Toyota Recalling 1.9 Million Priuses To Fix Software Glitch That Could Slow Or Stop Cars
The computers have won. At least the computers in about 1.9 million Toyota Prius vehicles have won, as the company says it’s recalling that number of vehicles to fix a software glitch that could cause the cars to slow down or completely stop.
That’s not an insignificant number, points out Bloomberg News — it’s more than half the Prius cars ever sold, and includes cars made around the world since March 2009, according to a Toyota spokesman. About 700,000 of those recalled Prius vehicles are in the U.S.
Since the cars were first released in 1997 there have been about 3.6 million vehicles delivered worldwide .
The glitchy software can also cause some parts to overheat in certain scenarios like when you’re accelerating from a stopped position, a spokesman said. The car then goes into a failsafe mode that allows you to drive but at reduced power. Sometimes this system can totally shut down and stop the car.
In an announcement on the corporate site, Toyota says there haven’t been any accidents or injuries reported due to the software issue.
Separate from the Prius recall, Toyota is also recalling about 260,000 other vehicles in the U.S. to address a different issue with the 2012 and 2013 model years of the Toyota Tacoma pickup, the Lexus RX 350 sport utility vehicle and the 2012 Toyota RAV4 SUV.
Owners of affected vehicles will receive a software update free of charge and will be notified by first class mail when the dealers are ready with the software updates. Check out http://www.toyota.com/recall or call the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331 for more information.
Lexus customers can visit http://www.lexus.com/recall or call the Lexus Customer Satisfaction Center at 1-800-25-LEXUS (1-800-255-3987).
Toyota to Recall 1.9 Million Priuses to Update Software [Bloomberg News]
Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.