Seatbelt issue, hybrid drivetrain fault affects hundreds of cars.

TWO unrelated recalls within a week have befallen a recently-released Toyota model that was in the running for the country’s top motoring award.

Subject to the actions is the latest Yaris, in a hatchback form that was under consideration for New Zealand Car of the Year 2020, an award that subsequently went to the Mercedes EQC, and an elevated crossover version, called Yaris Cross, that has just followed it into the showroom.

A recall notified today requires replacement of rear centre seatbelts in 392 examples of the Yaris Cross.

This follows an action notified two days ago that dedicates to the Yaris hatch and Yaris Cross with a mild hybrid drivetrain and centres on a transmission issue that might cause affected cars to stop suddenly.

The latter action involves some 513 cars.

Both faults require dealership repair but the latter is particularly time consuming.

The brand has identified that the remedy requires a repair estimated to take nine hours’ workshop time, because it entails removing the engine in order to reach the affected component, an input damper within the transmission.

The fault raises as a potential for abnormal slippage of the transaxle damper when the driver accelerates rapidly. If this occurs, the vehicle’s warning lights will turn on and there is potential for the hybrid system to enter a ‘fail safe’ mode, Toyota says, that curtails the electric involvement.

The affected models were manufactured from October 2019 to September 2020. A remedy has been implemented on models manufactured since.