Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | ||||||
| RQ10003 | TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION | 02/16/2010 | UNINTENDED ACCELERATION | |||
| On september 26, 2007, toyota filed a defect information report and notified nhtsa that some of its model year (my) 2007 and 2008 lexus e350 and toyota camry vehicles could experience unintended and uncontrolled acceleration due to interference between the optional all weather floor mat offered on those vehicles and the vehicles' accelerator pedal.this decision was influenced by an office of defects investigation (odi) engineering analysis.this recall was designated 07e082.two years later, on october 5, 2009, toyota filed a defect information report and notified nhtsa that a number of its my 2004-2009 lexus and toyota vehicles may also experience unintended and uncontrolled acceleration due to interference between the accelerator pedal and the driver's floor mat.this recall was designated 09v388.several months later, on january 27, 2010, toyota filed an amended, or supplemental, defect information report and expanded the population of vehicles to include additional my 2008-2010 toyota and lexus vehicles.since this expansiontook place in a different calendar year, this recall was designated 10v023.separately on january 21, 2010, toyota filed a defect information report and notified nhtsa that certain toyota vehicles and certain pontiac vibe vehicles contained a safety defect in the accelerator pedal assembly that may cause the accelerator pedal to become harder to depress, slower to return, or in the worse case, mechanically stuck in a partially depressed position.nhtsa designated this recall 10v017.in total, the four recalls cover over 7.6 million toyota and lexus vehicles as well as the pontiac vibe product made by new united motor manufacturing, inc., a venture of toyota and general motors corporation.nhtsa requires additional information from toyota to more fully understand and evaluate, among other things, whether the scope of the recalls identified above (makes, models and model years) is sufficiently broad.the agency is seeking to determine whether toyota viewed the underlying defects too narrowly as interference between the accelerator pedal and the driver | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 12/28/2011 | 81500 | ||
| This has been going on for few years. this month my a/c started working intermittently again. i have replaced the resistor before thinking it was bad..that's when i first noticed the hot spots. this time i investigated more. now all 4 conductors are showing signs of a hotspots and the plug also is showing signs of overheating on the two middle connections. toyota's service manage didn't know of any service bulletins or recalls on this issue. also toyota doesn't sell a replacement plug. this can, and probably will start a fire. the parts department said i will fine that most of the plugs will show heat indications at a used parts houses. having a fire inside my vehicle is definitely a safety issue. first resistor changed 11/10 @ 81500 miles and there was nothing wrong with it, just loose connections. | |||
| 11/28/2011 | 48987 | ||
| At around 48,000 miles, airbag light came on. took it to toyota dealer and was diagnosed at broken spiral cable. total cost to fix was 460 dollars with labor. seems to be a common problem with 06 tacoma. | |||
| 07/11/2011 | 105000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2006 toyota tacoma. the contact stated that air bag warning light had illuminated on the instrumental panel on a consistent. the vehicle was taken to a dealer and they advised him that there was a short in the drivers side squib and needed a spiral cable. the vehicle has not been repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. the failure mileage was approximately 105,000. tb | |||
| 05/01/2011 | 97000 | ||
| Used my 2006 toyota tacoma prerunner to tow a vehicle a short distance before a short circuit in trailer wiring caused wiring fire in prerunner---30 amp fuse in toyota failed to protect circuit, leading to total truck wiring meltdown and ruin. fuse was of the ampacity required by toyota--30 amps. truck was purchased new, never involved in an accident, and no changes had been made to wiring or fuse systems. auto electric repair shop required $2800 in parts and $2000 for labor to repair melted wiring looms and fuse box; they suggested that failure could have resulted because toyota uses a 30 amp fuse on a #12 wire circuit that will melt and burn before the fuse blows. (12 gauge wire typically must be protected by a 20-amp fuse.) toyota (corporate) refuses to deal with my issue or talk to me about whether the failed fuse and meltdown could have been caused by their installing a fuse with too high an ampacity rating because i did not have the repair done by a toyota dealership. is there a dangerous design flaw with the prerunner? i am certain that i did nothing to my prerunner (as its only owner) to explain why the truck nearly burned up and the wiring system melted down (and was completely ruined) simply because of a simple short circuit in the trailer i towed for less than one mile (before meltdown occurred). i am hopeful that nhsta may be able to use my information to approach toyota on the potential design defect issue and, certainly, to collect my complaint with any other similar complaints that could denote a trend or serious safety risks with the toyota truck's wiring system. | |||
| 10/25/2010 | 112700 | ||
| I was driving my 2006 toyota tacoma when airbag warning light went on. this was brought to the dealer immediately the next day and diagnosis is failed spiral cable. the spiral cable senses more than the airbag and includes the steering wheel, horn, and cruise control. cost of replacement is $603.31. | |||
| 04/05/2010 | 25530 | ||
| My o6 tacoma has had two acellerations,the first time i ran across a traffic lane to the side of the road,the next time it was in a supermarket parking lot.toyota checked the truck out,said all was fine.the next time toyota had a tech.look at it said it was fine,would not give me any paper work,at this point i was afraid to drive it,my family would not ride in it.tried to buy a toyota,they would not work with me on the price,told toyota that i was getting a new truck and wanted them to pay for one-half.they did not deney it,i sent them the invoice for 3500.00,have not heard from them at this date.toyota has given me the run-around and this has been a hardship on me and my family,i like the truck,put alot of extra items on it,i was planning on having it a long time. | |||
| 01/10/2007 | 200 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2006 toyota tacoma. the contact was driving approximately 35 mph the tire air pressure sensor warning light indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the technician stated the air pressure was low in the tire and dispensed air into the tire. the contact was uncertain of the location of the tire on the vehicle. the failure occurred whenever the vehicle was in operation. the vehicle had been taken to an authorized dealer on six separate occasions for the identical failures which there were no resolutions, and the failures continued to occur. also, there was a replacement of the tire rims. in addition, the rear passenger tire exploded without warning causing the vehicle to travel uncontrollably. the contact was able to gain control with no injuries. the failure mileage was 200. the vin was unavailable. js | |||
| 03/12/2010 | 38000 | 1 | |
| When i was coasting to park my truck at my parking space outside of my house parking garage, my p/u truck suddenly accelerated very fast and the truck hit the fence and stopped. i remember clearly my sense that i pushed the brake while the car accelerating for a split second but do not remember if the engine was stopped after hitting the fence with steel pole. i somehow reversed back about 8 feet from the fence and stopped the engine. i came out of the car and checked if the accelerating pedal was depressed. it was not. i had experienced the truck engine racing a little fast as i tried to park at work in the mornings also. i felt something unusual but ignored the feeling, since my car was running high rpm since new. i remember that i asked about the high rpm to the salesman. he mentioned some new design feature that i could not understand. after this incident within 30 minutes i went to toyota of plano and reported my incident, and then i went to my car/home insurance company (state farm insurance co.) to report the incident. my car was towed to toyota of plano. i hope some one checks the engine electronics, not just mechanical problem of my car. this is very odd and dangerous. i asked myself about the state of my own mind and attitude at the moment but i was very normal. i am an electrical engineer and have driven the cars for last 50 years and have lived and parked at the same parking space for last 17 years. i have heard about the toyota problems but not about my truck model. updated 03/30/10 | |||
| 09/22/2009 | 23000 | 1 | |
| Vehicle engine revved while still in park in the parking lot of a local medical center and only stopped when the key in the ignition was turned off. this is the third time this has occurred. on january 1, 2009 an accident involving property damage (through a chain link fence) occurred as a result. we filed a complaint (confirmation number 10253526). a toyota technician checked out the vehicle and found nothing wrong. there is obviously something wrong. the first time this occurred we were in the parking lot of a local department store, assumed human error, and did not report the incident. this is strike three. toyota has been contacted. *tr | |||
| 03/31/2009 | 85000 | 1 | |
| We purchased a 2006 tacoma on dec. 23, 2008 from competition toyota in new york. we drove the truck back to wisconsin that day. two days after purchase date (approx. 1500 miles later), the airbag light came on. having a busy schedule, and not using the truck much, we brought the truck into marquart toyota in eau claire, wi on march 18, 2009. they assured me that it would be covered under warranty as long as it were an airbag problem. turns out they charged us with $94.95 for the problem to be diagnosed. a spiral coil that allows the steering wheel to turn while still keeping the airbag connected broke. they quoted me $483.19 for the repair of this coil. due to this broken coil, none of the airbags in the truck work. i called toyota customer service to resolve this issue. after two weeks of deliberating, toyota told me that this would not be covered under warranty. i reminded the representative whom i was speaking with that all safety related defects are to be covered in entirety by the manufacturer. none of the airbags in this truck work because of this coil, sounds like a safety defect to me. *tr | |||
| 01/25/2006 | 800 | 8 | 01/21/2006 |
| Tl*-the contact stated that the 2006 toyota tacoma lost power on a number of occasions. while driving 70 mph or at 5 mph the vehicle would stall. the contact stated that this usually happened when he had to shift and use the clutch. he contacted the manufacturer ,and was given case# 200701040167. he had been told that they couldn't duplicate the failure. also, he stated that in his state the lemon law was not worth anything after 12,000 miles ,and his vehicle now had 26,000 miles. the contact stated that the vehicle had this stalling problem since it was brand new at 800 miles . *ak consumer states the truck stops and will not restart for approximately 10 minutes. update *4/23/07tr | |||
| 03/10/2007 | 2 | 09/22/2006 | |
| We have had two incidents with our 2006 toyota tacoma truck; i. my wife, was driving route 40 when after red lights the engine suddenly started speeding up w/o any warning or alarm. having her foot off the accelerator pedal didn't have any impact. she had to brake as much she could to control the car. she was able to pull to pull off but still couldn't control the engine. the engine didn't even shut down when turning the key. changing the selector lever to neutral was impossible as the engine took full rpm. somehow after some trial and horror she was able to shut and restart the engine and eventually the car was back in control. the situation had been really scary. i wasn't there so i could not fully appreciate what had happened when she described the situation. ii. my wife didn't dare to use the car before i came back from a business trip. yesterday - saturday 3/10 - i was driving the truck the first time after the previous incident. there was a slow down in the traffic when suddenly the engine did the same as above. i was on a middle lane and couldn't do anything but brake as hard as i could. having hazard lights on and slowing the speed carefully i was able stop on the highway w/o anybody driving on us. i shut and restarted the engine couple of times w/o any impact. each time engine started as if the accelerator pedal would be pushed down. i started the car and pushing the brake pedal hard i was able to control the truck and drive to next red lights. after some braking and restarting the car was again suddenly back in control. the defect described above could easily cause a crash with serious injury or even death when happening in a heavy traffic or bad weather conditions. we don't dare to drive the truck before it is the defect is identified and fixed. it will be important to understand what caused the problem and how it was fixed. i have notified toyota dealer and they will pick up the truck tomorrow. *jb | |||
| 05/05/2006 | 4000 | 1 | 12/21/2005 |
| My cigarette lighter popped out of its receptacle on to the floor of my brand new truck (approx. 4,000 miles) causing a fire that destroyed 75% of the interior. twenty minutes after the fire was put out i called the dealer that i bought the truck from. they told me it was a manufacturing issue and offered no help. toyota sent an investigator to inspect the truck and he did just that, for about 4 hours. eventually they sent a letter to me (2 months later) that suggested an outside source could have started the fire. *nm | |||
| 03/06/2006 | 12 | 1 | 01/23/2006 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while depressing the accelerator pedal, the throttle sticks. after the throttle sticks, the rpm's range high and do not decrease. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection. although, the dealer knew the problem persisted with the speed control and the electrical system, the problem could not be remedied by the dealer. updated 03/28/06. *jb | |||
| 11/18/2005 | 3 | 11/17/2005 | |
| Dt: the contact states when starting the vehicle in the morning the idle was high. it took approximately one to one and a half miles of driving for the idle to return to normal. the accelerator pedal stuck. when shifting from fourth gear to fifth without foot on the accelerator the vehicle accelerated on its own. she stated that fourth gear could not be used. the vehicle must be shifted from third gear to fifth gear. the vehicle has been to the dealership twice, and they stated the computer was learning. the manufacturer was contacted, and they agreed with the dealership. therefore, no repairs have been made . *ak updated 01/25/06 | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING | |||
| 03/01/2011 | 1 | ||
| Copy of letter to toyota concerning a defective spiral cable and electronic circuit; feels this part should have been repaired and covered under a special safety warranty or recall; enclosed automotive part fwd to nvs-200 *tgw the consumer stated the air bag light illuminated 12 days after being at the dealership to have a recall problem repaired. the dealer informed the consumer he would have to pay $88 to diagnose the problem. the dealer stated the problem was due to a broken spiral cable and electronic circuit underneath the horn which would cost $ 496 in addition to the $ 88. *jb | |||