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Drivers panic as Mazda 3 cars recalled to fix wiring glitch By Daniel Schmil Tags: Israel It's the biggest car recall in Israel's history and garages are reporting incessant calls from frightened drivers of the Mazda 3, the best-selling car in the Holy Land. Some drivers didn't bother phoning; they drove straight to the nearest Mazda repair shop. Not too many, though - some car repair shops say that while their phones are ringing off the hook, drive-ins remain reasonably packed. But company officials insist that the problem is a minor one and does not comprise a safety hazard. "My switchboard is collapsing," says Moshe Somekh, manager of a garage licensed to handle Mazdas. "I have to turn down clients who came for repairs because I can't handle them all. The panic here is unnecessary." Despite an announcement urging drivers to bring in their cars "without delay," following a somewhat panicky reaction in the street, importer Delek Automotive Systems urges calm. The cars do need preventative repairs, but there is no urgency in doing so, clarifies deputy CEO Shachar Shemesh. Advertisement "The reports created utter hysteria," Shemesh said. "There is no urgency in the preventative treatment, and there is a very small chance that anything will happen." Asked to clarify that directive in letters to car-owners to bring in their cars "without delay," Shemesh says: "We wanted to prevent a stampede at the garages and allow the car owners to undergo this in an orderly manner." Evidently, that strategy didn't work. The recall involves about 50,000 Mazda 3 automatics manufactured between 2003 and November 2006, after which time the cars were upgraded to solve the problem. The preventative measure involves insulating the wiring of the engine computer from the engine block. Friction between the heated wiring and the engine block can lead to short circuits. In any case, the problem does not render the car less safe and cannot cause much damage to the engine. Contrary to certain media reports, the problem cannot cause the driver to lose control of the car, say company officials. At worst, the engine will stall, and can then be restarted. Customers will not pay for the preventative treatment, which takes about 40 minutes. The cost will be borne not by Delek Automotive, a Yitzhak Tshuva company, but by the global Mazda corporation. Assuming that the work costs NIS 160 per hour, Mazda is looking at a bill of about NIS 4 million plus the cost of the insulation material, which should run at a few shekels per car. "It's peanuts for a company like Mazda," says Shemesh. Leasing companies with large fleets of cars were more relaxed about the whole thing than private car owners. Cal-Auto leasing manager Eldad Koren commented that all they're doing is programming the needed treatment into the car computer, so the next time the car is taken for a tune-up or any handling by a garage, the job can be done. Car recalls are not rare, and the reasons tend to be hazardous problems. There have been recalls in Israel before, but of much smaller scope, no more than a few hundred cars at a time. Source extracted from : [link]http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=955577&contrassID=2&subContrassID=2[/link]

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/08/02/business/02toys.php Mrecalls one million toys By Louise Story Wednesday, August 1, 2007 Mattel, the maker of Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels cars, is recalling nearly one million toys in the United States Wednesday because the products' surfaces are covered in lead paint. According to Mattel, all the toys were made by a contract manufacturer in China. The recall, the second biggest this year involving toys, covers 83 different products, manufactured between April 19 and July 6. Many of them feature "Sesame Street" and Nickelodeon characters

ST 13/4 MOTORISTS who want to find out if their vehicles are being recalled for safety flaws will be able to check online starting Monday. All they have to do is to access the Land Transport Authority's (LTA) www.onemotoring.com.sg, go to the new Vehicle Recall System (VRS) link, key in their vehicle registration number and identification number. Recalls over the last six months will also be displayed. 'I think this is a positive move,' said retiree Ismail Ibrahim, 62. 'It will be quick and hopefully transparent.' Mr Ismail's Toyota Wish was affected by a recall last year, but it took him four weeks to hear from his parallel importer. The LTA said the new system, which took about $300,000 and one year to develop, will improve road safety because owners will be notified sooner and vehicles repaired faster. Since declaration of safety recalls became mandatory in 2003, the number has soared. Between 2003 and last year, there were about 58 recalls affecting 52,000 vehicles a year, up from just 17 affecting 4,500 vehicles in 2002. Motor Traders Association president Chia Yong Sian welcomed the initiative, calling it a 'value-add service'. Mr Neo Nam Heng, president of the parallel importers' Automotive Importers and Exporters Association, said it will offer 'easier and speedier access to information for everyone'. For motor traders, the service is a more convenient avenue of reporting recalls than the current manual method. It is also expected to lead to substantial cost savings, because agents need only import rectification parts for vehicles that are still on the road here. In past recalls, up to 20 per cent of parts were left unused because the affected vehicles had already been scrapped or exported. By keying in the chassis or engine numbers of affected vehicles, traders can get a list of cars still on the road, their owners and addresses. Mr Vincent Ng, product manager of authorised Honda agent Kah Motor, said it will now know immediately if the ownership of a car has changed or if an owner has moved. 'It's definitely a benefit,' he said. Kah Motor and Nissan distributor Tan Chong are the first to hook up to the system. Recalls affecting more than 7,000 Honda Odysseys, more than 500 Honda Jazzes and some 3,000 old Nissan Marches are expected to be reported on the new system. The system, which was co-funded by The Enterprise Challenge, a scheme that drives innovations in the public service, will be fine-tuned in its first year. Motor traders are expected to be charged 'a nominal fee' after that, though motorists can continue to use it for free.

TOKYO (AP) -- Nissan Motor Co. said Friday it was recalling more than 1 million vehicles because of problems with the gas tanks. The recall affects 1,015,306 units of the company's March and Cube subcompacts that were manufactured between 1991 and 2000, spokeswoman Pauline Kee said. The vehicles can have small cracks in the gas tanks that leak fuel fumes. Nissan will repair the problem free of charge. "It creates an uncomfortable smell," Kee said. "It's not a safety problem." Nissan expects the recall to cost 3 billion yen (US$25.6 million; euro19.2 million). About 4,000 of the vehicles were sold overseas, mostly in Southeast Asia. About 600,000 of the affected vehicles are expected to still be on the road.

http://motoring.asiaone.com.sg/news/20070322_005.html

By Carl Freire - Feb 9, 2007 AP Honda Motor Co. plans to recall 45,335 Civic Hybrid sedans worldwide to repair an electrical defect that could stop the cars' engines, a company spokeswoman said Friday. Japan's No. 2 automaker plans to recall 7,219 of the vehicles sold domestically and another 38,116 sold overseas, mostly in the U.S., a Honda spokeswoman said on condition of anonymity, citing company policy. Honda learned about the defective voltage converters -- which could cause a short circuit that would stop the engine and prevent it from restarting -- from overseas reports, the company said in documents filed Thursday with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Honda has received no reports of accidents related to the defect, the documents said. The affected vehicles were manufactured between September 2005 and September 2006, they said. In Japan, Honda plans to notify affected vehicles' owners by mail and to repair the defective parts, the spokeswoman said. The overseas recalls and repairs will be handled according to local laws, she said, without giving further details. Honda also plans to recall 72,597 Elysion minivans due to defective sliding door locks, according to separate documents filed Thursday with the ministry. The model is sold only in Japan, the Honda spokeswoman said. Honda has received 27 complaints about the locks, but no reports of related accidents, the documents said. The company plans to replace the defective locks on affected vehicles, manufactured between April 2004 and November 2006, they said.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp.../246191/1/.html Looks like the Passat 2.0 Turbo may be affected as they are the models with 200hp engines. Anyone knows if this applies to Singapore ?

July 24, 2006, 2:43AM Nissan Recalls More Than 135,000 Vans

Wednesday 5th October 2005 (AutoExpress) http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/60769/93..._by_recall.html 9-3 hit by recall Saab is preparing to recall 33,100 cars in the UK due to an ignition fault. The move follows incidents of smoke and fire in the ignition discharge module in 9-3 and 9-5 models built between 2000 and 2002. "The move is just a safety precaution," said a Saab spokesman.

Not sure if true or not... but read this off Honda forum (don't ask me why its there...) ----------------------------- TOYOTA Motor is recalling more than 10,000 fairly new Thai-made cars to fix a faulty gasket in the fuel tank and a grease glitch that prevents some front seats from reclining smoothly. Calling it a 'special service campaign', Toyota distributor Borneo Motors said 7,269 Corolla Altis might leak some fuel when fully topped up because of a faulty tube at the top section of the tank. The affected Corollas were made between December last year and July this year. The company is also asking customers to bring in 3,350 Vios made between April last year and March this yearbecause they may not have enough lubrication to allow their front seats to recline. The problem affects some Corollas too. Borneo Motors said it has come across four cases of the faulty fuel tank tube here, but no one has complained of stuck seats. There has been no accidents caused by either flaw, it added. 'Borneo Motors is obliged to take the lead in the special service campaign,' a spokesman said, adding that the company will be writing to ask affected customers to take their cars back so the flaws can be fixed.

DETROIT (Reuters) - Volvo Cars is recalling 460,000 vehicles globally because of defective radiator cooling fans that can overheat and cause fires, the automaker said on Monday. The recall affects 1999-2001 model-year S60, S80 cars and the V70 and V70 Cross Country wagons. Around 150,000 cars are being recalled in the United States, Volvo spokesman James Hope said. Other large markets affected are Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Volvo is part of the Premier Automotive Group, Ford Motor Co.'s stable of luxury European brands. The defective cooling fan units in U.S. cars have led to seven fires, Hope said. No injuries have been linked to the recall, he added. Volvo S80 and V70 cars from the 1999-2001 model years have been recalled in the United States previously for other defects. http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?t...storyID=6223409

http://news.com.au/common/story_page/0,405...55E1702,00.html Kia recalls Rio cars August 3, 2004 KOREAN car maker Kia has recalled about 27,000 Rio cars to fix a fuel line fault that could result in an engine fire. The company said there was a possibility that the fuel distribution rail might crack in some vehicles, resulting in a fuel leak. "While there have not been any reported cases in Australia, the worst case scenario is it may cause a fire in the engine compartment," the company said. Kia said as the fuel distribution rail and the fuel hose would be replaced as a precaution. The vehicles affected included the Rio sedan and hatch models with both manual and automatic transmissions and manufactured between May 26, 2000, and March 26, 2004. Kia said an inspection and replacement program would start today and all owners would be contacted. Anyone with any word about Kia Singapore?

http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/world/sto...,248365,00.html Click on URL to read! Source: ST interactive

For those who reads MCF but not straits times VW recalls Audi and Passat cars WOLFSBURG (Germany) - German car giant Volkswagen (VW) said yesterday it was recalling some 870,000 Passat and Audi models worldwide as a result of potential problems with the front axle. VW said in a statement it was offering owners of 870,000 Passat and Audi models a free check for possible damage of the rubber bellows of the front axle. Advertisement The company expects that about 1 per cent of the vehicles affected by the recall will need repairs, a spokesman said. It said the problem could lead to premature wear and, in isolated cases, to the failure of the bearing arm. The models affected were the VW Passat built between 1996 and 1999, the Audi A4 and A8 built between 1994 and 1999, and the Audi A6 built between 1997 and 1999. -- AFP, AP

STOCKHOLM, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Volvo Cars, owned by Ford Motor Co (F.N), is asking 71,000 car owners to bring in their vehicles to check for petrol leaks into the engine compartment, the company's spokesman said on Saturday. Volvo, known for its safe family car image, had received reports of driveability problems due to such leakages, spokesman Bo Larsen told Reuters. He said Volvo was recalling all its 2003 and 2004 models of the V40 and S40 type, most of them sold in the United States, Sweden and Britain. "It (fuel) can leak into the engine area, but it's a very restricted area. Of course no car manufacturer is especially glad that there is a fuel leakage," Larsen said.Swedish newspaper Metro reported that the leakage into the engine area could cause fires, but Larsen said Volvo had not heard of any such incidents.Most of the car owners affected had already been sent letters asking them to have their vehicles checked at a garage. Volvo would install a securing clamp to prevent any problems, Larsen said.

BMW has announced a worldwide recall of 56,000 X5s and 38,700 Minis to fix transmission and brake problems it said had yet to cause any accidents or injuries. In Australia, 488 X5s and 313 Mini Coopers are involved in the recall. A BMW spokesperson said the Mini has a potential problem with a cable connecting the gearshift to the gearbox, which could result in the car getting stuck in one gear. The X5 has a problem with the brake pedal shaft which could result in a sudden loosening of the pedal and loss of brake power at low speeds or while parking, the spokesperson said.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/cor...ew/8917/1/.html