NEWS:   Toyota recalls 22,000 vehicles over tire pressure monitors

DETROIT NEWS -- March 5,  2011 – Toyota Motor Corp. said Saturday is recalling 22,000 SUVs and pickups that have faulty tire pressure monitoring systems — the latest safety campaign issued by the Japanese automaker.

The recall covers some versions of 2008-2011 Toyota FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser, Sequoia, Tacoma and Tundra vehicles.

Under federal regulations, the vehicle's tire pressure monitoring systems must warn the driver not more than 20 minutes after the inflation pressure in a tire is equal to or less than either the pressure 25 percent below the recommended pressure.

Toyota said the recall covers accessory wheels approved by Toyota that were installed at vehicle processing centers prior to distribution to dealers or by dealers prior to first sale.

When the tires were changed, the tire pressure monitoring systems were not recalibrated correctly and do not start illuminating the low tire pressure warning sign at the required minimum activation pressure, Toyota said.

Toyota will reset the system in most of the vehicles so they alert drivers as required.

For the FJ Cruiser, the tire pressure monitoring system computer module will be changed because it cannot be reset.

Toyota spokesman .. said Saturday that the company is unaware of any crashes or injuries related to the tire pressure system recall.

Toyota hasn't decided on a recall schedule yet.

Toyota has recalled 2.45 million vehicles this year in five campaigns after leading all automakers in recalls in 2009 and 2010, with about 11.8 million vehicles called back over the two-year period.

Last month, Toyota issued three separate recall campaigns for 2.17 million for pedal entrapment issues. The recalls ended the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's year-long investigation into whether Toyota had recalled enough vehicles connected to sudden unintended acceleration issues.

MORE RECALL INFO: 

• Toyota FJ Cruiser
• Toyota Land Cruiser
• Toyota Sequoia
• Toyota Tacoma
• Toyota Tundra

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MARCH 2011 -- Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 through 2011 FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser, Tacoma, Sequoia and Tundra vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 138, "Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)." When factory-installed wheels and tires were replaced with Toyota authorized accessory wheels and LT tires prior to first sale, the tire pressure monitoring systems were not re-calibrated correctly and therefore do not start illuminating the low tire pressure warning telltale at the required minimum activation pressure. Failure to warn of tire deflations is a non-compliance with FMVSS 138 and could lead to tire failure increasing the risk of a crash. For the land cruiser, sequoia, Tacoma and tundra vehicles, the dealer will re-calibrate the tire pressure monitoring system on affected vehicles and install an updated tire and loading information label at no charge. For the FJ cruiser vehicles, the TPMS cannot be reset so the electronic control unit (ECU) for the TPMS will be replaced. Toyota is currently developing the remedy ECU. If an owner is not certain whether his or her vehicle is equipped with these accessories, please contact any Toyota dealer for an inspection at no charge. The safety recall began on March 31, 2011.   11V-148

FEBRUARY 2010 -- Toyota is recalling certain model year 2010 Toyota Tacoma pickup trucks. The propeller shaft may develop cracks during the manufacturing process. Over time, the cracks may eventually lead to the separation of the propeller shaft. This may result in a loss of vehicle control increasing the risk of a crash. Dealers will inspect and replace the front propeller shaft on affected vehicles free of charge. Owners will be notified in March and April 2010.  10V-042

NEWS:   Toyota recalls 8,000 Tacoma trucks

CNN -- February 13, 2010 -- Toyota announced a voluntary safety recall of about 8,000 four-wheel-drive Tacoma trucks in North America, citing potential production defects in the front drive shaft of certain 2010 models.

The automaker said Friday that the front shaft in a small production run of pickups may include a component that developed cracks during the manufacturing process.

As the vehicles are used, the cracks could lead to "the separation of the drive shaft at the joint portion."

Toyota said the safety inspection and replacement will be performed at no cost.

On Tuesday, Toyota President Akio Toyoda issued an apology with the announcement of a global recall of more than 400,000 hybrid models for 2010, including the widely popular Prius, because of braking problems.

"Quality is our lifeline for Toyota," and the company will work to recover its customers' trust, Toyoda said. The company has recalled about 8 million vehicles worldwide.

Experts say Toyota has lost control of its message and needs to try to get it back during Washington hearings. Toyoda will testify before U.S. congressional committees if required, Japan's Kyodo News Agency reported.

The House of Representatives has scheduled committee hearings this month, and Senate hearings are scheduled to begin on March 2. So far, only Yoshimi Inaba, president of Toyota Motor North America, has been invited to testify, according to Kyodo.    READ FULL NEWS STORY

MORE RECALL INFO:   Toyota Tacoma

NEWS:  Toyota expanding recall by another 1 million vehicles

YAHOO NEWS -- Jan 27, 2010 -- Toyota Motor Corp late on Wednesday said it is expanding a recall of its cars and trucks by another 1.1 million vehicles to address the risk of accelerator pedals becoming dangerously stuck.

The recall involves 2009-2010 model year Corolla, Venza, Matrix vehicles and the 2008-2010 Highlander, as well as the 2009-2010 Pontiac Vibe. The Vibe had been assembled at a plant in California that Toyota had operated jointly with GM.

Toyota told federal officials of the expanded recall on Wednesday.  It is the second high-profile safety action in less than a week for the automaker. 

Last week, Toyota recalled 2.3 million vehicles that it said may have a faulty accelerator pedal that sticks.  Last year, Toyota said it was recalling more than 4 million vehicles for what it then said were safety risks linked to improperly placed floormats.  In November, after the issue was investigated by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Toyota said it would also modify or replace accelerator pedals as well. 

The total number of recalled Toyotas in 2009 and 2010 now stands at 5.9 million. There are some models involved in last week's as well as last year's recall.  In a letter to the NHTSA on Wednesday, Toyota said its plan is to modify or replace accelerator pedals. Modifying vehicle floors also will be considered on some models, Toyota said.

"Initially, dealers will be instructed on how to reshape the accelerator pedal for the repair," Toyota's letter to U.S. safety regulators said.  "As replacement parts...become available, they will be made available to the dealers," Toyota said

Models covered by the latest GAS PEDAL recall include the
 JANUARY 25, 2010

• 2009-10 RAV4
• 2009-10 Corolla
• 2007-10 Camry
• 2009-10 Matrix
• 2005-10 Avalon
• 2010 Highlander
• 2007-10 Tundra
• 2008-10 Sequoia

Models ADDED to the latest FLOOR MAT recall include the
 JANUARY 27, 2010

• 2009-10 Corolla
• 2009-10 Venza
• 2009-10 Matrix
• 2008-2010 Highlander
• 2009-2010 Pontiac Vibe

Models covered by the original FLOOR MAT recall include
 NOVEMBER 21, 2009

• 2007-2010 Toyota Camry
• 2005-2010 Toyota Avalon
• 2004-2009 Toyota Prius
• 2005-2010 Tacoma
• 2007-2010 Toyota Tundra
• 2007-2010 Lexus ES350
• 2006-2010 Lexus IS250 and IS350

OCTOBER 2009 -- Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004-2010 passenger vehicles. The accelerator pedal can get stuck in the wide open position due to its being trapped by an unsecured or incompatible driver's floor mat. A stuck open accelerator pedal may result in very high vehicle speeds and make it difficult to stop the vehicle, which could cause a crash, serious injury or death. Toyota will notify owners of affected vehicles to remove any driver's floor mat and not replace it with any other floor mat pending the development of model-specific remedies. Toyota will mail a second notification to owners of affected vehicles notifying them of the free remedy when it is available. The first notice was mailed on October 30, 2009 and Toyota will advise NHTSA an estimate of the date when the remedy parts will be available.    09V-388

JUNE 2009 -- Toyota is recalling 1,348 Model Year 2009 and 2010 passenger cars built from June 2, 2008 to May 4, 2009. These vehicles were not equipped with load carrying capacity modification labels which fails to conform with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 110, "Tire Selection and Rims." Incorrect load carrying capacity modification labels could result in the vehicle being overloaded, increasing the risk of a crash. Toyota will notify owners and provide them with a new, accurate label to be installed over the inaccurate label free of charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during July 2009. 09V-223

NEWS:   Toyota to recall 3.8M vehicles over floor mats

September 29, 2009 -- Yahoo News – Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday it will recall 3.8 million vehicles in the United States, the company's largest-ever U.S. recall, to address problems with a removable floor mat that could cause accelerators to get stuck and lead to a crash.

The recall will involve popular models such as the Toyota Camry, the top-selling passenger car in America, and the Toyota Prius, the best-selling gas-electric hybrid.

Toyota said it was still working with officials with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to find a remedy to fix the problem and said owners could be notified about the recall as early as next week. Toyota spokesman Irv Miller said until the company finds a fix, owners should take out the removable floor mat on the driver's side and not replace it.

"A stuck open accelerator pedal may result in very high vehicle speeds and make it difficult to stop a vehicle, which could cause a crash, serious injury or death," Miller said.

NHTSA said it had received reports of 102 incidents in which the accelerator may have become stuck on the Toyota vehicles involved. It was unclear how many led to crashes but the inquiry was prompted by a highspeed crash in August in California of a Lexus barreling out of control. As the vehicle hit speeds exceeding 120 mph, family members made a frantic 911 call and said the accelerator was stuck and they couldn't stop the vehicle.

"This is an urgent matter," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement. "For everyone's sake, we strongly urge owners of these vehicles to remove mats or other obstacles that could lead to unintended acceleration."

The recall will affect

• 2007-2010 Toyota Camry
• 2005-2010 Toyota Avalon
• 2004-2009 Toyota Prius
• 2005-2010 Tacoma
• 2007-2010 Toyota Tundra
• 2007-2010 Lexus ES350
• 2006-2010 Lexus IS250 and IS350.

Toyota's previously largest U.S. recall was about 900,000 vehicles in 2005 to fix a steering issue. The company declined to say how many complaints it had received about the accelerator issue.

The Japanese automaker warned owners that if they think their vehicle is accelerating out of control, they should check to see whether their floor mat is under the pedal. If a driver can't remove the floor mat, Toyota advises drivers to step on the brake pedal with both feet until the vehicle slows and then try to put it into neutral and switch the ignition to accessory power.

For vehicles with engine start/stop buttons, Toyota said the engine can be shut off by holding the button down for three seconds.

In the August incident near San Diego, the fiery crash of a 2009 Lexus ES 350 killed California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor, 45, and three members of his family on State Route 125 in Santee. The runaway car was traveling at more than 120 mph when it hit a sport utility vehicle, launched off an embankment, rolled several times and burst into flames. One of the family members called police about a minute before the crash to report the vehicle had no brakes and the accelerator was stuck. The call ended with someone telling people in the car to hold on and pray, followed by a woman's scream.

NHTSA investigators determined that a rubber all-weather floor mat found in the wreckage was slightly longer than the mat that belonged in the vehicle, something that could have snared or covered the accelerator pedal.

Toyota spokesman John Hanson said the final report had not yet been submitted in the California case.

"We don't know what the actual cause was of that accident other than preliminary reports that have been published so it's impossible for us to comment on that particular incident," Hanson said.

In mid-September, Toyota ordered 1,400 Toyota and Lexus dealers nationwide to ensure that each new, used and loaner vehicles had the proper floor mats and that the mats were properly secured.

In September 2007, Toyota recalled an accessory all-weather floor mat sold for use in some 2007 and 2008 model year Lexus ES 350 and Toyota Camry vehicles because of similar problems.

NEWS: 

• Detroit News - Despite reliability image, automaker has had five recalls in the United States this year...

• LA Times - Toyota Recalls More Than 750,000 Vehicles...

• Google News Links - more Toyota Recall information...