Toyota Corolla gets scrutiny for stalling engines

[DainBramaged]

U.S. safety regulators are investigating complaints of engine stall in 2006 Toyota Motor Corp. Corolla and Matrix vehicles, the latest in a string of quality issues to affect the Japanese automaker.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received 26 complaints related to vehicles equipped with IZZ-FE engines. The review covers 397,000 cars sold in the United States.

Motorists alleged random stalls, with some cases occurring in intersections and others on highways, according to NHTSA documents. The review was launched on Nov. 30. In many cases, motorists had trouble restarting the engine.

There were no crashes reported in the complaints, NHTSA said. Several reports cited a Toyota service bulletin in 2007 calling for replacing the engine computer following complaints of stall.

NHTSA's preliminary review does not mean a recall is likely. One could follow if the investigation moves beyond the paperwork stage and regulators affirm the allegations and identify a design or parts defect.

Toyota officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

http://www.autonews.com/article/20091207/OEM/912079997/1290 (subscription only)

Wow what great quality......again.........

[Brickbat]

1. Are those the ones made at the factory powered by unicorn farts, or the one where the workers

willingly forego paychecks because the honor of working for such an awesome company is compensation enough?

Toyota's just been dripping with quality the last few years. Wake up, people!

[DainBramaged]

5. Here's a solution, jam the floormat under the gas pedal, its sure to never stall...

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Romulox]

6. *snort*! nt

[Shagbark Hickory]

13. They're overwhelned by people switching from the detroit brands. A hiccup or two is to be expected.

Especially when they are making generous efforts to employ people here in the US.

[blue_onyx]

16. Yeah, right

"The automaker's U.S. sales are down 24% through the first 11 months of the year, and its share of the market has remained flat. Several key competitors, including Honda Motor Co. and Ford Motor Co., have gained share."

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-toyota-recall5-2009dec05,0,6012156.story


It's hilarious to see Toyota lovers making so many BS excuses for Toyota.

[Brickbat]

19. LMAO.

Thanks, I needed a chuckle today.

ETA: In the meantime, keep sniffing those unicorn farts!

[DainBramaged]

29. Yep, another one steps in shit while walking in the auto industry knowledge minefield

[Selatius]

36. Yeah, they employ workers in states that are notoriously anti-union and anti-workers rights.

Georgia or Mississippi and so forth. These so-called "right-to-work" states pay lower and offer fewer benefits to workers than states that have not passed the stupidly named "right to work" laws.

[Shagbark Hickory]

42. Well to yall.

I do not have all the world's answers.
What I do know is that this disaster is the own making of Detroit.

IF you don't like toyota that's fine. I'd rather buy domestic and all that but just have had too much trouble with those cars. Sorry.

And I'm sorry that corporations can be bribed by politicians and vice versa to open plants in states where unions are not as common. That's America. Don't blame me. If if it were up to me, the government would be operating the plants. Frankly I've had it with this banana republic and fixing to move out of this corrupt country.

[FSogol]

2. If the gas pedal is going to stick, isn't it good if the engine stalls?

:shrug:

[JuniperLea]

3. Show me one car manufacturer who hasn't had a major recall in the past five years...

They are all selling crap these days... cheapest way wins, always.

[madokie]

40. Its not the having a recall that's important here its the denial of a problem

for a long time that matters. people die and get seriously hurt in accidents

[Fumesucker]

4. At least the fucking wheels don't fall off..

http://blog.cardomain.com/2008/04/23/more-ball-joint/

First, it was a 2003 recall for same-year Liberties with lower ball joint problems. After some of the replacements were apparently botched, Chrysler issued a new recall three years later that included 800,000 2002-2006 Liberties, addressing LBJ’s that were showing "excessive wear and looseness." This time around, it’s the upper ball joints that are the problem on over 300,000 ‘02-’03 Liberties. There’ve been a series of high-profile incidents in which the BJ’s have separated, dumping the body onto one or both front tires and thus seriously ruining the driver’s day. At least one ball joint has separated at 75 mph, and a handful have let go while the driver was either pulling out into traffic or making a left turn, leaving the stricken Liberty stranded in the path of oncoming traffic. To make a bad situation worse, Chrysler hasn’t yet actually issued a recall on this particular problem, instead awaiting the results of the NHTSA’s "engineering analysis" and attributing complaints to customers’ "confusion about the difference between the lower and upper ball joints." Sure, yet another recall of the 300,000 affected Liberties wouldn’t be cheap, but can Chrysler afford to hem and haw while Liberty ball joints are coming apart at highway speeds?

[Romulox]

7. Daimler AG had MASSIVE quality issues in the early 2000s...their E class's lack of quality is

now legendary...

[madokie]

39. In '98 I bought a new f150

a friend at the same time bought a diesel dodge pick up 4 wheel drive. at about 50 thousand miles the right tire and everything its hooked to all the way back to the ball joints fell off while he was driving down the road. At first he said it was strange cause the truck felt like he'd hit something then he seen the tire and related parts roll off into the ditch as he ground to a halt. Wound up having to replace the whole front drive because when the wheel spindle broke loose and what was left of the axle hit the road and ruined it. That cummins engine is still going strong though but he's had to replace the injector pump out of warranty and that alone cost close to two grand. My f150, well I've put spark plugs in it and replaced a vacumn line and thats it. My ford has had a rough life too as it was one of my tools when I was working finishing concrete, hauling and pulling lots of tools and trailers loaded down to the hilt. I'll stick with my fords, thank you.

[Fumesucker]

41. Clearly that was Daimler's fault..

Daimler bought Chrysler in 1998 so the piss poor quality was due to Daimler.. :eyes:

I'm driving a 97 Expedition with the 5.4 and a towing package right now, it really is quite a good vehicle. I brought home my tandem axle trailer heavily loaded with oak firewood a couple of weeks back and got over 18 mpg on the highway with that combo, I had at the very least two to three long bed pickups full of oak on that trailer.

[madokie]

47. I didn't say anything about daimlers fault I said dodge trucks sucks and are of poor quality

and have been for as long as I've been buying vehicles. bought my first car in '61 a 40 chevy coupe that I never got to drive much at all because it was such a piece of shit, traded it for a '48 ford and drove the wheels off baby.

[Fumesucker]

48. My comment about Daimler wasn't directed at you..

Sorry I was a little confusing, when I mentioned the wheels falling off Jeeps another poster pointed out that it was Daimler's fault, not that of Jeep.

[madokie]

49. No problem

I just like to tell my little stories anyway :-)

[TZ]

8. My family own Toyotas

and they HAVE NEVER ever had an issue with them. I've had two Toyotas. Best cars I've ever owned. Give your prejudice a rest won't you? My family had the following cars growing up: GM Station Wagon, Dodge Colt, Aries K Car, Toyota Corolla SR5. The Corolla was the only one that made it waaaay past 50,000. All the rest blew up previous to that. Oh as did my American made 95 Saturn. Kabloowie before I had it paid off.
I love my 02 Celica. Better than any crappy American car.

[Romulox]

9. Errm...you are aware that people are dying due to a problem Toyota has admitted to, right?

Because your posts makes it sound like Toyota's problems are all an invention of the OP. :hi:

[DainBramaged]

10. Here let me refresh they's memories......

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7160474

The recall, which covers 4.26 million cars and trucks, is aimed at reducing the vehicles' risk of sudden accelerations, which have led to 19 deaths since the 2002 model year.

Moving to correct what federal regulators have termed a "very dangerous problem," Toyota Motor Corp. said it would modify and replace gas pedals on 4.26 million cars and trucks to reduce the vehicles' risk of accelerating out of control.

Toyota said the measures were designed to prevent floor mats from jamming the accelerator pedal open. As an additional precaution, the Japanese automaker said most of its cars would be modified so that the brake overrides the accelerator if both pedals are pressed at the same time.

The action follows widespread reports of runaway Toyota and Lexus vehicles, including an Aug. 28 crash near San Diego that killed a California Highway Patrol officer and three family members. Sudden acceleration incidents involving Toyota-made cars and trucks have claimed 19 lives since the 2002 model year, The Times has reported, which federal officials say is more than all other manufacturers combined.

"We are very, very confident that we have addressed this issue," Toyota spokesman Irv Miller told reporters in detailing the recall plans Wednesday.

Toyota declined to estimate the cost of the recall, the biggest in its history. But industry experts said it could easily top $250 million, citing the time and labor that will be needed to service more than 4 million vehicles.

Auto industry experts, while crediting Toyota for initiating the recall, questioned why the automaker had taken so long to act. (deny deny deny)


Consumers saddled with sludge-clogged Toyota engines may soon get some help from the Japanese auto giant under the terms of a class-action lawsuit settlement that covers roughly 3.5 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles damaged by engine oil sludge.

An engine gummed up with oil sludge can cost thousands of dollars to repair and in many cases must be replaced. The class action settlement could potentially cost the automaker hundreds of millions of dollars.

The agreement will allow consumers whose claims have been denied by Toyota to submit those claims to a third-party mediator at no cost for binding arbitration.

The lawsuit, filed in a Louisiana district court, could receive final approval by the middle of February. Details of the settlement are being mailed to 7.5 million current and previous Toyota and Lexus owners.

The agreement provides owners of sludge-damaged Toyota's eight years plus 120 days from the original purchase date to file a complaint.

Toyota consumers who have repaired their sludge-damaged engines may be able to recover their costs. The car only needs to show evidence of oil sludge damage.

The terms of the settlement are transferable to future vehicle owners.

Toyota owners have repeatedly written ConsumerAffairs.com detailing Toyota's attempts to blame sludge problems on inadequate vehicle maintenance by the owner.

If you've been following the Toyota Tundra rust saga, you're aware that NHSTA recently requested data from Toyota about the purported frame corrosion affecting 2000 and 2001 models. Today, Toyota has extended that recall to include the 2002-03 model years, saying that a small number of trucks could suffer from frame corrosion that could cause the spare tire to detach from its underbody housing. That brings the total up to 110,000 Tundras located in 20 cold-weather states and the District of Columbia.

Toyota will begin an inspection program next month which will run through January of 2010, and if you're driving one of the affected pickups, you can get all the details in the press release below the fold. Hat tip to Mike from Pickuptrucks.com.




Toyota Extends Warranties On 813,000 Tacomas Due To Rust

Rust, as they say, never sleeps. But Toyota does......

It certainly never sleeps in the states where road salt is in heavy use, and we’ve recently become aware of additional evidence of that fact.

We’ve received reports that on a small number of model-year 1995 to 2000 Tacomas, excessive corrosion of the frame has caused perforation of the metal. The reason for this, it appears, is that the frames of some of the 813,000 vehicles built during this time-frame may not have adequate corrosion protection.

As a result, when they’re exposed to severe environmental conditions, especially in states where salt is used for the de-icing of roads, these frames may develop corrosion that goes beyond the normal surface rust that’s commonly found on metal after years of exposure – and in this case, these trucks are from eight to 13 years old.

Because of our oft-stated commitment to standing behind our products, we’re extending the rust-perforation warranty covering these trucks for a period of 15 years from each vehicle’s original date of purchase, with no mileage limitation, for corrosion damage that results in perforation of the vehicle’s frame material. Owners of these Tacomas need not be the original owners. Even if you bought your Tacoma second- or third-hand, it’s covered by this extended warranty.

[Shagbark Hickory]

12. +1. At least they're RANDOM stalls as opposed to stalls you can set your watch by with the domestics

n/t

[blue_onyx]

14. "opposed to stalls you can set your watch by with the domestics"

Care to back that up with facts?

[DainBramaged]

22. Shagbag can't back up shit....hit and run anti-domestic

waste of keystrokes replying to it.

[blue_onyx]

33. Yeah, I know most of these posters can't back up what they say

It's a waste of time but I just can't help myself sometimes.

[Shagbark Hickory]

43. I can fax you over some of the old repair bills when I owned fords and dogdes.

That's about as good as I can do.

[taterguy]

11. Thank you for providing this important unbiased consumer information

Unless of course you happen to work for one of Toyota's competitors and you're just using the anonymity of the Internet to make them look bad.

And by them I mean Toyota and whatever other car company you happen to work for.

[DainBramaged]

23. I work for Chevy, and I gladly post all the negative shit I can about the japanese cars

Thanks for asking!



:hi:

[Obamanaut]

15. Other auto brands have had stalling problems - there is this one for

example

From a December 6, 2007 article


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/120707dnbusfordrecall.487389a.html

<snip> Ford Motor Co. said Thursday it is recalling 1.17 million trucks, sport utility vehicles and vans to fix an engine sensor that could lead to engine stalling.

There was another instance with Focus. Some cars overturned, others caught on fire, air gabs deply randomly, wheels fall off. It's a long series of examples from Detroit of "Wow what great quality......again........."

[madokie]

17. The big difference I see between detroit and the TOYotas

it when ford has a problem they don't try to bullshit you into thinking it's something else altogether. They do an up front recall and fix the damn thing, whatever it is.

[Obamanaut]

21. Regularly. nt

[Selatius]

37. I dunno about that. I still remember the Ford Pinto fiasco. That was nothing but malfeasance.

They knew it was wrong, but the bean counters concluded it was cheaper to let the problem persist than to spend money to fix it. They even went so far as to document the issue, which became evidence when the papers leaked out, and the federal government sued them at trial.

[madokie]

38. It seems that ford learned their lesson on that

been keeping up with the homework ever since best I can remember

[blue_onyx]

18. and yet only the US automakers receive criticism

while Toyota gets defended by saying "Ford had problems too." It's the double standard I've come to expect...particularly on DU.

[Obamanaut]

20. And the other side of the coin is the Ford ad that states it is as good

as a Toyota. That's rather sad from the auto maker that started the assembly line process, don't you think, being "as good as" a product from a country that was practically leveled less that 60 years ago?

[DainBramaged]

26. Why don't you go start a thread about something you know about

and let the big kids talk about important stuff. Go stalk someone else for once.

[DainBramaged]

25. Particularly from certain members, always there to defend the japanese in America

hmmmmmmmmmmm.

[blue_onyx]

32. Yep

Often negative Toyota threads are ignored too. A few days ago, this same topic was posted and it got a whole 3 posts, 2 of which were from me.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7160495

[DainBramaged]

34. I am not paid as a Chevy/GM shill, I work for them, and LOVE my industry

have since I was a teenager. I was OFFERED my lady-friend's Camry tonight as she is buying a new CHEVY EQUINOX and felt the trade in value was insufficient, I declined and suggested she donate it since I refuse to own one up until the day I die.

[blue_onyx]

35. She should donate it and take the tax deduction.

She may as well get soemthing for the vehicle.

I was parked next to a new Chevy Equinox one day last week. It's a great looking vehicle.

[DainBramaged]

24. Go chase someone else's threads, you don't know shit about the auto industry

except what you Google.

[flvegan]

27. Is it JUST the 2006?

Have there been complaints in any of the later years, or did they actually get the fix right in 2007 when they released the bulletin?

[DainBramaged]

28. So far, but knowing the way NHTSA investigates, they'll be going back a few years

Toyota is in a very leaky boat right now They way they handled (and denied) past problems, they have left themselves open to a LOT of scrutiny. and a LOT of anger too.

[flvegan]

30. They need to at least look at 2005 (and maybe 2004)

not sure which year the Corolla was revamped, but it wasn't '06.

[DainBramaged]

31. It appears (from the internal memo about replacing the computers in '07)

something is very wrong with either their hardware or the firmware throughout the company. the sudden acceleration problem isn't JUST the throttle pedal, it's more complex than that, and they have to reprogram the computer to allow the brake to override the accelerator. THAT is a HUGE issue. knowing what I know about reprogramming the new Chevy's computers and modules (and I do it a few times a week) it is time consuming, and if there is the slightest glitch in the feed from the Toyota server, it starts all over again. this is a problem for them too.

[tammywammy]

44. Toyota didn't receive any top safety picks this year either

That's a big blow.

[jakefrep]

45. Serves Toyota right for entering NASCAR

NASCAR's popularity hasn't done the Big 3 any favors. It was only a matter of time before Toyota got dragged down to their level.

[DainBramaged]

46. Hmmm I wonder if the stalling has anything to do with the lack of success this year....

never mind.......


:rofl:


Other than Kyle 'I have to win every race' Busch, Toyota sucked this year once they had to play on a level field with the Fords and Chevys.

<--------old Nationwide car........Toyota doesn't play well there.......Kyle went for a spill.......ouch.......

http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/nascar/nationwide/news/story?id=3501562