Toyota expected to issue recall of Prius

TOYOTA said yesterday it will soon announce plans to deal with braking problems in its prized Prius hybrid, amid reports it has decided to issue a recall for the latest model in Japan, a possible new embarrassment for the world’s biggest automaker.

Toyota Motor Corp has already had to recall more than 7 million other cars in the US, Europe and China over a sticky accelerator and floor mats catching in the gas pedal. Those problems and criticism of Toyota’s response to them have sullied the stellar reputation for quality long enjoyed by one of Japan’s corporate icons.

Separately, the company has told dealers in the US it is preparing to repair the brakes on thousands of Prius vehicles there, according to an email sent by a company executive. It was unclear whether Toyota planned a formal US recall.