US transportation chief welcomes Toyota's agreement to pay maximum civil penalty

• Source: Xinhua
• [08:52 April 20 2010]
• Comments

In this file photo taken on April 1, 2010, a Toyota Sienna is presented during the media preview of the New York Iternational Auto Show at Javits center in New York, the United States. Toyota Motor Corp. said on Monday it will pay the $16.375 million fine for its huge acceleration recalls, but denied violating any US law. Photo: Xinhua

But US officials said that Toyota failed to notify the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the US auto safety agency, of the dangerous "sticky pedal" defect for at least four months, despite knowing of the potential risk to consumers.

NHTSA officials said they are continuing to review Toyota's statements and more than 120,000 pages of Toyota documents to determine whether the company has complied with all its legal obligations.