Toyota Initiates 240,000 Vehicle Recall
Toyota has announced a safety campaign affecting just under 240,000 vehicles in Canada, a small portion of the roughly 2.5 million vehicles being recalled in the United States for the same reason. This issue is related to the 'master switch' that controls access to the window controls of a wide range of Toyota vehicles. The automaker's concern is that individuals may attempt to repair the notchy, or sticky feel of this switch by adding traditional lubricants - lubricants which could cause a fire due to the resultant melting of the switch assembly. Toyota is offering to use fluorine grease in order to resolve the stickiness issue and prevent the potential for do-it-yourselfers to spark a conflagration.
Read the press release below to see if your vehicle is affected by the recall. Toyota will be contacting owners individually to notify them of the need to participate in the repair.
TOYOTA ANNOUNCES VOLUNTARY SAFETY RECALL OF CERTAIN VEHICLES FOR THE DRIVER’S SIDE POWER WINDOW MASTER SWITCH
TORONTO, Ontario, October 10, 2012 – Toyota Canada Inc., (TCI) announced that it will conduct a safety recall involving approximately 239,459 vehicles to inspect and apply special fluorine grease to the driver’s side Power Window Master Switch (PWMS). The vehicles involved include:
2007 to 2008 Yaris (approx. 46,701)
2007 to 2009 RAV4 (approx. 36,328)
2007 to 2009 Tundra (approx. 21,156)
2007 to 2009 Camry (approx. 46,853)
2007 to 2009 Camry Hybrid (approx. 12,894)
2008 to 2009 Sequoia (approx. 963)
2008 Highlander (approx. 8,283)
2008 Highlander Hybrid (approx. 1,420)
2009 Corolla (approx. 40,646)
2009 Matrix (approx. 24,215)
The driver’s side PWMS may experience a “notchy” or sticky feel during operation. If commercially available lubricants are applied to the switch in an attempt to address the “notchy” or sticky feel, melting of the switch assembly or smoke could occur and lead to a fire under some circumstances.
The “notchy” or sticky feel may be caused by an uneven application of the grease during the switch assembly process at the supplier. If the grease is not applied evenly, frequent use of the switch and normal operation may cause the grease to become carbonized and may eventually result in the deterioration of its lubricating properties.
The recall remedy will involve an inspection, switch disassembly, and application of special fluorine grease. The switch inspection and repair will be performed at no charge to the vehicle owner.
Owners of vehicles covered by this safety recall will receive an owner notification letter via first class mail starting in late October, 2012. The repair will take approximately one hour depending on the dealer’s work schedule.
No other Toyota, Lexus, or Scion vehicles are involved. We are not aware of any vehicle crashes for this condition.
Detailed information is available to customers at www.toyota.ca and the Toyota Customer Interaction Centre at 1-800-TOYOTA-8 .
