WASHINGTON - Toyota on Monday said it was recalling about 690,000 Tacoma pickup trucks in the United States to fix a suspension system flaw that could result in vehicle fires.
The safety recall covers model years 2005-2011 Tacoma 4x4 and Tacoma PreRunner pickup trucks, the U.S. unit of Toyota Motor Corp. (IW 1000/8) said.
The trucks' rear suspension system contains springs that could fracture due to stress and corrosion, it warned.
If the broken spring moves out of position and contacts the fuel tank repeatedly, it could puncture the tank, causing a fuel leak that increases the risk of a vehicle fire.
Toyota, the world's largest automaker, said it was not aware of any fires, crashes, injuries or fatalities associated with the condition.
A Toyota spokeswoman told AFP that the company also was recalling about 100,000 of the Tacoma trucks outside the U.S.
It was the third safety recall issued by Toyota USA this month, bringing the total to 840,000 vehicles.
On Sept. 18, the Japanese automaker recalled 20,000 cars due to bad welding on a fuel delivery pipe in the engine compartment that could cause a fuel leak and subsequent fire.
That recall affected 2015 model year Lexus RX, the company's luxury brand, and four 2014 model year brands: Avalon, Camry, Highlander and Sienna.
Toyota had said it knew of no fires, crashes, injuries or fatalities linked to the problem.
A Sept. 11 recall affected 130,000 of 2014 model year Tundra pickup trucks to fix a structure that could interfere with side air-bag deployment in the case of a crash. No crashes, injuries or deaths were reported.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2014
