Toyota recalling Prius in Japan for brakes

TOKYO – Toyota is recalling about 170,000 Prius hybrid cars in Japan for braking problems and will soon disclose its global plans for a fix as the automaker scrambles to repair damage to its reputation from a spate of safety problems.

Toyota’s president Akio Toyoda will hold a news conference at the automaker’s Tokyo office later Tuesday to outline details of the braking problem, including plans for a possible recall in the U.S., a company official told The Associated Press.

The number of Priuses being recalled would swell to about 300,000 if there is a recall in the U.S. and other regions.

The braking problem for the third-generation remodeled Prius is the latest safety woe for Toyota, which is already trying to fix problems in millions of vehicles recalled for other defects, including a sticky gas pedal.

Toyota Motor Corp. said it will inform the Transport Ministry later in the day it is recalling the 2010 Prius gas-electric hybrid — the world’s top-selling hybrid car

Also being recalled are two other hybrid models — the Lexus HS250h sedan, sold in the U.S. and Japan, and the Sai, which is sold only in Japan.

U.S. safety officials have launched an investigation into problems with the brakes.

The recall in Japan will cover about 170,000 of the 2010 model Prius, which went on sale in May. The automaker has fixed the programming glitch in Prius models that went on sale since last month, but had done nothing yet on the cars sold before then, according to Toyota.

There have been nearly 200 complaints in Japan and the U.S. of drivers experiencing a short delay before the brakes kick in — a problem that can be fixed with a software programming change. The delay doesn’t indicate a brake failure.

The problem is suspected in four crashes resulting in two minor injuries, according to data gathered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is investigating the matter. Toyota says it’s cooperating with NHTSA’s investigation.

Toyota said its plug-in hybrid is also being recalled in Japan — a largely experimental model for rental and government use in limited numbers, and isn’t on mass commercial sale.

Toyota is in the midst of repairing 5 million vehicles recalled in the U.S. because of problems with floor mats, which can trap gas pedals. It also has recalled 2.3 million vehicles because of concerns that their gas pedals are slow to return to the idle position. The 2010 Prius wasn’t part of either recall.

Problems with hybrid braking systems haven’t been limited to Toyota. Ford Motor Co. said last week it plans to fix 17,600 Mercury Milan and Ford Fusion gas-electric hybrids because of a software problem that can give drivers the impression that the brakes have failed. The automaker says the problem occurs in transition between two braking systems and at no time are drivers without brakes.

The Prius was not Toyota’s top-selling model in the U.S., where the company sold 140,000 last year, far less than the 357,000 Camrys.

But it holds a cherished spot in its lineup and is symbolic of Toyota’s leadership in the “green” car market.

Toyota was one of the first companies to mass-market a hybrid that combines an electric motor with a gas engine, introducing the Prius in Japan in 1997. Its high gas mileage made it popular among environmentally conscious drivers, especially when gas prices spiked two years ago.

But the complexity of the Prius, a highly computerized car, has led to problems in the past. In 2005, the company repaired 75,000 of them to fix software glitches that caused the engine to stall. It has also had trouble with headlights going out.

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AP Auto Writer Dee-Ann Durbin in Detroit contributed to this report.

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