US pursues Toyota probe; RP defers to carmaker

AS the United States government pressed Toyota for accountability over malfunctioning vehicles, the Philippines has taken the less contentious stance, with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) leaving it to the Japanese company to address possible consumer complaints.

Victorio Mario Dimagiba, director of the DTI-Bureau of Trade Regulation and Consumer Protection told The Manila Times that no government review of the Japanese carmakers’ models is forthcoming since Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. (TMPC) already initiated a “special service campaign” for Prius units sold in the country.

Dimagiba said TMPC has “duly informed” DTI of the Prius recall.

In a statement on Wednesday, Trade Secretary Peter Favila urged Prius owners to avail of TMPC’s special service campaign.

“We are pleased that TMPC has taken the initiative of contacting their customers and performing the required repair at no cost to customers,” he said.

Toyota is one of the biggest foreign investors operating in the Philippines.

TMPC had said it would install a modified anti-lock brake system management program on the hybrid car, which was launched in June last year. The company said 23 Prius units had been sold up to end-January this year.

“Based on the customer units we have serviced, no problems were experienced,” Rommel Gutierrez, TMPC vice president for corporate affairs, said in a text message.

In contrast to the Philippines’ handling of the matter, the US on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) demanded Toyota hand over documents to officials investigating some of the Japanese automaker’s recent vehicle recalls to determine whether they met safety obligations.

The US auto safety watchdog, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), said it was using its statutory authority to obtain the documents “to determine if the automaker conducted three of its recent recalls in a timely manner” and whether their scope was too limited.

The agency, part of the Department of Transportation, said it “is requiring Toyota to provide documents showing when and how it learned of the defects affecting approximately six million vehicles in the US alone.”

“Safety recalls are very serious matters and automakers are required to quickly report defects,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in the statement.

The world’s largest automaker has recalled millions of vehicles worldwide in recent months due to problems linked to accelerator and brake functioning that have sullied the company’s reputation.

In response to the NHTSA request, Toyota said it took “responsibility to advance vehicle safety seriously and to alert government officials of any safety issue in a timely manner. –BEN ARNOLD O. DE VERA Reporter with report from AFP