Oh My God !

[Toyota3000]

Got a letter from Toyota (GB) in Epson, Surrey, stating :

"I am writing to advise you that it is necessary to undertake a modification to your vehicle that our continious quality monitoring has identified.

It has been established that on certain Yaris models, there is a possibility that engine oil may penetrate the seal on the crankshaft position sensor and enter the sensor wiring connector.

In the worst case scenario this could result in the connector becoming disconnected, which may cause the engine to stall and prevent restarting.

As a preventative measure and for your total peace of mind we would like to address this issue on your vehicle completely at our cost and with minimum inconvenience to you.

We would ask that you contact your local Toyota Centre in order to arrange a convenient time for replacement to be undertaken. To help you with your planning, we can advise the work will take approximately 1 hour."

WTF?!

Now my Yaris is 5 and a half years old (Y Reg.) and I've personally had it for 1 and a half years (since May 2005).

Why has Toyota suddenly realised now that there might be a fault ?

On a nearly 6 year old car ?

Is this some sort of marketing ploy ? reason I ask is because I received a letter from my main dealers not too long ago stating (very briefly) to contact them asap - letter sounded very important - when I did, all they asked me was whether I was interested in exchanging my current Yaris for a newer model !

Any advice guys (and gals) ?

[Jamesb4uk]

Toyota are recalling some cars in the USA for this fault - but can't see info on a UK recall...

might be worth calling your dealer.

J

[Chuck04]

Yeah i had this letter through this morning, but it was for my old yaris, ( y plate t sport) had nothing through for my 52 plate t sport yet!

[alanbradley]

Don't be an alarmist fool.

It has probably only happened on 2 or 3 cars worldwide and if it hasn't affected your car already then it will probably never be an issue.

For the brake pipe recall on my Y-reg one the fault had occurred on 2 Yari owned by some Scandinavian postal service that only ever did low speed stop/start driving (ie never fast enough to spin the snow out of the inside of the wheel) in a type of snow we don't get in this country. They recalled every relevant Yaris in Europe.

Get it done, receive the free gift you will doubtless be offered to make up for your time and then forget about it.

A

[Toyota3000]

Okay guys, thanks for replying.

Will get it checked out :)

[XtcGinga]

As far as I know, here in portugal, the same is happening ;)

[Kerby]

my mum recieved the same letter this morning for her yaris. so i phoned up about my car this mornin to see if mine was affected and its not :s different chassis plate or somethin

[Kev Mc]

I hope this doesn't affect my old car, my cousin (the new owner) will think I've sold her a shed

[tim_mabin]

Mine is affected by this... got a letter this morning.

Its already booked in to be sorted out on monday free of charge :)

[rallybunny]

Just out of interest, how do Toyota know who the owner of the car is? Do only people who have bought the car within the Toyota network get contacted, or do they access the DVLA database?

[tim_mabin]

Think its got something to do with the DVLA. Not sure to be honest.

I bought mine second hand and never notified toyota so they must have some sort of system

If your worried ring 0845 275 5555 and give them your reg and chassis no. and they should be able to tell you if yours needs sorting ;)

[Chuck04]

I gave them a ring to check, apparently its done off the DVLA, even though i sold mine couple months back now i still seem to be the registered owner of my old one, according to their systems. Same with my new yaris, apparently on their systems the previous owner still owns it and not me, but they corrected all that for me.

According to the guy i spoke with its only 2001 models jan- oct

[Al J]

As Alan said, it is absolutely nothing to worry about. Book the car in, have the job done (free remember) and you'll probably get a little Toyota bag with stuff like de-icer and scraper plus some car cleaning stuff as a thank you. Well, that's what I got when I took my last car in for its drum brake line relocation. Like I'd drive in the snow and temperatures to which they were referring anyway! :P

It's a safeguard. Toyota, just like all the other companies can't afford even the slightest possibility of a death/serious injury caused by a fault in their cars. It must cost them a fortune to put these things right on a recall but it's their only option.

[mr2gti]

We give out Chocolates and Champagne at our place.

Yaris Sensor is the latest mass recall coming into effect.

[opelfruit]

I've had the letter too, just booked mine in. I don't see the problem - I'm dropping my car off, getting a curtosey car, picking my car up, it'll be fixed and no doubt clean! And they'll probably give me a little something for the trouble - all free of charge.

[markoibook]

Just found out today that my 51 reg T-Sport is due in too. Fortunately I just so happen to be off work, so I've booked it in for Monday.

With regards to freebie gifts - is this a standard thing or dealer dependant. And do you have to kick up a fuss to get it or is it automatic. I only ask out of interest - because knowing my dealer I wouldn't be surprised if I get nothing!

[b1ackb1rd]

My mothers 51 plate 1.3 GLS auto was done yesterday ... the garage also did an unsolicited 'Winter Check' whilst they had the car and called her on her mobile (which worried her) and tried to sell her 2 new tyres.

Bl**dy cheeky buggers ... same garage who tried to tell me that my discs and pads were dangerously worn last year.

So this is a petrol only problem then ?

[tim_mabin]

Mine was done on monday... didnt get any freebies either :(

[Swainey]

yehh got my letter through yesterday morning, going to ring up this weekend and book it in, although i dont know why they didnt tell me when i went in for a new wheel like 2 weeks ago :P

[dogjenks]

Had to put my yaris in yesterday morning for the recall work - FRF swansea - got a bottle of champagne, about £8 of petrol and a car wash!! :)

Pretty impressed.

[markoibook]

Popped mine in today, had the new sensor fitted and was given a bottle of champagne. All in all, quite chuffed as I had the day off work anyway, and I guess the bottle of champers was a nice gesture.