The Mail & Guardian asks Toyota South Africa public relations manager Leo Kok 10 tough questions about the company’s vehicle recalls.
Please explain why Toyota South Africa hasn’t been as quick as the United States and Europe to recall cars that may have faulty accelerators or brakes?
The recall was first issued in the United States and was later expanded to Europe and other geographies, including South Africa. We decided to engage in a comprehensive study of all vehicles currently on sale in South Africa to make absolutely sure that we include any Toyota vehicle that uses a similar accelerator mechanism. This has taken some time, but during that period we kept motorists up to date by acknowledging the models affected as we received the information from our technical team.
Regarding the brake-pedal feeling on the Prius — the recall was issued late on Tuesday afternoon by Toyota Motor Corporation and we announced the recall in South Africa in our press conference on Wednesday.
What is the difference between the cars being recalled in the US and Europe and similar models Toyota assembles and sells in South Africa? Do we use different parts suppliers to the US and Europe?
It is a combination between slight variations in design between left- and right-hand-drive vehicles, in some cases different model ranges and our sourcing arrangements with parts suppliers.
In the past year millions of Toyotas have been recalled globally because of faulty floor mats, sticky accelerators and now almost half-a-million Priuses are being recalled for possibly faulty brakes. Why are such significant things going wrong with Toyota vehicles?
To be clear, Toyota’s focus on quality and safety has not changed. In relation to both global recalls — the accelerator pedal mechanism and the brake feeling (not braking ability) on the Prius — the number of incidents are very small. I believe Toyota has been responsible in including other regions, including South Africa, as a proactive step. One should therefore not look at the number of recalled vehicles as in any way related to the number of actual incidents recorded.
What models will be recalled in South Africa and roughly how many vehicles are likely to be affected?
The vehicles included in the accelerator pedal service recall are:
Toyota Corolla (February 2007 to January 2010) — 45 040 vehicles
Toyota Auris (June 2006 to January 2010) — 6 665 vehicles
Toyota Verso (October 2008 to January 2010) — 841 vehicles
Regarding the software regulating the brake-pedal feel on the Toyota Prius (August 2009 to February 2010) — 216 vehicles
Toyota South Africa has previously taken a devil-may-care approach to local customers; for example, there were dozens of complaints of Fortuners rolling over on gravel roads in 2008 before Toyota SA issued a statement about there being a possible problem with the vehicle’s tyres. Do you think Toyota SA can continue to take this flippant approach given the global damage that has been done to the brand?
We definitely do not have a devil-may-care approach and our standing in the national service rankings by companies such as Synovate will attest to this. In incidents where we receive customer concerns that cannot be dealt with by the dealership we manage each case separately. We do not publish each resolution, but we do publish changes to vehicle specifications.
Have possible Toyota customers expressed reservations about buying Toyota vehicles or have you not noticed an impact on sales yet?
We announced our participation in the recall on February 1, which is in the current sales month. We understand owners and prospective owners’ concerns, but we believe that Toyota has acted firmly in ensuring that this problem does not become a concern to them. All new Toyota vehicles have received the upgraded mechanism.
Why isn’t Lexus recalling any vehicles? There was a serious accident in the US where four people are said to have died as a result of a sticky accelerator pedal in the Lexus model they were in.
The issue in the US that you refer to is under litigation and has not been linked to the accelerator pedal mechanism. This is an issue that was addressed in the US. The vehicle involved in this incident does not sell in South Africa.
If there are Toyota customers out there experiencing any of the above problems with their cars, who should they contact?
We would love to hear from any customer that might have a similar concern. They can contact our Customer Contact Centre on 0800 139 111.
Roughly how long will local customers who are part of the recall be without their cars while Toyota remedies the problem?
The repair takes less than an hour.
How long do you think it will take for Toyota to recover from these recalls?
Toyota has built a reputation for quality and reliability over many decades. We will act quickly in applying the corrective action to all vehicles concerned and we will work hard to justify the trust that customers have put in us. We believe that our global pre-emptive action will prove to current and future customers that we are indeed serious about the safety of our customers.