Toyota to recall 2.3 million vehicles
Gas pedal problem unrelated to earlier accelation-based recall
LOS ANGELES – Toyota Motor Corp. said it will recall 2.3 million vehicles because their gas pedals can stick open, potentially causing unintended acceleration.
The new recall is separate from the automaker’s recall of 4.3 million vehicles to prevent gas pedal entrapment by the floor mats, which also can cause unintended acceleration. The prior recall, announced last fall, is now under way.
The Japanese automaker said that it would recall eight models, including the Corolla and Camry, because it noticed a trend of complaints from consumers of pedals that remained depressed. A Toyota spokesman described the problem as mechanical.
“We’ve been investigating claims of sudden unintended acceleration so we cast a wide net and we came across this issue,” said Brian Lyons, a spokesman for Toyota’s U.S. sales arm.
He said the automaker identified a small number of complaints that it could verify and as a result decided to initiate a recall. Lyons declined to say how many complaints the automaker had found.
Toyota has not yet decided how it will remedy the pedal-sticking problem, and in the interim is asking drivers who experience the issue to stop driving the car and notify a Toyota dealer as soon as possible.
Of the 2.3 million vehicles being recalled, 1.7 million are also affected by the floor-mat recall. In that action, Toyota is replacing or modifying accelerator pedals, replacing floor mats, modifying carpeting and installing throttle override software.
Lyons said that the two recalls were unrelated and were aimed at discrete problems.