Toyota's culture has blind spots, safety panel finds CNNMoney - Monday, May 23, 2011 The automaker's 'well-deserved sense of pride' can 'subtly transform into arrogance and foster complacency,' leading to safety lapses, the Toyota North American Quality Advisory Panel says.
Panel: Toyota needs safety attitude adjustment CNNMoney - Monday, May 23, 2011 A panel of safety experts convened by Toyota Motor Co. advised the automaker to loosen its centrally controlled corporate culture and to listen more to outside critics.
Toyota Recalling 1.5 Million Cars for 2 Problems New York Times - Thursday, October 21, 2010 The Toyota Motor Company announced a global recall of 1.53 million vehicles on Thursday because of brake and fuel pump problems.
Toyota Allegedly Hid Faults Behind 2005 U.S. Truck Recall Daily Journal - Thursday, September 16, 2010 Revealing new details into an alleged cover-up related to a 2005 Toyota Motor Corp. recall that remains under federal criminal investigation, a plaintiffs' lawyer accused the auto maker of doctoring accident reports to delay a costly national recall over faulty steering rods. The new allegations, included in a motion filed Tuesday, are part of an effort by John P. Kristensen, of O'Reilly Collins in San Mateo, to pierce Toyota's attorney-client privilege protections under the crime-fraud exception.
A Conversation with the Lawyer who Reported Toyota to the Feds? National Law Journal - Wednesday, August 4, 2010 John Kristensen talked to The National Law Journal about why he contacted NHTSA, what's potentially in store for Toyota and the status of his case.
Toyota Under Criminal Probe ABC News - Saturday, July 31, 2010 How much did the motor company know and when?(Video)
Toyota Recalls: How Bad Is The Damage? Wall Street Journal - Thursday, July 29, 2010 If it seems like Toyota isn’t suffering all that much from its waves of recalls, look again.
Toyota Still Doesn’t Get It New York Times - Saturday, July 24, 2010 All automakers in the United States are required to report flaws in their vehicles to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration within five business days of detection. Despite the law, Toyota has repeatedly failed to report potentially deadly problems. The latest omission to be brought to light — and not by the automaker — regards problems with steering wheel relay rods, which transmit changes in direction from the steering gearbox to the wheels.
Toyota subpoenaed again, this time over faulty steering components Los Angeles Times - Tuesday, July 20, 2010 The automaker is asked for documents related to steering relay rods, a component critical to the handling and control of vehicles, as investigations into sudden acceleration and other safety matters continue.
Oh What a Feeling. Toyota Hit With New Grand Jury Subpoena Wall Street Journal Law Blog - Tuesday, July 20, 2010 The explosion on the Deepwater Horizon in April and resulting oil leak helped bump Toyota and its alleged accelerator problems from the front pages. But Toyota could be poised to make another star turn, albeit one the company probably wishes it were avoiding.
Toyota Subpoenaed on Steering Flaws New York Times - Tuesday, July 20, 2010 A federal grand jury in New York has subpoenaed Toyota, seeking information on steering-related defects in its vehicles and possibly widening an investigation into the automaker’s handling of a 2005 recall.
U.S. grand jury subpoenas Toyota on steering rods Reuters - Tuesday, July 20, 2010 A U.S. grand jury has ordered Toyota Motor Corp to turn over documents related to problems with rods that connect vehicle steering systems to their front wheels, the company said on Tuesday.
NHTSA probes Toyota steering rod recall Lawyers USA - Tuesday, June 29, 2010 Documents unearthed during discovery in a lawsuit over the death of a California teenager have helped spark a federal investigation into whether Toyota stalled a recall of almost 1 million pickup trucks and SUVs over defective steering rods.
Toyota fixed steering rods for over a decade before recall USA Today - Monday, June 14, 2010 Toyota paid a record fine recently for dragging its feet on disclosing a safety defect blamed for potentially fatal unintended acceleration. Now, documents have come to light in a California lawsuit that point to possible delays involving an earlier safety issue, one that could result in loss of steering control.
Did Toyota Wait Too Long to Recall U.S. Cars? ABC News - Tuesday, May 11, 2010 Spurred in part by the death of a teenage Toyota driver, the federal government is investigating why Toyota delayed a recall of almost one million trucks and SUVs over defective steering rods.
NHTSA opens new probe over Toyota steering-system defects Washington Post - Tuesday, May 11, 2010 Federal regulators are opening a second investigation into whether Toyota delayed notifying government authorities of a dangerous defect.
Toyota 4Runner SUVs and T100 trucks in safety probe Los Angeles Times - May 11, 2010 The U.S. is examining whether the automaker delayed disclosing a serious steering defect. The announcement came while Transportation chief Ray LaHood was meeting in Japan with Toyota's president.
U.S. Launches New Toyota Probe Wall Street Journal - May 11, 2010 U.S. regulators launched a new investigation of Toyota Motor Corp. on Monday, focusing on whether the company failed to report steering defects in certain models.
Toyota probed over delay in '05 recall Detroit Free Press - May 10, 2010 U.S. auto safety regulators have opened a fresh probe into Toyota’s handling of a 2005 recall over faulty steering rods in older pickups, questioning whether the automaker delayed making the fix after issuing recalls overseas.
Toyota’s Credibility Gap Sunk In After Visit to U.S. Bloomberg - May 10, 2010 Toyota Motor Corp.’s top executive didn’t grasp how the carmaker’s record recalls hurt its reputation in the U.S. until after he traveled there in February, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said.
Toyota delayed almost a year before issuing 2005 steering defect recall USA Today - May 10, 2010 Toyota waited 11 months after recalling trucks in Japan for a steering defect before it recalled nearly 1 million of them in the U.S., and safety officials now want to know why the delay.
Toyota waited months to issue '05 steering recall SF Chronicle - May 10, 2010 Toyota waited nearly a year in 2005 to recall trucks and SUVs in the United States with defective steering rods, despite issuing a similar recall in Japan and receiving dozens of reports from American motorists about rods that snapped without warning, an Associated Press investigation has found.
Toyota Has Pattern of Slow Response on Safety Issues New York Times - February 6, 2010 Toyota’s recent recalls and disclosures are part of a long-term pattern in which the automaker has often reacted slowly to safety concerns.
SPECIAL REPORT: Did Toyota Recall Come Too Late? KTVU-TV - October 29, 2009 Fairfield, Idaho is a farm town of about 400 people and a place where the death
of one person affects the lives of everyone. "It devastated this small community. Everybody knew him. Everybody still knows him. And he's well remembered," says Mike Stewart of his 18-year-old son, Levi.
Toyota's runaway-car worries may not stop at floor mats Los Angeles Times - October 18, 2009 A fatal accident in San Diego raises the question: Might a vehicle's complex
electronic features make it hard for drivers to react quickly when accelerating out of control?
Trouble in Toyotaville SafetyResearch.Net - October 12, 2009 The last month’s news has generated enough tarnish to all but blot out Toyota’s
sterling reputation, built over decades.
The trouble at Toyota Automotive News - October 5, 2009 Amid recalls and recriminations, automaker finds itself in legal stew.
Idaho family sues after son dies in recalled Toyota KTVB.com - March 26, 2009 When there's a potential problem with a vehicle -- especially one that affects the safety of your family -- do car makers do enough to alert consumers?
Questions Raised About Truck Recall KNBC-TV - March 11, 2009 The steering relay rod is critical to controlling your car's steering. One manufacturer recalled almost one million vehicles because of a defect in the steering relay rod. Are consumers finding out? Are these vehicles still on the road?
Repairing Some Dents in an Image NY Times - August 5, 2006 Recalls bedevil Toyota, long known as the crème de la crème in quality.
Ministry Reprimands Toyota over Defect Handling Japan Times - July 22, 2006 Japan's goverment found fault with Toyota's information handling in recalls for the steering rod. Toyota was ordered to report on its improvements in recalls.
Toyota Vows to Step Up Quality USA Today - Reuters - July 21, 2006 In a first for the company, Toyota is also being criminally investigated by prosecutors in Kumamoto, southern Japan, over whether its quality-control managers had wrongfully delayed a recall that could have prevented a road accident in 2004 that injured a couple and their three young children.
Japan Scolds Toyota for Recall Practice MSNBC - July 21, 2006 The transportation ministry issued a "guidance" order requiring Toyota to report steps it is taking to better monitor reports
of defects and speed up communication within the company about possible
problems.
Toyota Explains Little About Long Recall Delay Japan Times - July 21, 2006 Reporters' questions centered on why Toyota stated that it had received only 11 reports on the defect in 2004 when it issued a recall, when it had been reported that there had been more than 80 complaints.
Japanese Accident Investigation Puts Toyota on the Defensive International Herald Tribune - July 13, 2006 An investigation by the Japanese police into an accident involving a Toyota sport utility vehicle threatens to swell into an embarrassing scandal that could tarnish Toyota Motor's vaunted reputation for reliability.
Quick Facts
Toyota Vehicles Affected by Recall 05V389
1989 - 1995 Pickup Trucks
1989 - 1995 4Runnners
1993 - 1998 T100s
Toyota Recall 05V389
1988: Toyota receives notice from customers about the defective steering relay rod.
October 26, 2004: Toyota issues a recall in Japan-only for trucks using the defective part.
September 6, 2005: Toyota issues recall 05V389. The recall affects 977,839 vehicles.
July 21, 2006: Toyota reprimanded by Japanese government for
December 31, 2006: only 314,362 have been repaired, according to Toyota's final report to NHTSA.
Today: roughly 538,000 Toyota trucks drive on U.S. roads with a defective steering relay rod
Contact Us
If you would like to learn more about the ongoing investigation, if you have experienced a steering relay rod failure, or if you have any information that you feel would help in this investigation, please contact us:
Disclaimer: ToyotaSteeringRecall.Com is not operated by
Toyota Motor Corporation or any of its affiliates. The website is intended to assist in the investigation of Toyota trucks that have suffered from steering relay rod failures.
