The Detroit News - Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday it is recalling 550,000 vehicles worldwide, including 420,000 in the U.S., over a steering issue.
The recall includes the 2004 Toyota Avalon, 2004-05 Camry, 2004-05 Highlander, 2006 Highlander hybrid, 2004-05 Sienna, 2004 ES330, 2004-05 RX330 and 2006 RX400h.
The recall covers 283,200 Toyota and 137,000 Lexus vehicles to replace the crankshaft pulley on the V6 engine. Toyota said the outer ring of the crankshaft pulley may become misaligned with the inner ring, causing noise and/or illumination of the discharge warning light. There are no reports of accidents or injuries related to this condition.
Toyota has now recalled about 3 million vehicles in the United States this year.
The automaker is working on obtaining the necessary replacement parts and plans to notify owners in January. In the meantime, if an abnormal noise is heard coming from the engine compartment, Toyota has asked owners to make an appointment with any Toyota or Lexus dealer to have the vehicle inspected for this condition.
Toyota said it had been investigating the steering issue since October 2007, when it received a field technical report in Japan over a vehicle with a heavy steering feeling. Toyota between 2010 and 2011 collected 289 crankshaft pulleys and determined that the amount of adhesive was insufficient for models built between June and December 2004.
Since 2009, Toyota has recalled more than 15 million vehicles in the United States, including 7 million in 2010, over a series of issues as it has struggled to put sudden acceleration issues behind it.
Toyota recalled 2.3 million vehicles for sticky accelerator pedals — a move that forced it to temporarily stop selling eight models.
Toyota was fined $16.4 million by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for delaying the sticky pedal recall in April, and in December agreed to pay $32.4 million after NHTSA said the automaker delayed the pedal entrapment and a 2005 steering rod recalls.
NHTSA, which was harshly criticized by Congress for not forcing Toyota to take broader actions in the face of complaints of sudden acceleration, has assumed a more aggressive stance on recalls in general.
Mark Templin, Lexus' group vice president and general manager, told reporters in Washington last month that the brand had put the "sudden acceleration" issue behind it.
"All of our research shows we've regained our lead in people's perception of our quality and our safety," Templin said.
