by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 31, 2010
Reversing course, Toyota Motor Co. has decided to ship replacement accelerator units to its U.S. dealers before using them to get five shuttered North American assembly lines back in operation. Describing the replacement as a “minor repair,” one major Washington, D.C....
by Ken Zino | Jan 31, 2010
Toyota, the world’s largest automaker, is embroiled in two controversial U.S. recalls for unintended acceleration involving ~5.3 million vehicles so far, and sluggish-to-sticking accelerator pedals, at least 2.3 million vehicles. In addition, this week Toyota is...
by Ken Zino | Jan 29, 2010
Neither the Toyota unintended acceleration floor mat recall, nor last week’s sticking pedal recall should give Pontiac Vibe owners any cause for concern, according to General Motors. Even though the Vibe shares a common platform with the recalled Toyota Corolla and...
by Ken Zino | Jan 29, 2010
The Associated Press has just reported that Toyota is shipping pedals to its factories in North America, even though they will be shut down next week because of the recall of 2.3 million vehicles for pedal sticking problems. The list of affected vehicles includes...
by Ken Zino | Jan 29, 2010
Porsche Automobil Holding SE’s annual meeting saw economic reality prevail over history, as board member Hans-Peter Porsche 69, retired from office and was immediately replaced by “His Excellency” Sheikh Jassim Bin Abdulaziz Bin Jassim Al-Thani, 31, as a...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 29, 2010
With Toyota announcing nearly 3.5 million recalls since just the beginning of this year – on top of a record 4 million in 2009 – the embattled Japanese maker’s top executive issued his first official comment, in the form of an apology, today. “I am deeply sorry,”...
by Ken Zino | Jan 29, 2010
Toyota Motor Europe officially announced this morning the recall of eight Toyota models in Europe for the same sticking pedal problem that has the U.S. Congress demanding public hearings. The vehicles are among the most popular in its European range....
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 29, 2010
The battery cars are coming, or so say most automotive experts. According to one recent report, as many as 40 battery-based products, including plug-in hybrids and pure battery-electric vehicles, or BEVs, will be on the market by 2014. But if you’re a fan of the...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 29, 2010
Honda Motor Co. will recall more than 600,000 of its subcompact Fit hatchbacks due to a potential fire hazard, the maker announced today. The problem is the result of a defect master power window switch that could leak and, in some cases, cause a fire. So far, the...
by Ken Zino | Jan 29, 2010
The ongoing controversy about the Toyota accelerator pedal recall has resulted in many inquires. Here is Toyota’s official view, which does not necessarily represent the views of TheDetroitBureau.com — and is subject to ongoing investigations by various...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jan 28, 2010
It wasn’t all that long ago that Korean-made products lagged low on the list of models automotive journalists sought to review. And they weren’t held in all that much higher esteem by the motoring public. But anyone who still thinks of cars like the Pony when the...
by Ken Zino | Jan 28, 2010
The chairman of CTS, a global manufacturer of recalled gas pedals by Toyota Motor Sales, told investors during an earnings conference call today that the problem was caused by environmental conditions that went beyond Toyota’s design specifications for the...
