Recently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration received a Defect Information Report from Lexus, a division of Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. The report disclosed defects on roughly 138,000 Lexus vehicles.
Lexus believes that a change in the manufacturing process has led to the risk of foreign material contaminating some of the valve springs. If this occurs, the engine may cease while driving, posing a risk for serious injury and death. Though the risk is suspected to be rare, it is important for manufacturers to disclose such risks. It is not known for certain if a person driving an affected Lexus would receive a warning sign (engine noise) before the engine would cease.
The report shows that the problem may affect Lexus vehicles powered by 4.6 and 5.0 liter V8 and 3.5 liter V6 engines in certain 2006, 2007 and 2008 GS, IS and LS models in the U.S.
Lexus has received no reports of accidents or injuries to date.
This is another reason for people involved in car accidents who suffer serious injuries to contact a personal injury attorney. Personal injury attorneys have access to experts who can identify defects in cars that may have been responsible for the accident. They also report their findings to car manufacturers. In this way, personal injury attorneys can be another arm in the check and balance system for car safety.
Toyota defects have been a hard hitting topic for media outlets over the past year. Thousands of Toyota vehicles have been recalled following reports of serious injury and death. However, other vehicles are not necessarily immune to defective parts. There have been other car manufacturers that have reported defects in the past year.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, contact Burton Padove for a free consultation at 219-836-2200.