Prius news article
Posted: Fri Oct 14, 2005 2:00 pm
Prius has a problem, says Toyota
Hybrid owners to be notified of stalling glitch on '04 and '05 models; no recall issued.
October 14, 2005; Posted: 6:36 a.m. EDT (1036 GMT)
DETROIT (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it will notify about 160,000 Prius owners around the world about a potential software problem that may cause the popular hybrid cars to suddenly stall or shut down.
Japan's top auto maker said the fault may cause warning lights in the cars to illuminate. That can prompt the vehicles to enter a "fail safe" mode that may cause their gasoline engines to stall.
Hybrid vehicles twin a gasoline engine with an electric motor and batteries to boost fuel economy.
Toyota spokeswoman Allison Takahashi said that, if the gasoline engine stalls, the electric motor will have enough power to allow the driver to pull the vehicle over and away from the traffic.
The vehicles involved in the Toyota service action are from the 2004 and 2005 model years. About 75,000 of them are in the United States and 70,000 in Japan.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had received a number of complaints about the hybrid vehicles stalling or stopping unexpectedly, often on highways.
Toyota will be sending out letters asking customers to take the cars to a dealership for free repairs, Takahashi said.
No recall notice has been issued, she added.
Toyota sold 53,991 Prius cars in 2004 and 81,042 so far this year. There is usually a waiting list to buy the vehicle, which have the second-highest government mileage ratings of any passenger vehicles.
At least they're offering a free repair.
Hybrid owners to be notified of stalling glitch on '04 and '05 models; no recall issued.
October 14, 2005; Posted: 6:36 a.m. EDT (1036 GMT)
DETROIT (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it will notify about 160,000 Prius owners around the world about a potential software problem that may cause the popular hybrid cars to suddenly stall or shut down.
Japan's top auto maker said the fault may cause warning lights in the cars to illuminate. That can prompt the vehicles to enter a "fail safe" mode that may cause their gasoline engines to stall.
Hybrid vehicles twin a gasoline engine with an electric motor and batteries to boost fuel economy.
Toyota spokeswoman Allison Takahashi said that, if the gasoline engine stalls, the electric motor will have enough power to allow the driver to pull the vehicle over and away from the traffic.
The vehicles involved in the Toyota service action are from the 2004 and 2005 model years. About 75,000 of them are in the United States and 70,000 in Japan.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had received a number of complaints about the hybrid vehicles stalling or stopping unexpectedly, often on highways.
Toyota will be sending out letters asking customers to take the cars to a dealership for free repairs, Takahashi said.
No recall notice has been issued, she added.
Toyota sold 53,991 Prius cars in 2004 and 81,042 so far this year. There is usually a waiting list to buy the vehicle, which have the second-highest government mileage ratings of any passenger vehicles.
At least they're offering a free repair.
, so its less time now) but the battery is just too much of an expense. If I had that kind of money, I'd probably buy an LGT new or something 