Toyota used ‘secret recalls’ for floor mat issues

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Reuters

By Bernie Woodall, Soyoung Kim and Kevin Krolicki

DETROIT - When Toyota Motor Corp concluded that seemingly harmless floor mats posed a danger in all of its cars and trucks, the automaker sent a stark warning intended to prevent crashes.

"If the floor mat is NOT properly placed and secured, it could slip and interfere with the movement of the pedals during driving and may cause an accident," Toyota said. "NEVER install more than one floor mat at a time in the driver's seating position."

The only problem: almost no one in the American driving public saw the warning, which was issued in September 2007 — two full years before Toyota announced the first in a string of recalls taking aim at the problem of unintended acceleration. That is because it was sent as a so-called "technical service bulletin" to about 1,500 Toyota and Lexus dealers.

A nearly identical bulletin went out in April 2008, cautioning that improperly installed floor mats could cause crashes right across the Toyota lineup, in the Camry, Corolla, Matrix, Sienna, Tundra, Sequoia and Land Cruiser.



Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36036209/ns/business-autos/

[amandabeech]

1. These folks are in deep doo doo at the wrong time.

The mighty almost always fall.

The Detroit Disease of the mid-70s crosses the Pacific.

Let's see how Toyota recovers from it.

[newscott]

2. I always ask my dealer about TSBs now.

In addition there are web sites where manufacturer employees happily post TSBs. At least for my Dodge Caliber SRT4 anyway.

The reason I stay away from Toyota is that when I was researching buying a car in 2008 I noticed that many of the complaints about Toyota are that dealerships and the manufacturer itself are very quick to dismiss concerns and complaints as driver error.

[flamin lib]

3. That sort of thing is a service bulletin and all car makers use them.

Generally the car maker will send a memo to the service department noting that in specific models a specific defect may appear. Depending on the severity of the defect it will be automatically incorporated into the next service or the customer will complain and the service will be performed at no charge.

For instance I had a 1997 Ford Thunderbird that developed a shuddering up-shift into overdrive. It felt like the car was running over the little speed bumps that mark traffic lanes. The service bulletin noted the issue and specified that changing the transmission fluid was the fix.

The consumer is not notified of these bulletins, only the dealerships. It's common practice and has been for decades.

Only defects verified to be of danger in the operation of the vehicle or severe enough to cause very expensive damage have resulted in a re-call wherein the owner of the vehicle is notified.

Installing a second floor mat is tantamount to modifying the vehicle from factory standards. Like installing aftermarket exhaust and having the floor of the car overheat--not Toyota's fault. However they noted the problem and notified the dealers.

Now, that doesn't explain all the other weird acceleration problems they've had nor does it excuse their secretive behavior and ass covering.

[operationsman]

4. Toyota's Knowledge of Danger

This is another indication that Toyota has favored profits over quality. In Europe, Toyota identified and knew about problems with a defective plastic part in the pedal mechanism of cars. This part was also widely used in cars in the U.S. Although Toyota redesigned the pedals for cars coming off the assembly line, they didn't issue a recall in Europe nor did they notify the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Toyota's behavior is morally reprehensible.

For a discussion of reasons for Toyota's problems, click on the following link:

http://www.philosophiesofbusiness.com/blog/2010/03/17/quality/troubles-in-toyota-city-2

Tim Mojonnier

[DesertDiamond]

5. I have owned Toyotas for most of my adult life. When they find a defect they send me a notice

that says come in and have this fixed at no charge. This has happened only twice in the past 20 years. But they send out letters for even the tiniest, most inconsequential defect. This points to their meticulous attention to detail. Toyota has been the most trusted car maker for many years, and now that we own GM, the goal is obviously to destroy the #1 competition. Rather than do this improving the quality of their designs and production methods, they are trying to do this through a persistent propaganda campaign.

[Omaha Steve]

6. Rather than do this improving the quality of their designs and production methods?

You must have missed this. You should stay up more on current events, especially when they have been posted here. Toyota isn't what it was 10 years ago. See reply four too.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10084/1045580-185.stm

American Brands Shine In J.D. Power Dependability Survey

No, buying American won't get you an undependable disaster-on-wheels; in fact, it's likely to get you a more reliable, trouble-free car.

In the latest proof of this, from marketing-information authority J.D. Power and Associates, seven of the ten models with the lowest number of problems, on average, come from Ford and GM.

That list of most dependable vehicles, from J.D. Power's 2010 Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS), includes the Buick LaCrosse, Buick Lucerne, Cadillac DTS, Ford Five Hundred, Lincoln MKZ, Mercury Milan, and Mercury Montego.

The study gauges dependability by counting problems experienced—broken into 198 different classifications—by the original owners (more than 52,000 in all) of three-year-old (2007 model year) vehicles. From that, J.D. Power calculates the total number of problems experienced per 100 vehicles to find overall dependability.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10084/1045580-185.stm#ixzz0jE3upNo5

[madrchsod]

7. what? ya mean i can`t use two floor mats ?

all these years i`ve always used two floor mats on the drivers side....i guess ya learn something new everyday!