According to the Toyota dealers in Guangxi, China, 713 domestically produced Toyota RAV4s sold in the region are included in this recall. But so far, no cars of this model have clumped together in Toyota stores for the recall.
When interviewing Tianjin FAW Toyota Motor's local dealers Nanning Zhongda Toyota, Nanning Guangyuan Toyota and Tianxiaxing Toyota, reporters found that the recall of Chinese made RAV4s with accelerator pedal flaws is proceeding ahead of schedule in Guangxi with some dealers having completed the defective parts replacement on half of the recalled vehicles.
The accelerator pedal flaw has prompted the recall of 75,552 RAV4s across the country, including 713 units in Guangxi (more than 300 cars from Nanning Zhongda, 280 from Guangyuan and six from Tianxiaxing).
The three dealers have notified RAV4 owners about the recall through SMS, letters and phone calls, with some other dealers having finished 30 to 50 percent of their maintenance tasks.
According to engineers interviewed, the climatic differences between the Northern and the Southern parts of the country should be considered when addressing security vulnerabilities resulting from a potential flaw in the model's accelerator pedal. When driving the car during the dry and cold days of winter in the Northern half of the country, the friction increases due to the icy roads, so the pedals may begin to stick and release instead of operating smoothly. One solution has been provided: a precision-cut steel reinforcement bar will be installed into the accelerator pedal assembly, eliminating the excess friction that has caused pedals to stick in rare instances.
However, there are few such cases in the South, especially in Nanning and its surrounding areas. Relative risks will be eliminated as long as the vehicles are taken to the stores for the fix.
