highlander; the 2007 to 2010 Tundra and the 2008 to 2010 Sequoia.

Toyota said its own investigation in recent months had found that some accelerator pedals on those models might stick in a partially depressed position or return slowly to idling. The problems could occur when the pedal mechanism becomes worn, it said.

"Toyota will continue to investigate incidents of unwanted acceleration and take appropriate measures to address any trends that are identified," the automaker said.

As recently as November 2009 Toyota's US brand chief Bob Carter had said there was "no evidence" to support claims that the reported safety problems could be caused by anything other than loose floor mats interfering with the accelerator pedal.

The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had received reports of 100 incidents at the time of Toyota's first recall. Those reports included 17 crashes and five deaths possibly linked to floor mats and accelerator pedals in Toyota cars and trucks.

EARLIER 50 000 RECALL

Toyota's earlier recall covered the Camry and Avalon sedans, the Prius hybrid, the Tacoma and Tundra bakkies and the Lexus IS250, IS350 and ES350.

The NHTSA had conducted a similar investigation of floor mats in Toyota vehicles that began in 2007 and resulted in a recall of more than 50 000 cars.

That probe focused on the Lexus ES350 and concluded that grooves in the floor mat could trap the accelerator if the mat was not secured by retaining hooks. - Reuters