Sticking Accelerator Pedals--us Toyota's Recalled And Sales Suspen

[junebug1701]

I don't know if everyone here is following this story about unintended acceleration problems with Toyota cars in the US, but what started out as a floor mat scare has now become more serious. Toyota has recalled another 2.3 million cars and today announced that they are suspending sales on 8 models including the Camry, Corolla, and RAV4. However, this problem may be crossing the pond to the UK and Europe as well. Here's an excerpt from a story in the Wall Street Journal:

Last week, Toyota recalled 2.3 million vehicles in the U.S. affected by the accelerator assembly problem. That was on top of an earlier recall of 4.2 million vehicles to fix the floor mat issue. About 1.7 million vehicles are subject to both recalls.

Toyota will expand its recall of vehicles with defective gas pedals to Europe, a person close to the matter said Monday. The person said Toyota expects to recall roughly two million vehicles in Europe.

Toyota suspends sales

Also, Toyota North America has sent a letter to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration informing them of the problem. Here's an excerpt from that letter:

December 2008 -August 2009

Toyota received field technical information from the European market which indicated reports

of accelerator pedal sticking on vehicles equipped with pedals containing the PPS material.

The reports predominantly involved right hand drive versions of the Toyota Aygo and Yaris

vehicles. Toyota began a detailed investigation with an evaluation of returned accelerator

pedals in March 2009. Internal inspection of the sliding surface of the friction lever and the

pedal arm was found to be partially smooth. Toyota conducted some duplication tests, and it

was found that the internal friction could increase if moisture was attached to the sliding

surface of the friction lever as the surface became smooth. This made the accelerator pedal

stick in a partially depressed position under the condition where condensation occurs on the

accelerator pedal (i.e. for several minutes during heater operation after the engine is started in

cold temperatures). In addition, in the condition where A/C is operated, the phenomenon did

not occur. At this time, it appeared to be a phenomenon predominantly limited to right hand

drive vehicles, without A/C equipment, based on the location of the accelerator pedal and the

heater duct. Based on the investigation results above, Toyota lengthened the arm of the

friction lever and changed its material to prevent smoothing on all vehicles produced in

Europe with the subject accelerator pedals starting in mid-August 2009.

The entire letter can be downloaded here:

Toyota NHTSA Letter

[cabcurtains]

Call the Ambulance chasers , or dip the clutch/knock it out of drive and depress the big pedal in the middle or blame someone else get the compo

[adam_d]

I've been following this story too, I just find it strange how quickly it's all grown and come out over in the US. There's a good test article here:

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/09q4/...ation-tech_dept

There's quite a lot of these about on the internet, did find one where Toyota managed to recover some data from one of the cars onboard computers about the time of the crash, which didn't show anything was wrong with the car.I just find it strange nothing like this has had this much coverage elsewhere in the world.

[Karma Supra]

Call the Ambulance chasers , or dip the clutch/knock it out of drive and depress the big pedal in the middle or blame someone else get the compo

It's funny how it seems only to be a real issue in the USofA....

[adam_d]

Call the Ambulance chasers , or dip the clutch/knock it out of drive and depress the big pedal in the middle or blame someone else get the compo

It's funny how it seems only to be a real issue in the USofA....

They had another recall that was fairly large amidst all this too, on cars using "1.8 gasoline engines" such as the Matrix, which was only in the USA too. I'm assuming they will have been the 1zz-fe engines, and they were described as cutting out and then not being able to restart them, which I haven't heard of anywhere else. I will ahve a check to see if I can find the article.

[donegal corolla]

i was in america at the time of this recall and was surprized it was only the yanks complaining,if the americans foot wasnt so fat the pedal wouldnt get jammed down me thinks???

[junebug1701]

It's funny how it seems only to be a real issue in the USofA....

They had another recall that was fairly large amidst all this too, on cars using "1.8 gasoline engines" such as the Matrix, which was only in the USA too. I'm assuming they will have been the 1zz-fe engines, and they were described as cutting out and then not being able to restart them, which I haven't heard of anywhere else. I will ahve a check to see if I can find the article.

Yes, and what's strange is that the Pontiac Vibe, which is a twin of the Matrix, made in the same Toyota factory, has NOT been recalled by GM.

[junebug1701]

Now they are saying that there are 2 different pedal assemblies--one made by CTS in Canada, and the other made by Denso in Japan. The defective pedals that are allegedly sticking are the CTS type. I'm just glad my RAV4 was made in Japan!!

[junebug1701]

Toyota says to expand vehicle recall to Europe

TOKYO (AFP) – Toyota Motor said Thursday that it would expand a massive safety recall due to an accelerator pedal problem to Europe, although the number of vehicles affected there has not yet been decided.

"Toyota will implement a recall in Europe," said company spokesman Paul Nolasco. "We are still not sure about the models and the number of vehicles."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100128/ts_af..._20100128082729

[junebug1701]

Toyota expands floor mat recall; supplier redesigns pedal

By James R. Healey, USA TODAY

Redesigned gas-pedal assemblies are already in production and being shipped to Toyota factories to go into new vehicles in place of the components that triggered a recall of 2.3 million Toyotas on Jan. 21, according to the parts supplier.

But late Wednesday, Toyota expanded an earlier recall, adding 1.1 million vehicles to the total being called back to fix a floor-mat problem.

The parts company, CTS Automotive Products, is working on ways to modify the faulty pedals in recalled cars on the road instead of replacing them, Toyota said Wednesday night.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2010-0...ts_N.htm?csp=34