Toyota Yaris - Another recall for my car

Trotter

I have my 06 Yaris about a year now, and Im getting really frustrated. Now it has never let me down on the side of the road, but.. I only had it a wet week and there was a seatbelt system recall. In I go to the local garage and it gets fixed. A few months pass and it starts chugging like a choochoo train when idling.. back it goes... hey presto, new clutch kit (No fault of mine!). Today I get another letter.. the accelerator has to be fixed. Back it will go again.

Now I'm getting tired of going back. I've driven Toyotas for 10 years, as has my wife. I had an Aygo before this and it was the best little Toyota I ever had. I'd gladly move back to the Aygo given the chance. The frustrating thing is when I talk to the Toyota garages and respectfully request that they sit down with me and give me a proper deal on a used Aygo so that I can offload the "recall mobile" and stay with Toyota, I get the glint in the eye of a possible sale and off they go quoting me silly money for the trade in.

If Toyota are to keep their loyal customers, i.e., me.. I think they should be bending over backwards to help me get that Aygo with minimum cash on top of the trade in.

Of course, the ones I talk to just see me as a chance to screw someone who's stupid enough to come back looking to trade in another Toyota. Maybe its time to move on!

alexmcred

I'm sorry but you are complaining over nothing, 3 visits to the garage 2 for recalls and one for warrenty work I would only be too glad if my car an 08 Golf had only visited a garage 3 times.

With regards to the clutch I'd be thanking my lucky stars as most manufactures and dealers will lay the blame for clutch issues at the customers door and do their best to get you to pay for it.

It's up to you to shop around for the best price also a dealer needs to make money too and your car may not be worth as much as you think.

unkel

Trotter wrote: »

Today I get another letter.. the accelerator has to be fixed. Back it will go again.

Now I'm getting tired of going back.

What would you rather do - take it back so Toyota will fix this for you, free of charge, or risk having an accident because your accelerator gets stuck?

seanybiker

I agree with Alex. 3 times isnt bad, especially if it didnt cost you a penny.

Myrddin

Sell the Toyota and buy something more reliable then....oh em hang on...

Seriously, 2 recalls and one warranty job in three years and your moaning about it?

Trotter

Fair enough you don't agree but I've only had the car 1 year and it was bought from a dealer. The clutch problem was nothing to do with how it was driven according to the mechanic. Thats why it was done under warranty. Yes Toyota are doing the responsible thing by fixing it free of charge but I'd prefer not to be going to the garage every 3 months. With respect to the opinions above, I don't think I should be overjoyed to be going back to the garage again.

mike65

Toyota are now paranoid as hell so I would brace myself for a few more recalls yet.

mickdw

Buying a used car & getting clutch work done under warranty sounds pretty good to me. 3 visits in a year is not bad.
I think the issue here is that Toyota drivers were happy with their bland cars knowing thinking they were the most reliable cars on the road. Now that it turns out that they are not so reliable, all the car owners are feeling cheated, realising that it is just like many other poorly designed, built & finished cars except that they paid over the odds for it.
I had the use of an 03 avensis for a few hours the other day, its even worse than I remembered.

GTE

Wait, you have an 06 Yaris for a year?
So its used obviously, and it turns out there was a problem with it that could be down to the previous owner and the recalls are affecting so many cars.

I dont see the problem aside from being unlucky with the clutch. I would never get a new car just because of two recalls, which are free fixes.


Every car is going to have a problem of sorts, some brands will try and cover it up and blame you, others will help the best they can. Consider yourself lucky.

Leonard Hofstadter

mickdw wrote: »

I had the use of an 03 avensis for a few hours the other day, its even worse than I remembered.

It's as if Toyota went out of their way to remove any hint of driving pleasure in that car, the light steering and light controls (admittedly it is handy around town), the fact it is so light on the road to the point of being dangerous(ever notice how they literally get blown about when there are crosswinds?), and this is meant to be one of the better Toyotas to have come out in recent years.

unkel

mickdw wrote: »

Buying a used car & getting clutch work done under warranty sounds pretty good to me. 3 visits in a year is not bad.
I think the issue here is that Toyota drivers were happy with their bland cars knowing thinking they were the most reliable cars on the road. Now that it turns out that they are not so reliable, all the car owners are feeling cheated, realising that it is just like many other poorly designed, built & finished cars except that they paid over the odds for it.
I had the use of an 03 avensis for a few hours the other day, its even worse than I remembered.

Agreed, except that I feel 3 visits in one year is pretty bad. If you compare that to the least reliable car money can buy only has 1 issue per year on average. The OP is just a bit unlucky though with all those Toyota recalls. OP wasn't specific about what was wrong with his clutch, but normally nothing clutch related comes with any warranty, so Toyota did well fixing it free of charge.

unkel

captainspeed wrote: »

It's as if Toyota went out of their way to remove any hint of driving pleasure in that car

I had a new Corolla as a rental for a few weeks back in '02 and it was the worst car I'd driven in a long long time...

Trotter

Maybe I am overrelying on Toyotas reputation for reliability. I also think that odds are theres nothing wrong with the accelerator, or that there was nothing wrong with the seatbelt system either. They have to be seen to be careful.

GTE

Trotter wrote: »

Maybe I am overrelying on Toyotas reputation for reliability. I also think that odds are theres nothing wrong with the accelerator, or that there was nothing wrong with the seatbelt system either. They have to be seen to be careful.

I wouldnt agree with that at all. They wouldnt pull in so many cars just to play it safe. A known fault must be addressed on every car that has the same equipment that contributes to the fault.

Id say there was something up with the seatbelt system sadly you can only confirm that by crashing and again why would they bother recalling the cars with the problem parts if infact the parts didnt have a problem in the first place?

There may have been no problem with your particular accelerator but the point is there probably would have been in the future.

My Golf was recalled for bad seatbelts a few years ago, way before I bought it. A weld was found to have been done badly and it would basically make the seatbelts useless. Its not playing it safe by recalling it even if the owner hopefully will never crash. The part is broken or not working and must be fixed considering what its job is.

Reliability isn't the issue for me in these recalls. I see reliability as the car not going kaboom if I cant service it on the dot, its the car getting me places with no bother almost everytime etc.

Non-Reliability is not when an outsourced part or a part is built with dodgy components leading to a once off problem.

An example I know of in my field of work was that a manufacturer of mixing consoles for music recording recalled many of their consoles because of a bad shipment of transistors that were used in a particular batch. Its not entirely their fault the transistors went bad. But although on many of the consoles you wouldnt notice a fault the point is it will happen.

pdiddy

well if u take away the recalls which in fairness are not a regular thing wit toyota it wud only have been 1 visit to the garage for a clutch prob that cud have happened on any car and was fixed for free.

saying the toyota is not reliable anymore because of these recalls is foolish ive owned 4 toyotas from 95 to 99s with absolutely no major probs engines have always been bullet proof

i do agree however the new models are very boring and very overpriced

mickdw

captainspeed wrote: »

It's as if Toyota went out of their way to remove any hint of driving pleasure in that car, the light steering and light controls (admittedly it is handy around town), the fact it is so light on the road to the point of being dangerous(ever notice how they literally get blown about when there are crosswinds?), and this is meant to be one of the better Toyotas to have come out in recent years.

Not to mention the lowest setting for the drivers seat felt to me like I was sitting on the roof of the car.
I happened to have the 1.6 petrol. Its not actually driving at all being in command of one of those cars with that engine. You can stamp on the accelerator at competely the wrong time in the middle of a bend and ......nothing. Just nothing. No reaction from the car.
The pedals are light, the steering is light, the bootlid nearly flew away when I opened it. When you start it from cold, you get a very high rev unlike any modern car Ive been in. The last time Id seen this was in a 1983 fiat.
I love Toyota:D

-Corkie-

Yes mick they are so bland especially the new corollas. They are like man made celery.. A neighbour has the old 88 corolla and other than a bit of different dash plastic and digital speedos etc, their is feck all change.. Base model hasnt even aircon. Thats sad in 2010.

Tea 1000

Trotter wrote: »

Maybe I am overrelying on Toyotas reputation for reliability. I also think that odds are theres nothing wrong with the accelerator, or that there was nothing wrong with the seatbelt system either. They have to be seen to be careful.

Yep, Honda are and always were ahead, especially in the engine department.
Still though, if you've been driving them for 10 years and were happy, but one unlucky car that had 2 recalls and one warranty issue causes you to be very upset with the brand, then I don't think you'll find much pain easing else where.

Trotter

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Yep, Honda are and always were ahead, especially in the engine department.
Still though, if you've been driving them for 10 years and were happy, but one unlucky car that had 2 recalls and one warranty issue causes you to be very upset with the brand, then I don't think you'll find much pain easing else where.

I'm not upset with the brand at all, in fact I'd still buy another one, just not a yaris. I'd just prefer if they recognised loyal customers who'd prefer to trade in the car for another Toyota under the circumstances.

Guy:Incognito

Trotter wrote: »

Maybe I am overrelying on Toyotas reputation for reliability. I also think that odds are theres nothing wrong with the accelerator, or that there was nothing wrong with the seatbelt system either. They have to be seen to be careful.

In fairness though, you dont really want that combination of faults (sticky accelerator and dodgy seatbelt) so probably best it was recalled.

bazz26

Am I missing something here? A 4 year old used car is being checked/fixed free of charge where the only inconvience is a bit of time spent getting the car to and from the garage? I wish Volvo put half the effort into standing by and fixing known expensive problems with my 4 year old S40. In fact I wish I had the OP's problems to complain about.

As for the Toyota bashers that seem to come out of the woodwork on these threads, please change the record, your getting as boring and predictable as the brand you ridicule. It really is starting to ruin this forum imo.

/rant over.

jayotala

alexmcred wrote: »

I'm sorry but you are complaining over nothing, 3 visits to the garage 2 for recalls and one for warrenty work I would only be too glad if my car an 08 Golf had only visited a garage 3 times.

With regards to the clutch I'd be thanking my lucky stars as most manufactures and dealers will lay the blame for clutch issues at the customers door and do their best to get you to pay for it.

It's up to you to shop around for the best price also a dealer needs to make money too and your car may not be worth as much as you think.

+ 1

jayotala

bazz26 wrote: »

Am I missing something here? A 4 year old used car is being checked/fixed free of charge where the only inconvience is a bit of time spent getting the car to and from the garage? I wish Volvo put half the effort into standing by and fixing known expensive problems with my 4 year old S40. In fact I wish I had the OP's problems to complain about.

As for the Toyota bashers that seem to come out of the woodwork on these threads, please change the record, your getting as boring and predictable as the brand you ridicule. It really is starting to ruin this forum imo.

/rant over.

a BIG + 1

EPM

Trotter wrote: »

I'd just prefer if they recognised loyal customers who'd prefer to trade in the car for another Toyota under the circumstances.

Well the fault lies with the dealer then and not Toyota's. The market isn't great at the moment so the usual changing for a couple of grand a year that we all became used to isn't happening anymore. If you got an offer cheaper than your usual dealer you would go with it so why should the dealer do you any major favour?

galwaytt

I can't believe that someone is complaining over a brand that seems to be taking action.

The fora of the world are full of the other kind, which are quite the opposite....

OP - you had an Aygo - don't forget, if you'd kept it, that is recalled for the same reason, now, as well..........

And getting new clutch, on a s/hand 4 yr old car, for free - have you any idea how good a deal that is ??

Leonard Hofstadter

bazz26 wrote: »

I wish Volvo put half the effort into standing by and fixing known expensive problems with my 4 year old S40. In fact I wish I had the OP's problems to complain about.

Sorry for going O/T but what kind of problems are there with the current model S40?

Was half thinking of buying one of these, Volvo safety and comfort with a Focus chassis seems like a very good combo to me, I thought Volvo's were pretty good for reliability(apart from the occurance for some of them to go on fire)?

kyote00

S40 has only had 21 recalls so it's fine....:D

captainspeed wrote: »

Sorry for going O/T but what kind of problems are there with the current model S40?

Was half thinking of buying one of these, Volvo safety and comfort with a Focus chassis seems like a very good combo to me, I thought Volvo's were pretty good for reliability(apart from the occurance for some of them to go on fire)?

Raiser

Trotter wrote: »

Maybe I am overrelying on Toyotas reputation for reliability. I also think that odds are theres nothing wrong with the accelerator, or that there was nothing wrong with the seatbelt system either. They have to be seen to be careful.

Toyotas reputation for reliability ? (?)

- Its February 2010 my Friend.

Trotter

Alright, so it seems Im out of order being disappointed. I just thought that the car going to the garage 3 times in a year, all for problems that Toyota said were not my fault, was a bit over the top. Each time it goes to the garage means hassle because it has to be done on a work day.

Fair enough, the general consensus is that 3 visits in a year is not excessive. I thought it was, especially considering reliability was the reason I bought it.

I'm no car fanatic, I dont need it to feel like a F1 car and I don't even care how it drives once its comfortable. So in that sense, maybe I'm coming from a different point of view to others. I just want the car to drive, and not have to bring it to a mechanic.

I respect the opinions above, but I'd prefer not to be going to the garage so often. I'll call it a day here because I just realised I'd started a second recall thread when there already was another going.

bazz26

captainspeed wrote: »

Sorry for going O/T but what kind of problems are there with the current model S40?

Was half thinking of buying one of these, Volvo safety and comfort with a Focus chassis seems like a very good combo to me, I thought Volvo's were pretty good for reliability(apart from the occurance for some of them to go on fire)?

O/T.

Take a look at the volvo owners club website (www.volvoforums.org.uk), there are some interesting stories over there that do not make the official recall lists posted by another member here. The most noticable one I spotted was the ABS/Electronic Traction control unit which is a common failure on them and costs about £2k to replace. This warning has popped up on my car once but hasn't reappeared since. Now I'm generally happy with the car but I dread the day that unit needs to be replaced as the warranty is well expired and I'm ain't handing over £2k for a new one.

Regarding Volvo's safety record, I'd say these days it is probably as overrated as Toyota's image of reliability or VW's image of quality. Other makers have caught up with Volvo on the safety front.

As for the Focus chassis, I previously had a Focus and it was way sharper to drive than the S40, they may share the same chassis but they are not engineered the same way. The steering on the S40 is lighter than on the Focus too.

unkel

bazz26 wrote: »

The most noticable one I spotted was the ABS/Electronic Traction control unit which is a common failure on them and costs about £2k to replace.

This happens on many cars, especially when they start getting to a certain age. Typically a dealer would charge indeed something like that, but there are much cheaper options out there. The cheapest option is to have it reconditioned. There are specialist companies in the US (and also in the UK) that charge about $300 and guarantee the recon'd ABS unit for 5 years.

Sorry for further O/T but this might ease your mind a bit