6 million Toyota cars recalled worldwide over safety defects

Toyota has recalled over 6m cars worldwide to fix a range of safety defects in one of the biggest recalls in car history.

More than 8,000 of the models recalled are in Ireland. The problems include defects with the driver seat and steering column.

Toyota Ireland confirmed that some 4,937 Hilux and RAV4 models manufactured between June 2004 and December 2010 are being recalled due to possible faults with the cars’ spiral case assembly.

It is also recalling 3,475 Yaris and Urban Cruiser models made between January 2005 and August 2010 due to possible issues with the seat rail spring.

It said 19 Urban Cruisers and nine Yaris T-Sport cars are also being recalled in Ireland due to possible problems with the steering column bracket.

It said there have been no reports worldwide of any accidents or injuries related to these problems.

Toyota Ireland will write to owners to arrange to have their vehicles inspected at no cost. Owners can contact Toyota Ireland on 01 4190222.

Analysts have said the global recall could cost the company close to €500m.

Around 3.5m of the cars — more than half in North America — are being called back to replace spiral cables that may prevent driver’s- side airbags from deploying.

Models involved include RAV4, Corolla, Yaris, Highlander, Tacoma, and Camry that were produced between April 2004 and December 2010.

Another 2.3m vehicles are being called back to inspect and replace the front seat rails of three-door models.

Springs that lock these rails may break if the seats are frequently adjusted back and forth, the company said.

The models involved with this issue, which could lead to seats that move in the event of a crash, were built from January 2005 to August 2010. The vehicles are the Ist, Vitz, Belta, and Ractis in Japan, and Scion xD, Urban Cruiser, and Yaris in other markets.

Toyota also will fix noisy and potentially unstable steering column brackets on about 760,000 vehicles globally.

The remaining safety campaigns are to replace windscreen wiper motors of about 160,000 Ractis cars in Japan and the engine starters of about 20,000 vehicles in Japan and Hong Kong.

This is the second major global recall for Toyota this year.

A recall of 1.9m Prius hybrids in February covered more than half of the models sold since its debut 17 years ago.

The company has updated software in Priuses to fix glitches that could cause them to lose power or shut down and stop.

In October 2012, Toyota announced a global recall of 7.43m vehicles, including its popular Camry and Corolla models, over a possible fire risk.

“We sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience and concern brought by this recall announcement,” the company said a statement.

“Toyota has rededicated itself to strengthening its commitment to safety and quality.

“In part, that means refocusing on putting customers and people first, by listening better and taking appropriate action.”

Toyota has set a target of selling an unprecedented 10.32m vehicles in 2014 after leading GM and Volkswagen in global car deliveries for a second straight year in 2013.