Safety regulators will launch a formal investigation of steering complaints in certain newer model Toyota Motor Corp Corolla vehicles, a government official familiar with the plan said on Wednesday.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received more than 150 complaints about possible steering problems in 2009 and 2010 Corolla models, the official said, speaking anonymously because the plan has not been announced.
The agency began reviewing complaints about the Corolla models last week.
On Tuesday the world's biggest carmaker moved to cut production in the United State and U.S. safety regulators opened an investigation into whether it had acted in a timely way in responding to red flags about the safety records of its vehicles.
A series of vehicle recalls since January have damaged Toyota's once-vaunted reputation for quality, safety and reliability. Up to 34 deaths have been blamed on unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles since 2000, according to consumer complaints filed with U.S. regulators.
