By Chris Woodyard
USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The government has increased the number of late-model Toyota vehicles that it is examining for potential fires inside driver’s-side doors to 1.4 million and upgraded its safety probe.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a filing that the probe of possible fire risk in the driver’s-door power window switch is now an “engineering analysis,” an upgrade from a preliminary investigation announced in February.
It also is looking at more Toyota vehicles. The preliminary probe covered 800,000 RAV4 crossovers and Camry sedans (conventional and hybrid) from the 2007 model year. Now it has been expanded to include 2008 and 2009 RAV4s and Camrys, plus all 2008 Highlander hybrid SUVs and 2007-09 Yaris subcompacts. All use a similar window switch module.
NHTSA says there are 161 reports of door fires and nine reports of injuries.
So far, no model has been recalled. The upgraded probe may or may not lead to a recall.
Separately, NHTSA also has upgraded to engineering analysis a similar probe into “melting or burning” of the power window switch in 341,786 of General Motors’ 2006 and 2007 Chevrolet TrailBlazers. GM said it also is looking at the mechanically similar Buick Rainier, GMC Envoy, Saab 9-7X and Isuzu Ascender.
GM and NHTSA have 167 reports of incidents with no injuries. GM also said it has had 698 warranty claims over the switch melting or burning. Some incidents happened while the vehicles were in motion; others were unattended.
Reached separately, Toyota and GM said they are working with the government.
Toyota told NHTSA in documents in April that it believes that the vehicles affected by its problem are relatively few -- 4.7 per 100,000 -- and that it thinks the cause may be lubricants or cleaning solutions applied to mechanisms in the door after the car was sold.
GM says the issue may involve water dripping onto the circuit board for the windows. The problem has been mostly in cold-weather states. “We’re telling people: ‘If your power window stops working or you smell smoke, get to a dealer,’” says spokesman Alan Adler.
Contributing: Associated Press
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