Aussie Prado skips recall

Testing by respected American publication Consumer Reports has prompted Toyota to issue a global recall for the Prado and its V8-engined variant, the Lexus GX 460.

In a test of the Lexus, Consumer Reports determined that the VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) system featured in the GX 460 is too slow to respond to sudden, trailing-throttle oversteer. For the purpose of the test, the driver lifts the right foot off the accelerator as the car enters a corner, to evaluate how the vehicle will react.

Toyota has responded by issuing a recall notice for both the V8-powered GX 460 and the vehicle on which the Lexus is based, the Toyota Prado. The problem has spread to left-hand drive markets in Europe as well, but not Australia.

According to Toyota Australia's Manager for Public Relations, Mike Breen, right-hand drive cars are not affected, and the Australian-delivered Prado (the GX 460 is not sold here), has a unique set-up for the local market, not requiring a software upgrade.

"It's more a matter of weight distribution and suspension calibration, that only affects vehicles with KDSS and left-hand drive," says Breen. "Our vehicle has a main [fuel] tank and a sub-tank and the weight distribution with the driver sitting on the left or the right side is different.

The KDSS to which Breen refers is an Australian-developed system, Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System, which dynamically adjusts anti-roll bar settings, but the fundamental problem necessitating the programming upgrade for the VSC seems to be more about weight than fancy suspension technology, says Breen.

"On the vehicles in question, they don't have a sub-tank, they only have a normal tank, so with the driver on the left side and the normal tank -- and the KDSS suspension and the spring rate -- it creates a situation where the vehicle, if you turn in on a hard radius, the VSC... won't correct the vehicle in a timeframe that would be optimal.

"It's a combination of factors -- and one of ours for the reasons of not needing the recall is: A, it's right-hand drive and B, our configuration is different in that we have a sub-tank as well.

Breen says that the VSC programming for Australia takes into account the added weight of the sub-tank, which is positioned on the left side of the vehicle too. In short, the VSC is considered to operate within an adequate response time for Australian-delivered vehicles. Toyota has responded to the consumer advocate's concerns, even though no accidents involving the GX 460 snapping into oversteer have been reported.

"The vehicle met all the rules and regulations required by American [legislators] -- and it still does. They haven't had any reports from owners, of a concern about it. It's only been instigated as a result of the Consumer Reports [article]."

Toyota Motor Corporation in Japan has prepared a video comparing the cornering ability of the GX 460 before and after the VSC fix. The original Consumer Reports video footage is embedded below.