The never-ending saga of Toyota's struggle to gain acceptance for its Tundra pickup in the U.S. market was made more difficult today with a new recall affecting some 15,600 trucks. Apparently the rear propeller shaft on some four-wheel-drive Tundras could separate at a joint because Toyota's supplier improperly heat treated it. Automotive News reports that Toyota discovered the problem when a single owner complained about noises coming from that area of his truck. Only one case of the shaft actually separating from the joint has been reported according to Toyota, and it did not result in an accident.
Credit Toyota for investigating the issue and determining which trucks are affected, then actually issuing this recall despite knowing it will hurt in the court of consumer opinion. In addition to today's recall, Toyota has also had to deal with Tundra owners complaining of "rumble strip" noises coming from the transmission, camshaft failures on a small number of trucks, and weak tailgates that have failed.
Toyota still hopes to sell 200,000 Tundras this year, and through the end of November has actually sold 177,336 units. It will require a BIG sales month in December to move nearly 25,000 Tundras, especially considering that the pickup's best selling month this year was July when 23,150 Tundra were sold.
[Source: Automotive News, Toyota]
PRESS RELEASE:
Toyota Announces Safety Recall On Selected Tundra Pickup Trucks
Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc., will launch a safety recall with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on certain 2007 model year Tundra four-wheel-drive pickup trucks. The campaign will involve approximately 15,600 units in the U.S. and does not involve any accidents or injures.
On certain 2007 model year Tundra vehicles, there is a possibility that a joint in the rear propeller shaft may have been improperly heat treated, resulting in insufficient hardness. In the worst case, a section of the rear propeller shaft may separate at the joint. There has been one case reported among all affected vehicles that may relate to this condition. The one case involved abnormal noise and did not involve an accident.
Owners will be notified via first class mail beginning in late-December 2007. Owners are requested to contact their local Toyota dealer for inspection upon receiving their notification. If the hardness is not correct, the dealer will replace the rear propeller shaft at no charge to the owner of the vehicle.
Customers with questions or concerns should contact the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 6)
Mr. Oak @ Dec 14th 2007 1:59PM
Oops they did it again!! Don't care how much you try to defend Toyota, this is really a POS. Stupid people everywhere are still going to buy this Piece-O-Junk.
I wonder howmany parts the new Land Cruiser,Seqouia and Lesux 470 share with this turd.
lol @ Dec 14th 2007 2:13PM
I know.
These ricer trucks needs to get out of the way for the big boys.
It's amazing there are so many ricers who still buy Toyota products all over America.....what a sad sad country...
Apu @ Dec 14th 2007 5:21PM
What makes America sad is ignorant people like you, lol.
Guenther @ Dec 14th 2007 2:35PM
Cruiser and Lexus? none
The US team responsible for the Tundra has dropped the ball on too many parts now. No excuses for this BS.
CC @ Dec 14th 2007 3:02PM
by golly mr. oak i'm with you, "let's burn them japs right now", is that what you want to hear?
Mr. Oak @ Dec 14th 2007 3:25PM
CC: I don't hate TOYOTA just their obsession with being #1 and what it has resulted in. I have owned four (4) Toyotas in the past. The last was a 87 Celica GTS that could not downshift from 3rd to 2nd. Problem started @ 22,500 miles on the odo. They tried to rebuild once, the problem returned in 2,500 miles. Fought with them until the warranty expired. That ended my relationship with Toyota.
Best car by Toyota I owned was 82 Corolla SR5 hatchback 5Speed. @ 82k, I handed it down to a nephew who delivered pizza it while in college. He in turn handed it down to his little brother who did the same. @ 170K a bent axle was the first major repair. Think any of these Tundras would last that long?
CC @ Dec 14th 2007 3:35PM
you hate them because they're obsessed with being #1? who doesn't have that goal?
I have many problems through my years with cars, most of them from american cars, you telling me i should give up on all american car products?
tundras do last long, look up how to kill a toyota
they last longer than this:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22152479/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/12/07/chrysler-recalls-600000-_n_75909.html
JD @ Dec 14th 2007 3:57PM
I think that every company is hoping to be the best, Mr. Oak. By your reasoning, you should hate GM too, since they seem pretty intent on retaking the #1 spot. And they were #1 for ages! What are you talking about? And as an aside: why wasn't the celica a stick shift? :)
Jason Bird @ Dec 14th 2007 3:57PM
Remember that Toyota is TAKING CARE of their customers. This is not a GOVERNMENT REQUIRED RECALL.
I am so tired of everyone slamming Toyota for DOING THE RIGHT THING. This type of issue occurs with every automaker. The not so big 3 just issue TSB's and hope that the vehicle goes out of warranty before the customer has a problem.
CC @ Dec 14th 2007 4:06PM
good point jason, click on that link i posted. It took chrysler 5 years to announce that recall on their trucks (dodge) all 600k, while toyota takes preemptive measures on 20k and gets blasted for it? Wow
Mr. Oak @ Dec 14th 2007 4:07PM
CC: I see that you understand what you choose to. Don't have an Issue with Toyota company being #1, just that they intend to do it at all costs. Toyota has never had this many quality issues. They have lost their focus.
JD: That Celica GTS was a 5speed manual. The synchros were shot. Going from 3 to 2 was a bitch. Shifted fine on the way up through the gears, downshifting was the problem.
Mr. Oak @ Dec 14th 2007 4:15PM
CC: I don't a problem with any car company having to do a recall on a product. The number of major mechanical and structural issues found on this truck from Feb. to present tells me that it was rushed to market. Not enough R&D, not enough testing. It clear to me that this product was not ready for the market.
CC @ Dec 14th 2007 4:19PM
Every car manu. has it problems, did you click on that link i gave above? Should we all stop buying chrysler products? If I judge products base on your criteria, i shouldn't trust any car manufacturer.
Mike @ Dec 14th 2007 5:21PM
@ Jason Bird,
Even though the recall was relatively quick, it's still another visit to the dealer which infuriates people.
Just because this one was quick, doesn't mean all of their recalls have been so quick either, I believe the recent Sienna door recall went back 6 model years. The engine sludge issue was forced to be settled when a class action lawsuit was filed. Multiple ball joint recalls have been issued in the last year to address models going back multiple years too.
Toyota is not looking out for you or looking to give you a big hug, they are a business just like all manufacturers. They determined the severity of the issue if the driveshaft seperates on those 15k trucks (broken d-shaft could lead to a rollover if it gets lodged between the road and the vehicle, it could rip a hole in the floor of the vehicle too) and decided it was a limited number of vehicles and would be cheaper to recall them. If the problem didn't show for another year, you may have only seen a TSB since the cost would have gone higher with more units in operation and thus more shafts to replace.
Mr. Oak's comments are not off base, Toyota's drive to "sell more cars" seems to have become more important than selling good cars which used to be what they focused on. You don't need to be #1 in volume if you make good profit being #4. They saw $ signs and let quality suffer. They also slashed costs when designing this truck, it is evident in many of the trucks systems. Maybe they will learn from their own mistakes, they sure didn't learn from the Americans' mistakes since they are emulating them.
why not the LS2LS7? @ Dec 15th 2007 3:20AM
Mr Oak said it very well.
Toyota has taken their eye off the ball. They used to concentrate on making great cars and people bought them because they were great. Now they're concentrating more on market share. They're in essence putting the cart before the horse.
GM was #1 for years, but is that which GM was what a company should really strive to be? They openly opined about the "disposable car" (5 year lifespan) in the 80s because replacement sales are lucrative. And see where it got them?
Toyota needs to get their goals back in the right order and they'll start making the best cars again. And for chrissake, why is the Corolla the only car Toyota still makes for the US market that is reminiscent of the old affordable, efficient, obscenely long-lasting car they used to make?
Dave @ Dec 15th 2007 11:41AM
Toyota doing the right thing says one writer. Well its about time Toyota does the right thing. They learned in recent years not to cover up problems after being threatened with lawsuits for the engine sludge problem. Frankly with their rush to be # 1 this is what I expected and Toyota has been moving backwards for several years now in quality. That is good news for the competition with pretty much everyone at the same quality level now. I wonder how they will do in sales in 2008 with all the Toyota buyers buying these trucks. The trucks are good otherwise but just not the best one for the money. They also surpass Dodge with the ugliest full-sized truck on the market.
America Fuc* Ya @ Dec 19th 2007 12:27AM
To all of you GM is back @ #1 spot and has been, they only lost that title @ first part of the year.
http://money.cnn.com/2007/10/22/news/international/toyota_gm/index.htm
alex @ Dec 24th 2007 11:03AM
hey fan boys go here: http://www.gmscoop.com
and then stay there
Russell @ Dec 14th 2007 2:11PM
Blame suppliers, AGAIN.
Russell @ Dec 14th 2007 2:41PM
Tundra owners, Toyota wants to give you the shaft.