Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
10-14-2005, 12:15 AM
#1
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Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Oops.
Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it is recalling 75,000 Prius gas-electric hybrid cars because their engines can stall due to an electrical problem.
Involved in the recall are some 2004 and early 2005 model year Prius cars. The cars have a gas engine as well as a battery-powered electric motor that can run separately or together to save fuel.
In affected vehicles, dashboard warning lights may come on and the gasoline engine shuts down. The vehicle's electric motor will continue operating in a limited capacity, so drivers can steer to the side of the road. The gasoline engine may start working again if the driver restarts the vehicle.
Toyota spokesman Xavier Dominicis said the automaker began investigating the problem after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration received 68 reports of Prius engines stalling. No one has been injured by the defect, and it hasn't caused any reported accidents, Dominicis said.
NHTSA closed its investigation after Toyota said it would voluntarily recall the vehicles. Owners will be notified starting this month.
Toyota dealers will repair affected vehicles for free. The vehicles may need to have their software reprogrammed. Dealers may also apply a waterproof grease that will prevent water from getting into the electrical system.
Dominicis stressed that the defect isn't related to the Prius's gas-electric hybrid system and could happen in any vehicle.
The Prius was the world's first commercially mass-produced hybrid car and it remains the most popular. U.S. sales of the Prius more than doubled in the first nine months of this year to 81,042, according to Autodata Corp.
Involved in the recall are some 2004 and early 2005 model year Prius cars. The cars have a gas engine as well as a battery-powered electric motor that can run separately or together to save fuel.
In affected vehicles, dashboard warning lights may come on and the gasoline engine shuts down. The vehicle's electric motor will continue operating in a limited capacity, so drivers can steer to the side of the road. The gasoline engine may start working again if the driver restarts the vehicle.
Toyota spokesman Xavier Dominicis said the automaker began investigating the problem after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration received 68 reports of Prius engines stalling. No one has been injured by the defect, and it hasn't caused any reported accidents, Dominicis said.
NHTSA closed its investigation after Toyota said it would voluntarily recall the vehicles. Owners will be notified starting this month.
Toyota dealers will repair affected vehicles for free. The vehicles may need to have their software reprogrammed. Dealers may also apply a waterproof grease that will prevent water from getting into the electrical system.
Dominicis stressed that the defect isn't related to the Prius's gas-electric hybrid system and could happen in any vehicle.
The Prius was the world's first commercially mass-produced hybrid car and it remains the most popular. U.S. sales of the Prius more than doubled in the first nine months of this year to 81,042, according to Autodata Corp.
10-14-2005, 07:01 AM
#2
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Just saw it scroll across the screen on Bloomberg News... it's on the front page of CNN.com... how long until the howls of "the media is ignoring a Toyota recall!!!" start?
10-14-2005, 07:05 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
I'm just waiting for the things to die and early death. 100k miles. Dies, oops hybrid drive system worn out, need 10k to fix it............... I hate hybrids.
10-14-2005, 08:24 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Originally Posted by Eric Bryant
Just saw it scroll across the screen on Bloomberg News... it's on the front page of CNN.com... how long until the howls of "the media is ignoring a Toyota recall!!!" start?
Cnn.com saids nothing about a recall
DETROIT (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it will notify about 160,000 Prius owners around the world about a potential software problem that may cause the popular hybrid cars to suddenly stall or shut down.
Japan's top auto maker said the fault may cause warning lights in the cars to illuminate. That can prompt the vehicles to enter a "fail safe" mode that may cause their gasoline engines to stall.
Hybrid vehicles twin a gasoline engine with an electric motor and batteries to boost fuel economy.
Toyota spokeswoman Allison Takahashi said that, if the gasoline engine stalls, the electric motor will have enough power to allow the driver to pull the vehicle over and away from the traffic.
The vehicles involved in the Toyota service action are from the 2004 and 2005 model years. About 75,000 of them are in the United States and 70,000 in Japan.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had received a number of complaints about the hybrid vehicles stalling or stopping unexpectedly, often on highways.
Toyota will be sending out letters asking customers to take the cars to a dealership for free repairs, Takahashi said.
No recall notice has been issued, she added.
Toyota sold 53,991 Prius cars in 2004 and 81,042 so far this year. There is usually a waiting list to buy the vehicle, which have the second-highest government mileage ratings of any passenger vehicles.
Japan's top auto maker said the fault may cause warning lights in the cars to illuminate. That can prompt the vehicles to enter a "fail safe" mode that may cause their gasoline engines to stall.
Hybrid vehicles twin a gasoline engine with an electric motor and batteries to boost fuel economy.
Toyota spokeswoman Allison Takahashi said that, if the gasoline engine stalls, the electric motor will have enough power to allow the driver to pull the vehicle over and away from the traffic.
The vehicles involved in the Toyota service action are from the 2004 and 2005 model years. About 75,000 of them are in the United States and 70,000 in Japan.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had received a number of complaints about the hybrid vehicles stalling or stopping unexpectedly, often on highways.
Toyota will be sending out letters asking customers to take the cars to a dealership for free repairs, Takahashi said.
No recall notice has been issued, she added.
Toyota sold 53,991 Prius cars in 2004 and 81,042 so far this year. There is usually a waiting list to buy the vehicle, which have the second-highest government mileage ratings of any passenger vehicles.
10-14-2005, 08:40 AM
#5
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
When the warning comes on the dashboard (aka BSOD), pull over, reboot, and try again.
Will Toyota follow the ways of Microsoft and continue to claim that their cars are the most stable, reliable and problem free, and this ignition off behaviour is part of normal comp^Hmuting?
Will Toyota follow the ways of Microsoft and continue to claim that their cars are the most stable, reliable and problem free, and this ignition off behaviour is part of normal comp^Hmuting?
10-14-2005, 09:01 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
223 articles so far mentioning the recall, nobody in their right mind can claim media bias.
http://news.google.com/news?as_q=pri...=14&as_maxm=10
Edit... weird... the link no longer brings up a crapload of articles. It's a conspiracy!!
Just go to news.google.com , hit advanced search, and search only for articles containing "prius" and "recall" posted in the last 24 hours or so.
http://news.google.com/news?as_q=pri...=14&as_maxm=10
Edit... weird... the link no longer brings up a crapload of articles. It's a conspiracy!!
Just go to news.google.com , hit advanced search, and search only for articles containing "prius" and "recall" posted in the last 24 hours or so.
Last edited by Threxx; 10-14-2005 at 10:08 AM.
10-14-2005, 09:25 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Ok, so they're sending out letters to all the people who own the car telling them to get the problem fixed for free, but it's not a recall? Isn't that by definition a recall?
Chris
Chris
10-14-2005, 09:35 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Originally Posted by Chrome383Z
I'm just waiting for the things to die and early death. 100k miles. Dies, oops hybrid drive system worn out, need 10k to fix it............... I hate hybrids.
Damn them for making a concerted effort to sell a usable, fuel efficient vehicle in LARGE quantities for a reasonable price.......
10-14-2005, 09:40 AM
#9
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Hybrids are all the buzz now-a-days. I read somewhere that gas would need to be over $9 per gallon for the life of your hybrid car...in order for you to break even on a hybrid's addition cost at purchase.
My personal opinion is that we should be giving diesels in passenger cars a more serious look in NA.
My personal opinion is that we should be giving diesels in passenger cars a more serious look in NA.
10-14-2005, 09:44 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Originally Posted by WJH'sFormula
Why?
Damn them for making a concerted effort to sell a usable, fuel efficient vehicle in LARGE quantities for a reasonable price.......
Damn them for making a concerted effort to sell a usable, fuel efficient vehicle in LARGE quantities for a reasonable price.......
10-14-2005, 09:50 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Originally Posted by anasazi
because GM isn't doing it, therefor its automatically bad.
Because of the ridiculous repair costs they'll saddle their second and third owners with, when the complex systems start breaking down.
They ARE an abomination, and it's unfortunate that GM will probably have to follow Toyota in order to maintain public "perception." Better to do something like Honda is experimenting with--natural gas vehicles you refuel at home in your garage.
10-14-2005, 09:51 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Originally Posted by anasazi
because GM isn't doing it, therefor its automatically bad.
Through their heavy truck division, they've developed city buses that save more in one city than all these little hybrids combined.
If more cities went to these buses, we'd save more than every car being a hybrid.
So do you fix the problem by p i s s i n g in the ocean or with a fire hose?
Hybrids are just another way for the mindless minions to feel like their doing something.....all the while costing more money than their gas counterparts.
I'd venture a guess that it takes MUCH more in natural resources to build a hybrid than a conventional car....where's the "green" in that?!?
It's kinda' like the hydrogen/menthanol/etc... enthusiasts....but, it still takes more to make it than it produces.
My C5 still gets over 32mpg on the highway....now THERE'S an economy car I can live with.
10-14-2005, 10:29 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Originally Posted by anasazi
because GM isn't doing it, therefor its automatically bad.
10-14-2005, 10:36 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Besides, I do not believe in the hybrid technology for a number of reasons, and Doug pointed them out.
It is commendable that manufacturers can release a vehicle that uses gas and electricity and gets incredible milage. But the vehicle costs more money, and they are usually odd looking. The milage can be matched by many diesel engines, sometimes even exceeded - with normal cars that provide normal utility.
There is additional cost incurred at manufacturing hybrid technology. I would like to find out how much processing and manufacturing is added to make a hybrid, and whether the green house gases the vehicle saves is able to offset the greenhouse gases added in its manufacturing. My uneducated guess is that it costs even more in terms of pollution than the vehicle can save in its lifetime.
What about servicing? It takes 2 mechanics to work on Insight, or so I understand, when it comes to servicing any electrical/hybrid components. How would you like to pay double the rate once the warranty runs out? Something also tells me none of these components are cheap, and they are not exactly repairable - they will probably have to be replaced as a whole.
At the end, hybrid technology appears to be a quick patch, some publicity stunt, and just a matter of R&D. Will it be the wave of the future? I hope we will move to something else that will not complicate the mechanics of a vehicle, be it biodiesel, propane, or hydrogen.
It is commendable that manufacturers can release a vehicle that uses gas and electricity and gets incredible milage. But the vehicle costs more money, and they are usually odd looking. The milage can be matched by many diesel engines, sometimes even exceeded - with normal cars that provide normal utility.
There is additional cost incurred at manufacturing hybrid technology. I would like to find out how much processing and manufacturing is added to make a hybrid, and whether the green house gases the vehicle saves is able to offset the greenhouse gases added in its manufacturing. My uneducated guess is that it costs even more in terms of pollution than the vehicle can save in its lifetime.
What about servicing? It takes 2 mechanics to work on Insight, or so I understand, when it comes to servicing any electrical/hybrid components. How would you like to pay double the rate once the warranty runs out? Something also tells me none of these components are cheap, and they are not exactly repairable - they will probably have to be replaced as a whole.
At the end, hybrid technology appears to be a quick patch, some publicity stunt, and just a matter of R&D. Will it be the wave of the future? I hope we will move to something else that will not complicate the mechanics of a vehicle, be it biodiesel, propane, or hydrogen.
10-14-2005, 10:37 AM
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Re: Toyota Recalls 75,000 Prius Hybrids
Anyway, I love the quote "Dominicis stressed that the defect isn't related to the Prius's gas-electric hybrid system and could happen in any vehicle."
RIGHT........sure. Yeah, I've seen normal cars stall all the time, and have to be powered by their auxiliary engine to the side of the road...or not...
I hope someone calls that idiot on such BS.