recalls

Toyota recalls more than 50,000 Tundra trucks

Toyota Motor Sales today announced that it will conduct a voluntary safety recall on about 51,000 2011 Tundra trucks to inspect the rear drive shaft. The rear drive shaft in an estimated 0.05 percent of the vehicles may include a component (slip yoke) that could break because of improper casting during the foundry process.

According to the Japanese automaker, there are no reports of accidents or injuries associated with this condition, and no other Lexus or Toyota vehicles are involved in the recall.

Toyota will inspect or replace the rear drive shaft for free. The inspection takes about … Read more

Mercedes issues recall over sticking cruise control

Mercedes voluntarily issued a recall for 2000-2002 M-Class and 2000-2004 M-Class AMG vehicles due to a faulty brake lamp switch that could affect drivers' ability to disengage cruise control.

The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration investigated Mercedes in September 2010 in response to a driver's complaint about the M-Class's faulty cruise control. The safety organization found that brake lamp switch failures could potentially affect the system under certain braking circumstances.

In some M-class SUVs, drivers can disengage the vehicle cruise control system using the cruise control stalk, or by braking quickly with either significant force or by … Read more

Jetta recall: Honk horn, stall car

Own a 2011 Volkswagen Jetta? Be careful next time you honk your horn at that straggler holding up a green light.

Volkswagen of America today announced a voluntary safety recall affecting its flagship sedans. A wiring issue could cause the car to turn off if the horn is activated, the company said.

Approximately 71,043 Jettas--manufactured from March 2010 through March 2011--are affected by a bizarre issue caused by a fault in the wiring layout, according to VW. The "electrical gremlin" (a popular term in the automotive community) resides in the anti-theft alarm system and horn, which in rare circumstances can short-circuit the converter box that supplies power to the engine, among other components.

No related accidents or injuries have been reported, the automaker said.

As with most vehicle recalls, owners whose VINs fall within the recall range "will be notified via first-class mail regarding the corrective measures and anticipated repair timeline," according to Volkswagen. Concerned owners can also call Volkswagen customer care at 1.800.822.8987.

This isn't the first time the German automaker has been criticized for electrical issues in its eclectic lineup of vehicles. I have a feeling those "honk if you liked your service" signs won't be popping up at Volkswagen dealerships any time soon.

Toyota recalls nearly 1.7 million vehicles worldwide

It's almost a flashback to 2010. Toyota Motor Sales today announced a voluntary recall of nearly 1.7 million vehicles worldwide for various issues.

A safety recall to inspect the installation of fuel pressure sensors involves about 245,000, 2006 to 2009 Lexus GS and IS models sold in the United States. The recall also includes 10,000 vehicles sold in Europe. A separate recall involves 141,000 Avensis cars sold in Europe and New Zealand. These cars may have irregular fuel pipes that increase the likelihood of cracks and further leakage.

The automaker said on its Web site: &… Read more

Toshiba recalls 41,000 laptops for overheating

The Consumer Product Safety Commission on Thursday issued a recall of 41,000 Toshiba laptops after reports of some overheating and even melting.

Toshiba posted its own recall of several models of its Satellite T130 laptops on its product support forums last week.

The CPSC said 129 instances of "overheating and deforming the plastic casing area around the AC adapter plug" had been reported. Two of those reports resulted in "minor burn injuries that did not require medical attention" and two in minor property damage.

Toshiba said on its Web site that the problem stems from … Read more

Car Tech Live 183: CNET drives the 2011 VW Jetta (podcast)

Is texting the biggest road hazard? Not even close. Red lights are getting longer. Are we just over hybrids? OnStar gears up for a major relaunch. And we drive the new 2011 Jetta.

Subscribe with iTunes (audio) Subscribe with iTunes (video) Subscribe with RSS (audio) Subscribe with RSS (video) Episode 183 Show notes

• Major recall for Toyotas that do anything but run away

• Honda Fit hybrid, aka, the new Jazz

• CNET review of the new 2011 VW Jetta

• Is driving while texting overblown as a hazard?

• Why red lights are getting longer

Garmin recalls some Nuvi GPS units

Garmin on Wednesday issued a worldwide recall of 1.25 million Nuvi GPS units, saying the batteries can overheat and pose a fire hazard.

Roughly 1.25 million units are affected, with 796,000 of those in the U.S. Garmin said there have been 10 cases of the batteries overheating, but no injuries or significant property damage.

Models affected by the recall include the 200W, 250W, and 260W, and 7xx and 7xxT units (where xx is a two-digit number). The third-party supplier of the battery, which Garmin didn't name, will split the cost of replacing the battery packs, … Read more

Toyota boosts Tacoma production at Texas plant

Toyota could be on the way to bouncing back from a year of recalls and civil litigation.

The Japanese automaker today announced a $100 million investment in Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas, boosting its total investment in the 7-year-old plant to $1.4 billion.

Toyota began production of the Tacoma pickup truck began last month at the San Antonio, Texas, location, but the event was marked today with a ceremony attended by Texas Governor Rick Perry, San Antonio community leaders, and Toyota officials including Toyota Motor Corporation Executive Vice President Atsushi Niimi.

Almost a year ago, Toyota recalled the Tacoma because … Read more

iPhone 4: What now?

When Apple holds its press conference regarding iPhone 4 on Friday, we will either get a lesson in publicity or a lesson in humility. The company is known for being great at one and not so great at the other. I'll let you guess which is which.

Consumer Reports dealt Apple a painful blow this week when the publication decided it could not recommend the iPhone 4 due to antenna and reception issues. We came up with the same results in our tests. This is not something Apple can be flippant about, but the company is in uncharted territory … Read more

Analyst: iPhone 4 recall would cost $1.5 billion

In the wake of Consumer Reports announcing that it would not be recommending the iPhone 4 due to the much-discussed antenna problems, there have been calls for Apple to recall the device.

While a recall could be damaging to Apple's reputation, it would also be a costly endeavor, according to some calculations made by Bernstein Research analyst Toni Sacconaghi. In a research note on Tuesday, Sacconaghi estimated that while "a full product recall of the iPhone 4 (is) highly unlikely," it would cost Apple $1.5 billion, or 3.5 percent of its total cash on hand. … Read more