Toyota begins Prius repair campaign

• Source: Global Times
• [08:50 December 01 2010]
• Comments

By Jia Cheng

Japan's Toyota Motor Tuesday announced free repairs on defective engine coolant pumps for their Prius model, concerning 650,000 vehicles, including 2,588 vehicles in China.

The campaign is officially called a "customer satisfaction campaign," not a recall, Niu Yu, Toyota's spokesman in China, told the Global Times Tuesday.

"The campaign starts from December 3 in China. It is not a way of rebuilding Toyota's image; it is just a kind of marketing activity," Niu said.

It aims to repair the potential heat risks posed by the coolant pump that is used to control the temperature of the hybrid engine system, reported AFP.

The pump may cause overheating and a lower power supply to the vehicle, but it would not prevent the car from running.

An employee surnamed Liu at Beijing-based FAW Toyota after-sales service center said, "We have received no requests to fix the pump and no reports of accident or injuries originating from such a problem."

Globally, Toyota announced it has received about 300 cases regarding the pump problem from Japan, and 28 cases from other countries, according to sohu.com.

"We have already sent notifications about the campaign to our Prius-owning companies, and the campaign does not have an expiry date," Niu said.

Agencies contributed to this story