Toyota to announce repair plans next week

DETROIT — Toyota
will announce plans next week for repairing 2.3 million vehicles under
recall for accelerator pedals that could stick, but the time frame for
completing the repairs has yet to be finalized, the company said Friday.

The Japanese automaker took another public relations
hit when Consumer Reports, one of the most-watched arbiters of
automotive quality, pulled its “recommended” ratings from the eight Toyota models whose sales have been halted until Toyota provides a repair. The magazine also advised shoppers to avoid used models under the recall.

Toyota was also summoned to a U.S. House Oversight committee hearing next Thursday on the recall. It had already been asked to provide data and testify at a Feb. 25 hearing by a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee headed by Michigan Rep. Bart Stupak after committee staffers explored the issue with Toyota earlier this week and were left with several questions.

Combined with a recall of 5.4 million vehicles due to floor mats that could also lead to sudden acceleration, Toyota now has 5.6 million vehicles under recall.

The automaker had been working on two possible
repairs dealers could perform for the accelerator pedal flaw and had
discussed options with federal regulators. CTS, the supplier that made
the pedal at the center of the recall, said it is building replacement
pedals in its factories. “We will not start recalling and repairing
vehicles, but we will be able to tell people what our plans are and a
tentative start date for those plans,” said Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons.

Toyota’s European
operation said Friday its recall for the same problem would cover up to
1.8 million vehicles, but the automaker did not plan to stop production
of the affected models as it had in North America. The six plants where the models are built in the United States and Canada will halt production for at least one week starting Monday.

Consumer Reports said its yanking of the
“recommended” label was necessary because “our position is that you
shouldn’t compromise on safety,” said Jim Guest, president of Consumers Union.

The move also applied to the Pontiac Vibe, which Toyota had built for GM until this year.

GM said Friday the Vibe was safe to drive and that it was waiting for more information from Toyota.

Also on Friday, Hyundai and Chrysler joined Ford and General Motors in offering incentives for Toyota owners to buy their vehicles.

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