Toyota Recall

[brianl703]

Eleven accidents prompt US Toyota recall
Friday, 19 Jan 2007 09:22
Toyota recalled over half a million vehicles Japanese carmaker Toyota has recalled more than half a million vehicles in the US after a steering problem was believed to have been involved in 11 accidents.

The car maker is recalling 533,000 2004 to 2006 Tundra trucks and 2004 to 2007 Sequoia sport utility vehicles. Spokesman Bill Kwong confirmed the recall, stating that there have also been six injuries thought to be linked to the announcement.

There has been no mention of the financial hit that Toyota will take over the recall, but Bloomberg estimated that the recall and repair of the vehicles will cost the company in excess of $250 million (£130 million).

Recall costs are not expected to impact the company's earnings. According to reports, the company has a special fund set up to finance the cost of recalls.

Mr Kwong has explained the problem with the recalled models is due to excessive wear to a lower ball joint in the front suspension. The excessive wear makes the vehicles hard to steer, meaning drivers will find it difficult to control the vehicle.

Last year Toyota, the world's number two carmaker, recalled 766,000 vehicles, a significant drop from the 2.2 million vehicles recalled in 2005.

 

[Mustang_Cougar]

I see no problem with this; Automobiles are highly technical machines and I don't begrudge any manufacturer (foreign or domestic) for quickly following up on situations/problems that only arise when hundreds of thousands of them are on the road. There are only so many scenarios you can test for in development, especially with consumers demand model revamps every four years.

Where I would fault a manufacturer is when there are hundreds/thousands of reported incidents and they still shirk their recall responsibilities. Eleven reported incidents? I consider such a timely reponse by Toyota to be acceptable. However, I'm sure some here will enjoy a shadenfreude moment...

 

[Bryanccfshr]

I am sure some will try to use this as bad publicity, but I simply see it as Toyota responding appropriately when issues are brought to their attention. Everyone involved in the recall will get new lower Ball joints and an alignment, something everyone can use from time to time.

 

[brianl703]

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I consider such a timely reponse by Toyota to be acceptable.

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The first models affected by this recall are now likely 3.5 years old (assuming that 2004 models came out in June of 2003).

Also, this is the second time Toyota has had a recall for ball joint problems, if I am not mistaken. The first recall was for the Tacoma pickups. I remember that one well---someone on some forum (I don't think it was this one) floated a crackpot theory that the balljoints were made in the USA and sabatoged on the assembly line.

Theory was shot to #@$%! when it was revealed that the balljoints were made in Japan.

 

[brianl703]

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I am sure some will try to use this as bad publicity

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Yes, like some/many use GM or Ford recalls as bad publicity.

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Everyone involved in the recall will get new lower Ball joints and an alignment, something everyone can use from time to time.

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See, that's thinking positive.

 

[ScottB]

Brian lives for Toyota recalls...
We get it.
All makes have recalls.
It's how they handle them that counts.

But, I'm sure it's posted here to help any potential owners on BITOG!

 

[Mustang_Cougar]

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Brian lives for Toyota recalls...

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Yeah, I see that now. Silly, pesky search feature...

BTW: Does anyone think these Toyota recalls will have any impact upon their sales in the battle with GM for #1? (Rhetorical...)

 

[Mustang_Cougar]

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I consider such a timely reponse by Toyota to be acceptable.

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The first models affected by this recall are now likely 3.5 years old (assuming that 2004 models came out in June of 2003).

Also, this is the second time Toyota has had a recall for ball joint problems, if I am not mistaken. The first recall was for the Tacoma pickups. I remember that one well---someone on some forum (I don't think it was this one) floated a crackpot theory that the balljoints were made in the USA and sabatoged on the assembly line.

Theory was shot to #@$%! when it was revealed that the balljoints were made in Japan.

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Hmmm, sort of reminds me of how Ford was telling me that my Explorer would flip over because of excessive driver speed, not because of any engineering or material defects.

Then of course, they told me it was because of a combination of excessive driver speed and a small batch of faulty tires from an American supplier.

Next, Ford told me it was all of the tires on all of their Explorers and that, coupled with an excessive speed constituting "greater than 70mph," an unsafe driving condition could occur.

And finally, Ford...who spec'd the original tire specifically for the Explorer...acknowledged fault and replaced the tires on my Explorer and every other one in North America.

And at that point, how many accidents had occurred? How many fatalities? Was it greater than eleven? Was it longer than 3.5 years? And did they do this out of an altruistic concern for driver safety? Or was it the lawsuits and bad press that did it?

Save the schadenfreud for another subject...I had my bad experience(s) with FoMoCo and their "timely" recall process.

 

[brianl703]

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Brian lives for Toyota recalls...

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I'm just posting them here as a public service

 

[brianl703]

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And finally, Ford...who spec'd the original tire specifically for the Explorer...acknowledged fault and replaced the tires on my Explorer and every other one in North America.

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You have to think positive. You got a free set of tires.

By the way, you neglected to mention the Explorer owners who never bothered to check the tire pressure on their vehicles. That might be why tire pressure monitors are mandated for 2007 vehicles.

I'd never buy an Explorer, by the way. I am not a big fan of that vehicle.

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Hmmm, sort of reminds me of how Ford was telling me that my Explorer would flip over because of excessive driver speed, not because of any engineering or material defects.

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And yes, the Explorer is more prone to flip over than many other vehicles.

 

[ScottB]

This thread is killing me :lol:

 

[Mustang_Cougar]

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You have to think positive. You got a free set of tires.

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Lucky for me, not so much for those who already had accidents during the preceding years.

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By the way, you neglected to mention the Explorer owners who never bothered to check the tire pressure on their vehicles. That might be why tire pressure monitors are mandated for 2007 vehicles.

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Mandated for 2007, eh? I guess that would be an example of a "timely response" by the federal government with regards to public safety.

When did this whole Explorer/Firestone fiasco happen again?

BTW: I'm not going out of my way to slam domestics about recalls; I've never posted anything here or anywhere else about domestics being more prone to product recalls. However, I do find it odd that when a company does come clean...and does so fairly quickly...it's somehow a source of joy for some people. This sort of behavior (admitting mistakes) should be rewarded, if anything. Cars are highly technical, some problems aren't going to be fleshed out until half a million of them are on the road. Trying to slam Toyota over this doesn't seem like a bright approach for defending domestics, considering the inevitable recalls they too will experience.

Cars are complex, things will happen. Instead of "us vs. them" when it comes to recalls, it should be "our response time with regards to a recall vs. theirs."

 

[brianl703]

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Mandated for 2007, eh? I guess that would be an example of a "timely response" by the federal government with regards to public safety.

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Frankly, I think it's a load of #@$%!. If you can't be bothered to check the tire pressure in your vehicle once in a while, you shouldn't be driving.

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This sort of behavior (admitting mistakes) should be rewarded, if anything.

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The fact is, it often isn't, and it's likely for that reason (on top of the costs) that recalls may be delayed as much as possible or not ever issued at all. (The infamous foglight problem on late 80s Ford vehicles should have been a recall).

 

[brianl703]

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It's how they handle them that counts.

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Are you talking about the process that leads up to a recall being declared or the process that happens after a recall is declared?

I got a recall notice from Ford for a used car I bought in 2001. The recall was issued in 1999.

If nothing else, that's at least an example of good customer notification, and the fact that they continually cross-check their records against DMV records to identify cars that still need the recall performed.

I don't believe all manufacturers do this becuase I've heard of people who have never gotten a recall notice.

 

[cmhj]

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Frankly, I think it's a load of #@$%!. If you can't be bothered to check the tire pressure in your vehicle once in a while, you shouldn't be driving.

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I totally agree. Yet it amazes me how many soft or near flat tires I see on the highway.

 

[brianl703]

Add to that all of the vehicles I see with at least one blown light on them, either a brake light or a head light, and I have to wonder what is wrong with some people.

 

[ScottB]

Well, one problem is that most cars don't have any sort of "light's out" warning like they used to.
You have to either make sure you check ALL of your lights on a regular basis, or hope someone tells you - I always tell people if I can when they have a light out.

 

[brianl703]

I could definitely understand someone not being aware of a burned out brake light, but a burned out headlight is pretty hard to miss since you can see them both reflecting back at you on walls, bumpers, store windows, etc, and it will be pretty obvious that one is blown.

 

[Papa Bear]

Why can't companies make a descent balljoint ??!! Geez, it's not rocket science.

 

[brianl703]

I've never had to get the balljoints replaced in any of the cars I've owned.

I'm not really even sure how long they should last..as of now I think it's upwards of 150K.