Toyota has issued a recall for its Prius hybrid, and vehicles like the Mazda CX7 used or new will not be affected by the recall. The recall is for 2001-2003 year Prius models that have a problem with steering and there are no reported injuries or deaths from the defect. Models that do not have the defect include those sold at a Cox Auto Mazda dealership. About half of the cars with the potential defect were sold in the United States with another half being sold in Japan, and other Japanese vehicles can be purchased from a Wakefield Mazda dealership. There are several other Toyota models that have been recalled over the past year and a half.
The 2001-2003 Prius models are being recalled due to a potential problem where nuts that secure the pinion shaft in the gear box can become loose over time resulting in more effort required to make left turn. This obviously can be a potential safety concern. Toyota said that about 52,000 cars affected were sold in the U.S. while 48,000 of the models were sold in Japan. Toyota also said that the company would fix the affected models for free at a local Toyota dealership.
Toyota is in the process of ramping up the company’s production and will hope to return back to normal production soon. Toyota and other Japanese automakers took a production hit after a March 11 earthquake that stopped the auto industry in Japan completely. Assembly plants were shut down due to transportation hazards and damage, and a number of suppliers in Japan are still offline or operating at a lower rate than normal. Japanese operations in the United States and in other countries are expected to return back to normal sooner than operations in Japan which are more dependent on local Japanese parts suppliers. Japanese operations are expected to return back to a higher rate sooner than expected however, and operations in other countries will follow suit for Toyota.
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