Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday it is recalling
optional ``all-weather'' floor mats in 55,000 Lexus ES 350 and
Toyota Camry passenger cars because the mat could interfere with the
gas pedal and lead to a crash.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a
consumer advisory about the heavy-duty rubber floor mats, noting
that if unsecured, the map could move forward and trap the gas
pedal, causing the vehicle to accelerate uncontrollably.
In a separate move, Nissan Motor Co. said it was recalling nearly
420,000 sport utility vehicles because of possible corrosion in the
tube where motorists pump gasoline.
The recall involves Nissan Pathfinder and Infiniti QX4 SUVs from
the 1997-2001 model years. More than 370,000 of the vehicles under
recall were originally sold or are currently registered in 22 ``cold
weather'' U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Another 45,000
vehicles are in Canada.
In the Toyota recall, NHTSA urged drivers of other vehicles,
including the Avalon and Prius, to check the driver-side floor mats
to ensure they were properly installed. NHTSA spokesman Rae Tyson
said it was taking the step ``because we believe potentially it is a
very serious safety issue.''
Toyota spokesman Bill Kwong said the automaker had not received
any complaints about the Avalon and Prius. In some cases, he said
the floor mats _ used to collect rain water, mud and snow _ were
stacked on top of the original carpet mats and wedged up against the
accelerator.
The vehicle has hooks on the floor that can only secure one mat
at a time.
Toyota has received 22 complaints and learned of six accidents
allegedly connected to the issue. Kwong said they did not know of
any injuries linked to the mats.
The Japanese-based automaker plans to notify owners in early
October and expects replacement mats to be available at dealerships
by late November.
In a statement, Toyota advised owners to regularly check that
their floor mat is properly secured and said ``under no
circumstances should more than one floor mat ever be used in the
driver's seating position.''
Owners can contact Toyota at (888) 270-9371 or (800) 331-4331 and
Lexus owners can call (800) 255-3987 for more information.
Nissan said its recall was prompted by an inadequate amount of
coating on a bracket by the fuel filler tube assembly. In regions
that use road salt during the winter, a mixture of snow, water and
salt could cause corrosion on the bare metal part of the tube and
allow fuel to leak.
Nissan spokesman Fred Standish said there were no reports of
fires or injuries.
The states covered by the recall include: Connecticut, Delaware,
Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland,
Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West
Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Nissan dealers will replace the fuel filler tube assembly with a
new one with an improved coating process. Owners will be notified
beginning in late November. For more information, owners can contact
Nissan at (800) 647-7261.