**Carmaker Toyota has announced its biggest recall, saying it will call in 3.8 million vehicles in the US.**The problem is with loose floormats, which may cause the accelerator pedal to stick.
The problem affects eight models of Toyota and Lexus cars and trucks in the US, where owners have been told to remove floormats on the driver’s side.
The US government said it had received reports of 100 related incidents that involved 17 crashes and five deaths.
RECALLED MODELS
- Camry sedan 2007-2010
- Avalon sedan 2005-2010
- Prius hybrid 2004-2009
- Tacoma truck 2005-2010
- Tundra truck 2007-2010
- Lexus IS250 2006-2010
- Lexus IS350 2006-2010
- Lexus ES350 2007-2010
Last month, an off-duty California state trooper and three members of his family were killed when their 2009 Lexus E350 crashed in the San Diego area.
Before the crash, one of the passengers called 911 to report that the accelerator was stuck and the car had reached 120 miles per hour (193km per hour).
“Obviously the tragic accident in San Diego was certainly an eye opener for all of us and we’ve paid very, very diligent attention to moving forward to try to make sure none of us will be reliving that kind of a very tragic situation,” said Toyota spokesman Irv Miller.
Toyota said owners could be notified of the recall as early as next week.
It will affect Toyota Camry sedans from 2007-2010, Toyota Avalon sedans from 2005-2010, Toyota Prius hybrids from 2004-2009, Tacoma pick-up trucks from 2005-2010, Tundra trucks from 2007-2010 and luxury Lexus models ES350 from 2007-2010 and 2006-2010 models of the IS250 and IS350.
The 3.8 million vehicles are equivalent to about two years of sales in the US for Toyota.
Toyota shares fell in Tokyo following the announcement.