Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
#1
Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
Floormats again? Seriously?
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...,6731783.story
Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
By Ken Bensinger, Los Angeles Times
February 24, 2011, 9:47 a.m.
Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 2.17 million vehicles in the U.S. to address problems that can cause sudden acceleration, the automaker said Thursday.
The action, which incorporates three separate recalls and comes in addition to earlier recalls for similar issues, affects six models and addresses various potential defects that could entrap the gas pedal, leading to dangerous loss of control.
Since the autumn of 2009, the Japanese automaker has issued over 14 million recall notices to address a series of safety and quality issues. The majority have been for sudden-acceleration-related flaws, and Toyota has been subject to numerous federal investigations to explore the problem.
Earlier this month, a joint report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and NASA determined that an electronic cause for sudden acceleration could not be found, but that mechanical problems -- including pedal interference -- were real.
According to the NHTSA, the new recalls came about as a result of an investigation it launched last spring into the scope and breadth of Toyota's original pedal-entrapment recall. In a statement Thursday, David Strickland, the NHTSA's administrator, said the safety regulator had reviewed over 400,000 pages of Toyota documents.
"As a result of the agency's review, NHTSA asked Toyota to recall these additional vehicles, " Strickland said. "Now that the company has done so, our case is closed."
Toyota said that nearly 1.4 million of the newly affected models were being added to its September 2009 recall for pedal entrapment. Those models are the 4Runner, Rav4 and Lexus LX.
But it also identified separate problems, related to the shape and functionality of interior panels and carpeting that could interfere with the accelerator pedal in the Highlander, Lexus RX and Lexus GS. Those are new recalls.
The new recalls affect 761,000 RAV4 sport utility vehicles from the 2006 to 2010 model years, 603,000 4Runner SUVs from 2003 to 2009 model years, 397,000 Highlander and Highlander hybrid SUVs from the 2004 to 2006 model years, 372,000 Lexus RX SUVs from the 2004 to 2007 model years, 20,000 Lexus GS sedans from the 2006 and 2007 model years and 17,000 Lexus LX sedans from 2008 to 2011 model years.
Toyota, the world's largest automaker, has had its image buffeted by the specter of sudden acceleration, and its reputation for quality has suffered. It was the only major automaker to see its U.S. sales decline in 2010, and was overtaken by Ford Motor Co. as the second-best-selling manufacturer in the country.
In addition, Toyota is facing hundreds of personal-injury, death and economic-damage lawsuits in state and federal courts. Lawyers in those cases continue to claim that they believe there are both mechanical and electronic defects afflicting Toyota vehicles dating back at least to the 2002 model year.
By Ken Bensinger, Los Angeles Times
February 24, 2011, 9:47 a.m.
Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 2.17 million vehicles in the U.S. to address problems that can cause sudden acceleration, the automaker said Thursday.
The action, which incorporates three separate recalls and comes in addition to earlier recalls for similar issues, affects six models and addresses various potential defects that could entrap the gas pedal, leading to dangerous loss of control.
Since the autumn of 2009, the Japanese automaker has issued over 14 million recall notices to address a series of safety and quality issues. The majority have been for sudden-acceleration-related flaws, and Toyota has been subject to numerous federal investigations to explore the problem.
Earlier this month, a joint report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and NASA determined that an electronic cause for sudden acceleration could not be found, but that mechanical problems -- including pedal interference -- were real.
According to the NHTSA, the new recalls came about as a result of an investigation it launched last spring into the scope and breadth of Toyota's original pedal-entrapment recall. In a statement Thursday, David Strickland, the NHTSA's administrator, said the safety regulator had reviewed over 400,000 pages of Toyota documents.
"As a result of the agency's review, NHTSA asked Toyota to recall these additional vehicles, " Strickland said. "Now that the company has done so, our case is closed."
Toyota said that nearly 1.4 million of the newly affected models were being added to its September 2009 recall for pedal entrapment. Those models are the 4Runner, Rav4 and Lexus LX.
But it also identified separate problems, related to the shape and functionality of interior panels and carpeting that could interfere with the accelerator pedal in the Highlander, Lexus RX and Lexus GS. Those are new recalls.
The new recalls affect 761,000 RAV4 sport utility vehicles from the 2006 to 2010 model years, 603,000 4Runner SUVs from 2003 to 2009 model years, 397,000 Highlander and Highlander hybrid SUVs from the 2004 to 2006 model years, 372,000 Lexus RX SUVs from the 2004 to 2007 model years, 20,000 Lexus GS sedans from the 2006 and 2007 model years and 17,000 Lexus LX sedans from 2008 to 2011 model years.
Toyota, the world's largest automaker, has had its image buffeted by the specter of sudden acceleration, and its reputation for quality has suffered. It was the only major automaker to see its U.S. sales decline in 2010, and was overtaken by Ford Motor Co. as the second-best-selling manufacturer in the country.
In addition, Toyota is facing hundreds of personal-injury, death and economic-damage lawsuits in state and federal courts. Lawyers in those cases continue to claim that they believe there are both mechanical and electronic defects afflicting Toyota vehicles dating back at least to the 2002 model year.
#2
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
Seems like each time they do this it includes 1 Lexus model....
Don't want to tarnish the Lexus brand, but they'll likely recall them all over a period of time
Don't want to tarnish the Lexus brand, but they'll likely recall them all over a period of time
#4
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
Seems to me that this is nothing but them going into super cover your a*s mode.
You guys are slacking though, I thought you guys would have been quicker to post this story given that it's about Toyota.
Oddly, I haven't seen any posts about Ford's recall of their F-150 for airbags accidenctly going off or that the NHTSA is pushing to recall 10 times as many as they actually did.
You guys are slacking though, I thought you guys would have been quicker to post this story given that it's about Toyota.
Oddly, I haven't seen any posts about Ford's recall of their F-150 for airbags accidenctly going off or that the NHTSA is pushing to recall 10 times as many as they actually did.
#5
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
I see they are back to blaming the floor mats. Wonder how long it will be before someone finally releases the proof that the problem was poor coding/programming in the transmission and drive-by-wire control portion of the PCM?
On another note, good. Now if people would just start listening to this stuff and realize that Toyotas are POS on wheels and stop buying them.
On another note, good. Now if people would just start listening to this stuff and realize that Toyotas are POS on wheels and stop buying them.
#6
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
All I can offer is that I personally have experienced 'unintended acceleration' in my 99 Lexus GS400 (haven't had for many years) and it was most definitely caused by the floor mat. I ended up modding my mat to prevent it from happening. It wasn't the wild out of control experience some have reported, but I did have the presence of mind to hit the brakes before it become an issue and adjust the mat. On that same exact car I would occasionally have an issue with hitting the gas and brake at the same time, as the pedals were abnormally closely spaced. I've never had that issue even once with any other vehicle. So obviously their design is legitimately prone to that sort of issue, even if it's possible that there are more limited ECU issues as well - take a few possible ECU issues and compound it with a ton of floormat/pedal spacing issues and you get mass hysteria.
No, not surprising at all. I actually recall a few years ago posting a thread with a GM recall in this forum. Back then it was just called the Future Vehicles section but everyone still posted current news as there was no alternative forum for that purpose (thus, it has since been renamed). But I actually got several people complaining to me and reporting the thread because it was not on topic for the forum. Yet literally right beside it on the front page was a Toyota recall thread with most of the same people posting in it, but not a single complaint about it being off topic.
What were NASA's findings? Haven't they spent nearly the last year tearing apart the code to see if they can find any flaws?
Let's be real here. Toyotas aren't god's gift to the automotive world like many consumers believe, but they're also hardly POSes, either (on an average basis).
On another note, good. Now if people would just start listening to this stuff and realize that Toyotas are POS on wheels and stop buying them.
#7
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
Toyota has done a great job over the years of blaming the defects of their vehicles on their customers. The fact that their customers accept this is astounding.
#8
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
#9
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
Toyota has done a great job over the years of blaming the defects of their vehicles on their customers. The fact that their customers accept this is astounding.
#10
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
I've already heard more than a few instances of the code being changed after a trip to the Toyota dealerships for the recall. And I'm not the only one.
Toyota has done a great job over the years of blaming the defects of their vehicles on their customers. The fact that their customers accept this is astounding.
Toyota has done a great job over the years of blaming the defects of their vehicles on their customers. The fact that their customers accept this is astounding.
#11
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
-Geoff
#12
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
IMHO, there is ZERO reason to buy a Toyota today.
Any fanboy-ism aside, there are simply too many choices on the market to even bother with it... if you don't like American products, fine, go buy a Honda, a Hyundai, a Kia, a BMW, a M-B, a Volvo or anything else out there.
This is just my opinion, of course.
Any fanboy-ism aside, there are simply too many choices on the market to even bother with it... if you don't like American products, fine, go buy a Honda, a Hyundai, a Kia, a BMW, a M-B, a Volvo or anything else out there.
This is just my opinion, of course.
#13
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
IMHO, there is ZERO reason to buy a Toyota today.
Any fanboy-ism aside, there are simply too many choices on the market to even bother with it... if you don't like American products, fine, go buy a Honda, a Hyundai, a Kia, a BMW, a M-B, a Volvo or anything else out there.
This is just my opinion, of course.
Any fanboy-ism aside, there are simply too many choices on the market to even bother with it... if you don't like American products, fine, go buy a Honda, a Hyundai, a Kia, a BMW, a M-B, a Volvo or anything else out there.
This is just my opinion, of course.
Oh the Land Cruiser / LX570 is really nice too but for the money I'll pass. Maybe a good used car buy in a few years, though.
#14
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
IMHO, there is ZERO reason to buy a Toyota today.
Any fanboy-ism aside, there are simply too many choices on the market to even bother with it... if you don't like American products, fine, go buy a Honda, a Hyundai, a Kia, a BMW, a M-B, a Volvo or anything else out there.
This is just my opinion, of course.
Any fanboy-ism aside, there are simply too many choices on the market to even bother with it... if you don't like American products, fine, go buy a Honda, a Hyundai, a Kia, a BMW, a M-B, a Volvo or anything else out there.
This is just my opinion, of course.
#15
Re: Toyota recalls 2.17 million more vehicles over sudden-acceleration problems
Well, I'm not ever taking into account styling, desireability or anything else for that matter... I'm just saying that Toyota doesn't make anything that I can't get somewhere else, and not have to deal with their issues.
I, personally, would not put my family in a Toyota vehicle when I have the choice to avoid buying products from a company that have proven to be defective in some manner. And I don't care if that manner is software, gas pedals or floor mats or magical marshmallow undead minkeys from an alternate universe.