A Toyota accident risk recall now involves about 8 million vehicles that could have a sticky accelerator or a gas pedal that become stuck underneath floor mats. Intention to file a Toyota class action lawsuit has been announced by a Florida lawyer.
A lawsuit against Toyota has also been filed in Circuit Court in Genesee County, Mich., after a 77-year-old woman died when her 2005 Camry reportedly accelerated suddenly and crashed. The car was not part of any current Toyota recall, the New York Times reported, however:
“Instead, the crash is now being looked at as a possible example of problems with the electronic system that controls the throttle and engine speed in Toyotas…In a lawsuit filed in Mrs. Alberto’s family claims that Toyota and one of its suppliers, the Japanese firm Denso, were negligent in manufacturing an electronic throttle system that caused her death.”
Now the auto giant is poised to recall almost 300,000 model year 2010 units of its popular gas-electric hybrid, the Prius, according to reports from Japan’s Kyodo News Agency reported today. The Prius recall would be due to a brake defect that could increase the risk of a Toyota accident. The Toyota Prius recall would affect about 100,ooo vehicles in the United States and about 170,000 in Japan. The official announcement is expected early this week.
As for the recalls related to gas pedal problems, Toyota announced Friday:
“…dealers nationwide have received the parts, information and training they need to fix accelerator pedals in recalled Toyota Division vehicles, and that repairs on involved vehicles have begun. The actual repair requires about 30 minutes of work.”
