Toyota Recall (Again): Toyota Recalls Tacoma Pickup Trucks For Driveshaft Defect

Bloomberg has reported that Toyota will recall thousands of Tacoma pickup trucks because of cracks in the drive-shaft components.

This is Toyota’s second recall of Tocoma pickup trucks — following an earlier recall for "sticky" gas pedals.

Feb. 13 (Bloomberg) — Toyota Motor Corp. said it’s recalling a “limited number” of Tacoma pickups because of cracks in the drive-shaft components.

The defect was recently caught during the manufacturing process before any reports of problems, said John Hanson, a spokesman for the Japanese automaker’s U.S. sales unit in Torrance, California. The parts supplier, Dana Holding Corp., said the defect involves about 34,000 tube yokes that were also sold to Ford Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co.

The recall is the latest in a series for Toyota, the world’s largest automaker, which has sought to correct defects with about 8 million vehicles globally. It suspended sales this year of eight models in the U.S., including the top-selling Camry, after defects related to accelerator pedals.

Dana sent the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration a notice Feb. 11 saying it would handle the recall after finding a defect in the manufacturing process for the part, which attaches to the end of the drive shaft and helps transfer torque. Dana hasn’t been made aware of any accidents related to the flaw, Chuck Hartlage, a spokesman for the Toledo, Ohio-based company, said in an e-mail.

Safety-related defect recalls have seemingly become a weekly occurrence for Toyota. This recall is just the latest in a series of critical safety lapses. The latest recall is just more evidence that safety at Toyota has taken a back seat to growth, market share and profits.

You can learn more about Toyota’s checkered safety history at our auto safety blog or by visiting our web site.

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