JEDDAH – Toyota will launch a special maintenance campaign to improve its products, Abdul Latif Jameel Company, its exclusive dealer in Saudi Arabia, said Wednesday in a statement. Through the campaign, Toyota will inspect the windows control keys in the driver's door, and will replace it if necessary. Toyota announced that, over time, the internal parts of the windows control keys may corrode, and lead to slow operation of certain keys. In the worst scenario, the windows control keys may deform, especially under high temperatures and application of inappropriate greasing material. According to Toyota, the campaign includes Camry 2007 to 2010, Corolla 2007 to 2010, Yaris 2006 to 2010, RAV 4 2007 to 2010, and Sequoia 2008 and 2009. As a standard procedure, Abdul Latif Jameel Company will immediately announce the launch of the campaign in the Kingdom through local newspapers upon arrival of the modified parts from Toyota, and completion of preparations for the campaign. In Japan, Toyota spokesman Joichi Tachikawa said Wednesday Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 7.43 million vehicles in the US, Japan, Europe and elsewhere around the world for a faulty power-window switch. The recall affects more than a dozen models produced from 2005 through 2010. The power-window switch on the driver's side didn't have grease applied evenly during production, causing friction in the switch and sometimes smoke, according to Toyota. No crashes or injuries have been reported related to the defect. But more than 200 problems were reported in US and a fewer number of problems were reported elsewhere, including 39 cases in Japan, Tachikawa said. Recalled in North America are the Yaris, Corolla, Matrix, Camry, RAV4, Highlander, Tundra, Sequoia and Scion models xB and xD, spanning 2.47 million vehicles. Some 460,000 vehicles are being recalled in Japan. The models are the Vitz, Belta, Ractis, Ist, Auris and Corolla Lumion. The Yaris, Corolla, Auris, Camry and Rav-4 are being recalled in Europe, totaling 1.39 million vehicles. The sprawling recall also applies to cars in Australia, China and elsewhere in Asia and the Middle East. – SG/AP
