Posted on 02/08/2010 10:42:53 AM PST by Steelfish
February 8, 2010
Toyota Prius Global Recall Fears Spread To Luxury Lexus Brand
Leo Lewis, Asia Business Correspondent
Toyota’s imminent global recall of the Prius over problems with the brakes could be expanded to cover a flagship model from the high-end Lexus range, say sources.
Toyota is believed to be on the brink of a worldwide recall of its latest model of Prius that could affect as many as 300,000 vehicles.
But sources close to the company told The Times that Toyota was also gearing up to warn owners of the Lexus HS250h and Sai hybrid sedan that their cars may require similar repairs.
The Lexus HS250h has been on sale worldwide since last July, selling over 15,500 units both domestically in Japan and overseas. The Sai has sold 3,800 units in Japan only.
Reports in the Japanese business press on Monday said that Toyota was expected to issue a recall for the Lexus and the Sai once it had prepared the necessary fix for the cars’ braking control software.
Toyota said that nothing had been decided and that the company was still investigating whether the Lexus was affected by the same issues that have prompted complaints from some Prius owners over a brief “empty” sensation when they depress the brake pedal.
A recall of the HS250h would drag Toyota’s much-cherished luxury brand into the quality crisis that has engulfed the company.
(Excerpt) Read more at business.timesonline.co.uk ...
Unlikely. Lexus has a quality control program that a surgeon would envy. That extra money does indeed go into quality, at least in part.
Um, LEXUS is already in the quality quagmire, that Cop and his family that DIED when their car wouldn’t stop accellerating were in a Lexus.
Anyone who thinks that the high end brand badge somehow protects you from a design flaw, and/or shoddy Chinese quality, is just a flat out fool.
If it shares the same software that Toyota believes is creating problems in Toyota products, then Toyota has little choice but to patch that software too while it is under the glaring spotlight.
In a car if your computer crashes it could be literal.
You are quite incorrect. Tell Mark Saylor and his family how great their quality control is. Oh wait, you can’t, they are DEAD. In fact it was the accident involving the LEXUS he was driving that led to Toyota finally being forced to stop playing cover up and admit to the problems publicly.
Luxury brand no more protects you from a design flaw, or shoddy Chinese made parts than a birthday cake would.
Wow, I hadn’t heard of that. I studied Toyota’s Lexus factories during my six sigma training - they have dozens of quality control procedures, including master sheet metal dies that they keep in cold storage and regularly measure with a laser micrometer for accuracy. I guess it’s just a case of growing too big, too fast.
Manufacturing Quality Control cannot detect of prevent a fundamental design flaw, or bad software.
Given FORD recalled its Transit that shared the same Chinese provided part, I’m betting this Prius issue and the newer Lexus one is shoddy software/hardware slipped in by the Chinese for this particular issue, but that’s not Toyota’s sole problem.
They are in the crapper not because they had a problem, cars are complex beasts, anyone can have a problem, the fact they knew about it and lied and covered it up, that’s what’s causing their downfall.
Their quality as a brand has been far far far more propoganda than reality for quite some time now. They have been brushing a lot of things under the rug to avoid recalls, and now its bit them in the butt.
I have a 4Runner which I love. I’ve driven a newer and older older Prius recently - hate em. You know how the older a car is, the harder it starts. Well, while driving, the Prius gas engine didn’t seem to be starting as smoothly as it should. Imagine have an 8 year old Prius chugging in traffic as it tries to restart the engine. No thanks.
If I needed a new car right now, I would be beating feet down to the nearest Toyota or Lexus dealer.
"...a preliminary investigation into the Saylor crash determined that the wrong floor mat had been installed in the loaner Lexus sedan."
"National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigators said the all-weather floor mat discovered in the wreckage of the 2009 Lexus ES 350 could have caused the accelerator to become stuck."
I say this with the authority of a quick starting reliable 24 year old Toyota (238,000 miles) that's been in our family since it was new.
Most folks who get in trouble are at the other end of this spectrum.
It's very un PC, but that's life.
Just curious on what basis do you make that assertion? Actual direct knowledge of Toyota vs Lexus factory quality procedures? After all most Lexus and Toyotas share primary parts such as engine blocks and body pans.
That's because it's not true.
Saylor and his family died because of the following sequence of events:
1) Someone (probably a dealership employee) placed the incorrect floormats in a dealership loaner car.
2) Someone at the dealership failed to properly act on a customer's report (the day before the Saylor accident) that the loaner car's floormats jammed the accelerator, resulting in an incident of loss of control due to the accelerator's failure to release.
3) Saylor failed to note the interference between the mat and the accelerator when he took possession of the loaner car after dropping his car off for service.
4) Saylor depressed the accelerator fully without noting the interference between the accelerator and the floor mats.
5) Saylor failed to properly hold the start button down for three seconds to stop the engine, as instructed in the owner's manual for his vehicle, which had the same system.
That accident was a dealer and driver deal. The dealer for putting in the wrong mats, for not acting on a previous report, and for not properly instructing the driver on use of the vehicle. The driver for not noting the floor mat interference and for not reading his owner's manual. The only issues for Toyota are making a pedal that might be too long (for the wrong mat), and not making the shut-off more intuitive for a panicked driver.
You really don’t know what you are talking about. You should stop.
Re: “If I needed a new car right now, I would be beating feet down to the nearest Toyota or Lexus dealer.”
**************
So would I — my most recent auto is a Lexus, 2003 ES — best car I ever owned — my others — Mustangs, Volvo, Nissan, etc., not so great —
One Mustang did the same ‘speed up’ thing that people are griping about with Toyota now — I slammed it into Park and it stopped, thank goodness. Got it repaired and that was that — no recalls, no lawyers, no lawsuits. But that was a LONG time ago.
The Volvo, in the eighties, was a piece of junk from day one. So expensive to repair and so many problems.
The Nissan had chronic brake problems, later revealed to be a factory defect. Yeah, they fixed it many times for free but what a waste of my time!
I would buy another Toyota product — especially in near future after all this big to-do about it. Kind of like people boycotting certain airlines if they suffer a couple of incidents.
There is NO vehicle out there that is perfect; never has been, never will be.
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