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Toyota adds 1.6m cars to Takata inflator recall list

As part of the Takata airbag inflator recall expansion announced by NHTSA earlier this month, Toyota has listed an additional 1.6 million cars that will need to have inflators or airbag assemblies replaced. This brings the total of recalled Toyota, Scion, and Lexus vehicles to 4.73 million. Other automakers will announce their expanded recall lists this week as well. This round of recalls affects some but not all vehicles with the following model names and years: 2009–2011 Toyota Corolla and Matrix 2006–2011 Toyota Yaris 2010–2011 Toyota 4Runner 2011 Toyota Sienna 2008–2011 Scion xB 2007–2011 Lexus ES 2010–2011 Lexus GX 2006–2011 Lexus IS To see if your specific vehicle falls under recall, write down your VIN and go to toyota.com/recall; you can also check any recalls, Takata or otherwise, at safercar.gov/vin. Toyota will inform owners of affected vehicles by mail. Depending on the model, either the inflator or the entire airbag assembly will have to be replaced. Due to the number of vehicles that have already been recalled, it may take some time for the necessary parts to be available. A total of 11 deaths have been attributed to the faulty Takata inflators, and federal investigators now know why the parts are prone to failure. The state of Hawaii was the first to sue the auto supplier, with more states expected to follow. The 17 other automakers are required to announce their additions resulting from the May 4 expansion this week, so expect more of the 35 to 40 million vehicles to be listed soon. Related Video: Image Credit: Reuters Recalls Lexus Scion Toyota Takata airbag recall lexus is toyota sienna toyota 4runner toyota matrix lexus es lexus gx

DoJ fines Japanese parts firms $740M in massive automotive price-fixing scandal

Nine Japanese suppliers have pleaded guilty in US court over charges of price fixing in the automotive parts industry, resulting in the Department of Justice doling out a total of $740 million of fines, according to a report from Bloomberg. The scandal, which has resulted in General Motors, Ford, Toyota and Chrysler spending up to $5 billion on inflated parts and driving up prices on 25 million vehicles has sent the DoJ hustling into investigations. "The conduct this investigation uncovered involved more than a dozen separate conspiracies aimed at the U.S. economy," Attorney General Eric Holder (pictured above) said during yesterday's press conference.
As the investigation stands, the DoJ has issued $1.6 billion in fines against 20 companies and 21 individual executives, with 17 of the execs headed to prison. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Scott Hammond said, "The breadth of the conspiracies brought to light today are as egregious as they are pervasive. They involve more than a dozen separate conspiracies operating independently but all sharing in common that they targeted US automotive manufacturers."
Big-name suppliers indicted in the investigation include Mitsubishi Electric, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Hitachi Automotive and Mitsuba Corporation. A list of fines and other corporations named in the investigation is available at Bloomberg.

Toyota C-HR hybrid crossover coupe concept leak ahead of Paris

Last week, Toyota previewed an upcoming concept called the C-HR and promised it would debut at the upcoming Paris Motor Show. It didn't say much more or give us anything beyond a silhouette and the shape of the lights, but here we have the first images of the finalized form.
The C-HR envisions a hybrid crossover coupe with angular styling that looks ready to take on the Nissan Juke. It's far sportier than a RAV4, and looks closer to how we'd imagine the next-generation Scion FR-S would look like if it were riding on a jacked-up suspension - with some show car elements thrown in for good measure, like a gloating roof, radical lighting and the usual absence of door handles and usable wing mirrors.
Of course, this being a Toyota concept, it packs a hybrid powertrain, although specifications did not leak out along with the images. Overall the form looks pretty striking, if decidedly unsubtle. We'll look forward to bringing you more as the Paris show rapidly approaches.