Since January, no automaker has been going through more turmoil than Toyota.  Over 200 million products liability lawsuits have been connected to car accidents caused by vehicles with design defects.  The government also issued a record $16.4 million for not acting fast enough on defects.

Details from KTLA reveal that problems continue to present to Toyota as this past Friday June 25, 2010, Toyota issued a recall to correct defects in Lexus hybrids.

Toyota recalls Lexus hybrids to correct defect causing fuel spills in car accidents.

Toyota said it will recall about 17,000 Lexus hybrids after tests showed fuel can spill in a rear-end car accident.

Tests done by the National Traffic Highway Safety Administration found that fuel can spill after a rear-end crash at 50 miles per hour on a 2010 HS250h luxury sedan as the car spins around after impact.

Toyota has conducted its own testing, but the same spillage was not found in their tests.  Spokesmen for the Japanese automaker said the company plans to issue a voluntary recall, anyway, so they can try to duplicate the government’s findings.  Dealers have been notified to stop selling the car to keep personal injuries from happening as a result of the defect that the company hasn’t found a fix for yet.

The latest defect in hybrids follows previous recalls in Toyota cars.  Earlier this year, the automaker had to recall cars because unintended accelerations were caused by a floor mat defect, which led to car accidents caused by speeding.  A second recall this year led to Prius hybrids coming back to manufacturers to correct faulty brakes.

Toyota Motor Corp. president apologized to shareholders for problems caused by the recalls.

Apologizing to shareholders is one thing, but our personal injury lawyers in San Diego wonder about the explanation it must deliver to millions of devoted consumers.  Toyota has been America’s best selling car for several years, but recalls like these will continue to shake buyer confidence.  Hopefully, the automaker will be able to rebound and return to making quality cars with no problems.

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