Toyota recalls one million hybrid cars worldwide over fire risk
Written by News on 05/09/2018
Toyota is recalling more than one million hybrid cars globally due to a technical problem which could cause a fire in the vehicles.
About 1.03 million built between June 2015 and May 2018 will be recalled for safety checks, said the Japanese car giant.
The affected models include the Prius, Prius PHV and C-HR hybrid cars.
Some 554,000 are in Japan, 217,000 in North America and 219,000 in Europe are being called back over an issue with the engine wire harness.
A Toyota UK spokesman told Sky News a total of 32,393 UK-registered vehicles are affected by the recall.
The company said: “The issue involves the engine wire harness which is connected to the hybrid vehicle power control unit.
“A portion of the wire harness without a protector could contact the connector cover and wear over time, possibly causing an electrical short circuit.
“There have been no reports of any accidents or injuries relating to this issue.”
The company said Toyota retailers will check the engine wire harness assembly.
“If no damage is found, a protector will be installed over this. If damage is found, the assembly will be replaced with a new one that includes a protector at no cost.”
The carmaker said it will provide inspections and repair programme free of charge to customers.
“In accordance with DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) guidelines and code of practice, vehicle owners will be contacted by Toyota within the coming weeks by post or telephone and asked to make an appointment to bring their car to their nearest Toyota retailer.
“Customers [in the UK] can check if their vehicle is affected using the registration number look-up function on toyota.co.uk,” the company said.
Toyota has sold more than 10 million hybrid petrol-electric vehicles globally, including the Prius, since 1997.
In 2016, Toyota announced the recall of 3.37 million vehicles worldwide, over problems with air bags and a fuel emission control unit.
The biggest recall ever for the Prius was in February 2014, involving 1.9 million vehicles.
(c) Sky News 2018: Toyota recalls one million hybrid cars worldwide over fire risk
