VIDEO: Toyota grilled over possible truck recall coverup
Levi Stewart lost his life after the steering relay rod on his 1991 Toyota pickup snapped, causing the truck to roll. Officials labeled the accident alcohol-related due to the fact the teenager had a blood-alcohol level of .03 (legal limit for adults in his state over the age of 21 is .08), but that was before anyone involved with the investigation knew of a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recall. The relay rod, which connects the steering wheel to the front tires, had been under recall since 2005, but neither the truck owner or the previous owner had been notified of the defect. Lawyers for the Stewart family are accusing Toyota of both delaying and improperly distributing the recall notice, which affected 1 million trucks and SUVs. The lawyers contend they have evidence that Toyota has known about the problem since as early as 1996, yet the recall didn't begin until 2005. Toyota actually started the recall in Japan a year earlier, and Toyota waited a full year before starting the recall action in the U.S. The reason Toyota has stated for the delay was that driving conditions were different in Japan, and that there were no incidents reported in the U.S. Japanese media told NBC that it knew of 80 incidents in Japan. Hit the jump to view NBC's investigational video. Hat tip to Michael
Gallery: Toyota grilled over truck recall
[Source: NBC Los Angeles]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
rsfourever 10:36AM (3/12/2009)
i feel like i'm sensing some toyota deja vu...
Reply
Randy 1:58PM (3/12/2009)
See everyone? I TOLD everyone about the Camry cover up near my house when the Camry burst into flames (it was new) then the car got whisked away!
I wasn't being a fanboy! I was serious!
AngeloD 10:46AM (3/12/2009)
If this were GM, Ford, or Chrysler the calls for blood would be deafening.
Since it's Toyota, expect endless justifications and excuses.
Toyota really isn't "all that" after all.
Reply
Slizzo 10:53AM (3/12/2009)
Agreed, Toyota has had more recalls than any of the Big 3 manufacturers for the past, what? 2 or 3 years? And I mean by orders of magnitude....
Yikes 11:12AM (3/12/2009)
Sizzo, backup your claim, give us the order of magnitude. If not, we can assume you are just a hateful liar.
Sea Urchin 11:29AM (3/12/2009)
If Toyota is guilty....sue them.
Big Rocket 1:09PM (3/12/2009)
Average recall rate from 2006 to 2008, US recalls vs US sales:
Honda: 1.35 million recalls, 4.48 million sales = 30%
Toyota: 2.28 million recalls, 7.34 million sales = 31%
GM: 3.84 million recalls, 10.87 million sales = 35%
Chrysler: 4.86 million recalls, 5.93 million sales = 82%
Nissan: 3.18 million recalls, 3.02 million sales = 105%
Ford: 8.8 million recalls, 7.2 million sales = 122%
2008 US recalls vs US sales:
Chrysler: 0.36 million recalls, 1.45 million sales = 25%
Toyota: 0.83 million recalls, 2.22 million sales = 37%
Honda: 0.80 million recalls, 1.43 million sales = 56%
Nissan: 0.58 million recalls, 0.95 million sales = 61%
GM: 1.9 million recalls, 2.95 million sales = 64%
Ford: 1.6 million recalls, 1.91 million sales = 84%
2007 US recalls vs US sales:
GM: 0.54 million recalls, 3.82 million sales = 14%
Toyota: 0.64 million recalls, 2.62 million sales = 24%
Honda: 0.55 million recalls, 1.55 million sales = 35%
Chrysler: 2.2 million recalls, 2.08 million sales = 106%
Nissan: 1.3 million recalls, 1.07 million sales = 121%
Ford: 5.5 million recalls, 2.39 million sales = 230%
2006 US recalls vs US sales:
Honda: 0.0014 million recalls*, 1.5 million sales = 0.093%
Toyota: 0.81 million recalls, 2.5 million sales = 32%
GM: 1.4 million recalls, 4.1 million sales = 34%
Ford: 1.7 million recalls, 2.9 million sales = 58%
Chrysler: 2.3 million recalls, 2.4 million sales = 96%
Nissan: 1.3 million recalls, 1.0 million sales = 130%
(* Excludes owner's manual typo)
http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2009/01/recalls-down.html
http://horisly.blogspot.com/2009/01/dec2008-auto-sales-gmfordhondatoyota.html
http://www.autoblog.com/2007/01/19/surprise-recalls-fall-in-2006/
Yikes 1:13PM (3/12/2009)
Slizzo, you were just OWNED big time.
Ken 1:18PM (3/12/2009)
I'd seen a statistic that backs up what Sizzo said but the numbers were slanted to make them say that. It basically took a look at one year and only covered certain recalls, those that impacted the safety and function of the vehicle in some dramatic way.
The Luigiian 1:34PM (3/12/2009)
I can't believe it, but I'm actually agreeing with SeaUrchin on this one. D:
"If Toyota is guilty....sue them."
Hey, if they can sue Ford for the Explorer and Pinto...
psu48187 3:15PM (3/12/2009)
Those percentages above don't paint a truly accurate picture. Certain manufacturers have a tendency to release TSBs or Service Bulletins vs. recalls.
Furthermore, blanketing recalls from several model years in the past and using current year sales to calculate a percentage doesn't make much sense. I could see if you calculated 2006 MY recalls with 2006 MY sales, but the way it was done above is very misleading nor does that percentage serve a purpose.
rooster 6:39PM (3/12/2009)
Big Rocket - that just proves that figures can be made to represent anything that the author wants. MY sales versus total recalls? Regardless of recall year? Are you trying to be funny, or do you really not understand the subject matter?
Big Rocket 8:27PM (3/12/2009)
@rooster: Please show us your understanding of the subject matter, and do all the research and math necessary to obtain MY recalls per MY sales. Be my guest.
@psu48187:
• The recall numbers for model year 2008 can include cars sold in MY 2007, 2006, 2005, etc. The sales numbers for MY 2008 only include cars sold in MY 2008. In a way, it is an apples-to-oranges comparison. However, and this is the key point, when you look at the average across multiple years like I did, then you can greatly reduce the effect (of 1 year's recall spanning multiple MY).
• There is no good way to gauge how often manufacturers avoid recalls with TSBs or other unsavory means. Some companies are frequently accused of avoiding recalls with TSBs, and other companies are frequently accused of avoiding recalls by doing nothing at all (until faced with class-action lawsuits). Without an exhaustive look into the practice, there is no way to know if all companies weasel out of recalls at an equal rate, so I will let you be your own judge regarding the meaningfulness of official recall numbers.
DayShifter 10:51AM (3/12/2009)
Noooooooooo..... Not Toyota!
I guess the souls in hell are lacing up their ice skates... LOL!!
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Banan 10:57AM (3/12/2009)
The truck it self could have mechanical problem, but for those kids to be under the influence of alcohol and driving without seat belts is unexceptional. If they wore seat belts, those boys would not go flying out of the truck and would survive the crash. My daddy a;ways says, put on that seat belt!
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Inigo 11:04AM (3/12/2009)
Banan...exactly what I was thinking.
Tragic as this is, and as culpable as Toyota is for not issuign the recal sooner, the fact remains that if the kid hadn't been drinking, and if seat belts were worn, this could have ended up just being a bad accident rather than fata.
This family now has something to excuse their child's irresponsible and reckless behaviour, and will cry victimization by a corporate machine.
In America, we blame others for our own stupidity, because lawyers and judges are just too stupid to know better.
Yikes 11:09AM (3/12/2009)
Lawyers don't care.
The boys could have been racing, drunk, driving with their feet, blindfolded, all the lawyers see are cha....ching.
David 11:23AM (3/12/2009)
On the flip side, it is arguable that at a mere 0.03 blood alcohol level, if the truck were mechanically sound the teens would have made it home alive. This story is not about one accident, it is about Toyota covering up a known issue for a decade in order to save money and the potential for that decision to cost lives. Regardless of which auto company did it, this behavior is criminal and ought to be prosecuted.
That One Person 4:54PM (3/12/2009)
Did you read the article? Toyota knew about the problem and delayed the recall for NINE freakin years....
That One Person 4:53PM (3/12/2009)
Here is an article about a lady who sued over the 10 year old Firestone tires on her 1992 Mazda Navajo....a tire that everyone in this country knew about.
http://overlawyered.com/2006/01/rose-marie-munoz-and-the-29-million-limp/