The defect
TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2005-2006 AVALON, MODEL YEAR 2004-2006 HIGHLANDER, MODEL YEAR 2004-2006 LEXUS RX, AND MODEL YEAR 2006 LEXUS GS AND IS VEHICLES. BRAKE FLUID CONTAINING POLYMERS IS USED THAT ACTS AS LUBRICANTS FOR CERTAIN BRAKE SYSTEM COMPONENTS. IF REPLACEMENT BRAKE FLUID IS USED THAT DOES NOT CONTAIN SUCH POLYMERS, OR THAT CONTAINS ONLY SMALL AMOUNTS, A PART OF THE RUBBER SEAL LOCATED AT THE REAR OF THE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER MAY BECOME DRY, AND THE SEAL MAY CURL DURING MOVEMENT OF THE PISTON. IF THIS OCCURS, A SMALL AMOUNT OF BRAKE FLUID COULD SLOWLY LEAK FROM THE SEAL INTO THE BRAKE BOOSTER.
The risk
A LEAK OF BRAKE FLUID COULD LEAD TO A CHANGE IN BRAKE PEDAL FEEL AND OVERTIME A DEGRADATION IN BRAKING PERFORMANCE INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE SEAL WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED ONE. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 15, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331 AND LEXUS AT 1-800-255-3987.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Lexus GS | 2006 |
| Lexus IS | 2006 |
| Lexus RX | 2004, 2005, 2006 |
| Toyota Avalon | 2005, 2006 |
| Toyota Highlander | 2004, 2005, 2006 |
Components: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:MASTER CYLINDER
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lexus GS | 2006 | 44 | 6 |
| Lexus IS | 2006 | 143 | 7 |
| Lexus RX | 2004 | 40 | 1 |
| Lexus RX | 2005 | 27 | 1 |
| Lexus RX | 2006 | 32 | 1 |
| Toyota Avalon | 2005 | 228 | 7 |
| Toyota Avalon | 2006 | 360 | 7 |
| Toyota Highlander | 2004 | 286 | 5 |
| Toyota Highlander | 2005 | 224 | 6 |
| Toyota Highlander | 2006 | 278 | 7 |
Other service brakes, hydraulic recalls in 2010
40 of the 647 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2010 concerned the service brakes, hydraulic; TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC. filed 95 campaigns in all.
| 10V629000 16 Dec 2010 | BLUE BIRD BODY COMPANY |
| 10V620000 13 Dec 2010 | TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC. |
| 10V613000 9 Dec 2010 | Hyundai Motor Company |
| 10V599000 24 Nov 2010 | KIA MOTORS CORPORATION |
| 10V504000 22 Oct 2010 | HONDA (AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO.) |
| 10V507000 19 Oct 2010 | KAWASAKI MOTORS CORP., U.S.A. |
| 10V496000 18 Oct 2010 | BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC |
| 10V447000 1 Oct 2010 | ROLLS-ROYCE MOTORS, INC. |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2010