Toyota re-calls 7.43 million vehicles

Toyota Motor Corp. (7203), Asia’s biggest carmaker, said it began a recall affecting about 7.43 million vehicles worldwide to replace defects in power-window switches.

About 2.47 million vehicles are affected in the U.S., 1.4 million in China, 1.39 million in Europe and 460,000 in Japan, Joichi Tachikawa, a Tokyo-based spokesman, said by phone today. The recall involves 14 models and no accidents have been reported because of the issue, he said.
 The recall is the company’s largest since the carmaker recalled more than 10 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles worldwide in 2009 and 2010 for defects associated with unintended acceleration.

The recall is the company’s largest since the carmaker recalled more than 10 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles worldwide in 2009 and 2010 for defects associated with unintended acceleration.
“The volume is big, and doesn’t look good,” Satoru Takada, a Tokyo-based auto analyst at Toward the Infinite World Inc., a securities research company, said by telephone today. “Even if you calculate the cost in a very simple way, it’s going to be significant. What comes with standardizing platforms and parts is that these recalls become immense.”
Toyota shares fell 2.3 percent to 2,932 yen as of 2:47 p.m. in Tokyo, headed for the lowest close since July 26.

The recall involves about 490,000 vehicles in the Middle East and about 650,000 in Asia, excluding Japan and China, Tachikawa said.