Recall Notice: Toyota Recalls 600,000 Sienna Minivans in Northern States

It’s the fifth major recall for Toyota in the past few months and Toyota’s stellar reputation for quality is taking a beating. Toyota Motor Corp has just announced a recall of 600,000 Toyota Sienna minivans dating from 1998-2010. The issue with the vans is with the spare tire cable which may rust so severely that the spare tire, located at the rear of the van on the underside, could come loose. Toyota says this is a, “road hazard for following vehicles that increases the likelihood of a crash.”

The recall is for Sienna vans in Northern States or states which use salt on the roads in winter months – which causes increased corrosion. The states listed by Toyota include: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and West Virginia. Owners of Sienna minivans in other states are welcome to bring their vehicle in for an inspection of the spare tire cable, Toyota says.

Toyota says it is working on a “fix” for the problem and will notify customers as soon as a remedy is available. Toyota will also send out notices to all Sienna owners to in the mean time to book an appointment to have the spare tire cable inspected.

Official release after the jump:

TORRANCE, Calif., April 16, 2010 – Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc., today announced that it will launch a voluntary Safety Recall involving approximately 600,000 first- and second-generation Sienna 2WD minivans sold in the United States to address potential corrosion in the spare tire carrier cable.

This condition may appear on certain 1998 through 2010 model year Siennas that have been operated in cold climate areas with high road salt use. Continued prolonged exposure to road salts may cause excessive corrosion of the carrier cable in some of these vehicles. In the worst case, the carrier cable may fail and the spare tire could become separated from the vehicle, a road hazard for following vehicles that increases the likelihood of a crash.

Toyota is currently working to develop a remedy for this condition. Until this remedy is developed, customers will receive an interim notice instructing them to bring their vehicle to a dealership for a preliminary inspection.

Once the remedy has been developed, customers will receive a secondary notice advising the customer of the remedy availability.

Steve St. Angelo, Toyota Chief Quality Officer for North America, said: “Toyota is listening to its customers attentively, and we want to make sure their voices are heard. As part of that commitment, we are providing free inspections of the spare tire carrier cable even in states that are not included in this recall. We are also working diligently to develop a remedy as soon as possible.”

In addition to the District of Columbia, vehicles originally sold or currently registered in the following cold climate states with high road salt usage are covered by this recall: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and West Virginia.

Owners of vehicles in other states will receive a separate Special Service Campaign notification that includes details on how to obtain an inspection if they desire. Toyota will perform the same inspection and repair for those vehicles at no charge. The inspection will take approximately 30 minutes depending on the dealer’s work schedule.

Detailed information and answers to questions are available to customers at www.toyota.com/recall and at the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331.