Another Blow For The Famed Toyota Reliability?

[Feral Rabbit]

Don't know if this is a repost but has anyone here been recalled?

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/toyota-recalls-74-million-cars-1370541

[dervdave]

Another Blow For The Famed Toyota Reliability?

Why no not a chance

[Big Kev]

......and in the PINNED press release from Red Yaris,it is claimed there has been one reported incidence in the U.K., so those totally unreliable folk at Toyota have decided to recall tens of thousands of cars to be on the safe side.

Bloody useless car manufacturer, eh....?

Did the "one incidence" maybe squirt some volatile WD40 into his switch, so it shorted and caught fire.....? We will never know.

Please don't accuse me of "Toyota Protecting" before reading the Runflats posts......THEY SHOULD BE SHOT WITH A BALL OF THEIR OWN WASTE FOR THAT.

Big Kev

[Parts-King]

Hold back from telling the public a recall is about to happen and get slated by the press and public

Tell the world a recall is imminent and get slated by the press and public for a blow to the famed reliability, they cannot win

I can think of a lot past problems with other manufacturers who never instigated a recall to save money. Toyota go about it in the right way IMHO, bringing problems to the attention of customers and replacing parts accordingly. I cannot think of one window switch that I have sold this year so it is not an issue where they fail every 5 minutes, it is just a POTENTIAL problem

It might be a little inconvenient to bring your car in for a recall, but better to have a part replaced than to live with a potential problem. It has been reported because Toyota have issued a press release!

Kingo

[crofter]

I am with Kev 100% on his post.

To my mind this is Toyota going to great expense to address a minute possibilty of a fault that is not wide spread.

Lets face it we would know about it on here if it was.!!

They are not talking about new cars with this supposed ?problem?

If this is not an exercise to reinforce their reputation then I don't know what is!!

Another knee jerk response from the press as usual

Del

PS you beat me to it Kingo

[dave.m]

Hold back from telling the public a recall is about to happen and get slated by the press and public

Tell the world a recall is imminent and get slated by the press and public for a blow to the famed reliability, they cannot win

I can think of a lot past problems with other manufacturers who never instigated a recall to save money. Toyota go about it in the right way IMHO, bringing problems to the attention of customers and replacing parts accordingly. I cannot think of one window switch that I have sold this year so it is not an issue where they fail every 5 minutes, it is just a POTENTIAL problem

It might be a little inconvenient to bring your car in for a recall, but better to have a part replaced than to live with a potential problem. It has been reported because Toyota have issued a press release!

Kingo

Well said, which can't be said for other car makers, Honda seem to have a very similar problem in the US, yet not a mention of it

over here. See link -

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/10/09/honda-recalls-268-000-cr-v-models-over-window-switches/

[Parts-King]

Probably the same window switch manufacturer

Oh heck, somebody will be in for one big insurance bill ;)

Kingo

[Parts-King]

From the press release

Toyota places the highest priority on customer safety and the quality of our vehicles. We are constantly monitoring our cars’ performance through a variety of sources. From time to time, we become aware of a situation where a certain component or aspect of the vehicle does not meet our strict standards.

Today, Wednesday October 10th, Toyota GB registered a recall on RAV4, Yaris, and Auris models with the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA). The recall affects 138,000 vehicles in the UK and will be carried out in accordance with the VOSA Code of Practice.

What is the condition?

The electric window switch, or Power Window Master Switch (“PWMS”), controls the windows for the driver and passengers. It has come to our attention that on certain RAV4, Auris and Yaris models built between September 2006 and December 2008 the possibility exists that the PWMS, located in the driver’s door, may over time begin to feel uneven or notchy when it is operated. Continued operation in this condition may cause the switch to stick or become inoperable. The switch is not designed to be lubricated with commercially available lubricants. Application of these lubricants could lead to overheating and/or melting of the switch assembly.

There has been one reported case in the UK. There are no reported accidents related to this issue.

What will be done?

Customer satisfaction is of paramount importance to Toyota. Consequently, Toyota has decided to conduct a recall campaign to check the PWMS on the affected cars.

All affected owners will be contacted by Toyota GB within the next six weeks and asked to make an appointment to bring their car to their nearest Toyota centre. The dealer will check the operation of the PWMS. If the PWMS is operating properly it will be given a special, non-conducting lubrication; if the PWMS is notchy it will be replaced with a new unit. The work should take no more than one hour and will be carried out free of charge.

If owners require additional information they should contact Customer Relations on 0800 1388 744.

EDIT: Check if your car is affected at www.toyota.co.uk/recall

[Manxrav]

This recall is not just a Toyota problem "if there is one" If you read in the press last week Honda are recalling 500000 CRV,s with the same window switch problem.

At least Toyota don,t sweep it under the carpet like a lot of other Car makers. Top marks for Toyota!!!!!

Regards Clare

[Lorna2]

And here's the Honda one http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-19869616

[Feral Rabbit]

I must admit that Toyota do seem to jump on problems quicker than most car manufacturers. I was impressed with their brake recall a few years back.

Coming from Honda, I had an S2000 prior to this car, there were manufacturing faults with that car (seized suspension bolts due to them not being greased properly, 09 cars having defective engines and popping at 9,000 miles, roof frame wearing soft top out due to sharp edges etc) that they (Honda) refused to accept liability and you had to fight tooth and nail with Honda UK to get anything done.

[firemac]

Judging by what I've read so far, does this only affect the 4.3?

[Parts-King]

does this only affect the 4.3?

YES. From 1st Sept 2006 PRODUCTION through to 2nd December 2008 PRODUCTION (NOT Registration dates)

Kingo

[junebug1701]

I'm not going to lose any sleep over this. This is the switch that locks out the passengers window switches. I never use it, but I suppose someone with kids might use it a bit. IF the switch got to the point where it felt rough or notchy, and IF someone then applied some kind of flammable oil or grease to it, then it MIGHT cause a problem. My switch is silky smooth and has never been lubricated so I don't think there's a problem.

[blue monster]

Please don't think that this is me being critical of Toyota this is more of a general observation & question.

Early last month we received a letter from Mr T about the rear suspension arm which said Toyota would be in touch to arrange the car being checked out - to date we have heard nothing more. The average punter may have put 500-1,000 miles on their car since receiving that letter - my wife has put approximately 3,000 miles on ours of which 90% will be sat at motorway speeds.

So, my main concern at the moment is getting this sorted as the suspension operating correctly is far more important to me, my wife's safety and the safety of other road users than a window switch that may not fail.

Are Toyota going to end up tripping over themselves trying to deal with 2 recalls at the same time?

[Uncle Bob]

Toyota need a pat on the back for going public with this recall, you never see the big German cars brands all over the front pages of the press ,yet they have many more recalls that Toyota

.Every car manufacturer has recalls all the time, its the media that jump on the Toyota bashing bandwagon, The last recall never done them any harm, Good on Toyota for putting its customers first.

[Jamesbelfast]

This is not a new problem - it has happened on many makes of cars down the years. On older cars the window switches were usually in the central console or dash where they were unlikely to be exposed to inclement weather. Apart from Toyota and Honda, Renault Scenics has also had similar switch problems where the car went on fire. The underlying problem seems to be the switches cannnot resist the ingress of water or dust. This is just down to poor or cheap design yet many car makers refuse to deal with the problem either at the design or manufacture stage. Strange thing is I can buy an exterior security light which complies with the elctrical safety standard IP44 for use outdoors in all weathers for £7-99.

It may be that Toyota have learnt from the Honda situation whereby two years ago a child lost its life in a Honda Jazz in South Africa (see link below).

It's good to see Toyota are being pro-active but in my opinion this is an old problem which is only being dealt with years after such problems were evident.

In the interests of safety if your car us due a recall I would urge you to get the switch replaced ASAP.

http://www.telegraph...fire-fears.html

[rambler]

Good ol Toyota for sorting it all out........just one switch.

[Big Kev]

Please don't think that this is me being critical of Toyota this is more of a general observation & question.

Early last month we received a letter from Mr T about the rear suspension arm which said Toyota would be in touch to arrange the car being checked out - to date we have heard nothing more. The average punter may have put 500-1,000 miles on their car since receiving that letter - my wife has put approximately 3,000 miles on ours of which 90% will be sat at motorway speeds.

So, my main concern at the moment is getting this sorted as the suspension operating correctly is far more important to me, my wife's safety and the safety of other road users than a window switch that may not fail.

Are Toyota going to end up tripping over themselves trying to deal with 2 recalls at the same time?

Good point well made as usual, Martin.....so if you know that the rear tracking has at some point been done, either in your ownership or prior, go jump the queue with my / our blessing. If you know the rear tracking has not been interfered with, but based on your concerns and the high mileage your wee lady does, GO TELL YOUR LOCAL DEALER. If he ignores you, he is playing with burny bits......good luck.

Big Kev

[Uncle Buck]

I was wondering when Toyota would call mine in for the suspension check, but I'm not overly worried about it as the rear suspension geometry has never been interfered with. As for the switch, I'm not even remotely concerned. Well done Toyota for being brave enough to sort small potential issues out, when other makers are point-blankly ignoring blatant faults (like Fiat denying there was a massive faulty batch of coilpacks a few years back !).

[Parts-King]

The suspension recall is still going ahead as planned, alongside the switch recall, there will be no "tripping over"

Martin

If you (or anybody else) is in any way concerned about your suspension (or switch) then by all means pop in to your dealer for an inspection. It is highly unlikely you will have an issue with either suspension or switch. Parts will not be available just for a short while, once they are, then letters will start to go out and you will be asked to make a booking at your dealer

Kingo

[DjRav]

Just booked the Rav in for a full service. Before I could mention it, they told me they'd do both recall checks (window switch and suspension) whilst it was in.

Dealer seems on the ball!

Dave

[Davrav]

Yup, my dealer did the suspension check at my last service a couple of weeks ago. They were not sure when the clips for the suspension would be available but thought a few weeks. Unfortunately the window switch issue was announced subsequently.

I'm owed a complimentary wash and valet so hopefully all three can be sorted in one go.