By Jesse Liebman -- February 4, 2010
Japanese automaker Toyota said Thursday that a software glitch is responsible for braking problems in the 2010 model of its Prius series, though the company has yet to issue a recall.
"We would want to be given a little time," Hiro Yuki Yokoyama, Toyota's managing officer, said when reporters asked whether a recall was being planned.
The announcement comes on the heels of more than 100 complaints in the U.S. and Japan. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received about 100 complaints involving the brakes of the Prius new model. Two involved crashes resulting in injuries.
The problem stems from what officials describe as a "disconnect" in the vehicle's anti-lock braking system (ABS) that causes less than a one-second lag. With the interruption, a vehicle going 60 mph will travel almost an additional 90 feet before the brakes will begin to function properly.
The brakes in the Prius are different than on most cars because they are regenerative, drawing power from the friction of stopping the car to recharge the car's battery for its hybrid engine.
The Japanese automaker is facing growing criticism that it
has not done enough to ensure the safety of its vehicles and passengers.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told The Associated
Press Tuesday that federal officials had to alert Toyota to the seriousness of
the safety issues that eventually led to the recalls.
"They should have taken it seriously from the very beginning when we first started discussing it with them," he said. "Maybe they were a little safety deaf."
It has not been an easy start to the year for the world's No. 1 automaker. Toyota is in the midst of recalling 4.5 million vehicles in the U.S., Europe and China to fix gas pedals that have been sticking when depressed. The company has also halted the sale of the eight models involved in the recall.
Toyota also announced third-quarter results Thursday, posting a 10.2 percent rise in net revenue from the year before. The quarter ended December 31, three weeks before Toyota stopped selling the recalled models.
Any serious problems emerging in the Prius, Toyota's flagship
green car model, is certain to further tarnish its brand.
The Prius, now in its third generation since its 1997 introduction, is the best-selling gas-electric hybrid in the world, racking up a cumulative 1.6 million units sold so far, according to Toyota.
