Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday it will repair cooling pumps in about 650,000 Prius hybrid cars worldwide in the company's latest effort to rehabilitate its reputation for quality and service that was badly hit by massive recalls earlier this year.
While the repairs aren't a part of recall required under law, Toyota decided to fix the hybrid system cooling pumps to ensure customers were fully satisfied, a company spokesman said.
Of the 650,000 Prius to be fixed, about 390,000 are in North America, 180,000 in Japan and 70,000 in Europe, the spokesman said.
More
The pump could cause the vehicle to overheat and lose power, although there haven't been any reports of accidents or injury, the spokesman said.
The impact of the latest repairs has been limited, "since this seems minor compared to previous recalls," said Mitsushige Akino, chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management.
On the Tokyo stock exchange Tuesday, the news of the coolant pump repairs and the weaker euro versus the yen dragged Toyota shares down 2.4% at 3,220 yen (US$38.22).
Earlier this year, the world's biggest car maker by sales volume came under intense criticism for its slow response to a global recall of more than 8.5 million vehicles to fix problems with gas pedals, floor mats and braking systems.
After the incidents, Toyota introduced measures to improve customer service. These included a special committee to oversee all operations, from research and design to production and sales. Toyota also set up quality committees in each major region to promptly respond to local customer complaints.
In February, Toyota recalled 397,000 Prius hybrids globally, including about 200,000 in Japan, to fix problems with anti-lock braking systems.
The Prius has been the top-selling model in Japan for 18 straight months, helped by government buying incentives, although such aid expired in September.
