Customers of Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) were relieved when Jim Lentz, President of the company’s U.S. division, announced that the company will start repairing the recalled as well as on-road vehicles this week. Each vehicle would take about half an hour to be repaired. Millions of Toyota drivers lived in anxiety after the revelation on January 21, 2010, of a sticking accelerator gas pedal on specific Toyota models.
On January 27, Toyota had decided to suspend the sale of 8 of its models involved in a recall of 2.3 million vehicles in the country (4.2 million worldwide) due to the gas pedal problem. The models affected in the sales suspension were RAV4 crossover (2009–2010), Corolla (2009–2010), Matrix (2009–2010), Avalon (2005–2010), Camry (2007–2010), Highlander (2010), Tundra (2007–2010) and Sequoia (2008–2010).
This followed the largest-ever recall of 3.8 million vehicles in the U.S. in September last year by Toyota. The September recall has been triggered by a high-speed crash in August involving a 2009 Lexus ES350 that killed a California Highway Patrol officer and three members of his family near San Diego.
Investigators with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have found that a rubber all-weather floor mat in the wreckage was slightly longer than it needed to be could have covered the accelerator pedal, causing the high-speed crash.
However, after rigorous testing, Toyota believed that the problem is actually twofold — a combination of loose floor mats that can interfere with accelerator pedals and a pedal that can itself get stuck when a driver presses it. This has led the automaker to announce the second round of recall in January, which involved vehicles with sticking accelerator pedal mechanisms without the presence of floor mats.
Permanent Solution to the Problem
Lentz has provided a permanent solution to the problem, which involves installing a steel shim a couple of millimeters thick in the pedal assembly behind the top of the gas pedal that would eliminate the excess friction between two pieces of the accelerator mechanism. The solution was behind Toyota’s finding that the friction could cause the pedal to become stuck in the depressed position.
Toyota has stated that the car owners would be notified by mail, asking them to set up appointments with their dealers in order to repair their vehicles. The cars already on the road would get priority over those in the lot.
Toyota has not yet projected the cost of its recalls and lost sales. However, the effect of recall on Toyota’s business, which has enjoyed a loyal customer base and a reputation for quality, can easily be gauged. According to Edmunds.com, an automotive research website, the company’s sales in January are expected to fall 11% from the year-ago level and its market share is likely to fall to its lowest point since 2006 in the U.S.
However, Toyota’s shareholders seem to be pleased by Lentz’s announcement. The company’s stock, which took a hit last week, went up nearly 4% on Monday, although this gain has been more than cut in half by mid-day Tuesday.
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