Toyota New Zealand has issued an update regarding the recent decision to cease the sales of a selection of its hybrid-vehicle line-up following concerns over a potential brake issue.
Late last week the firm confirmed to Driven that it would temporarily cease the sale of a selection of its hybrid vehicles; the Corolla, RAV4, and Prius — plus the Lexus ES sedan [pictured below] and UX crossover. It was a move that echoed a similar 'sales stop' decision in Australia, although no formal recall notice was issued in either country.
"Toyota New Zealand takes the safety of its customers very seriously, and as a precautionary measure has ordered a sales stop on some hybrid models that are fitted with a braking component that requires additional inspection," said Toyota NZ.
"There are over 400 vehicles involved, however only 88 of these have been sold and are at the dealerships awaiting delivery to customers. The rest have been identified and are on a shipment to NZ or being held at a Toyota NZ facility.
"We are working at this stage to identify vehicles that are involved and contacting customers directly if they have already taken delivery of a vehicle that falls within the manufacturing timeframe, and will advise when we have more information regarding this matter."
Now, Toyota has confirmed that all vehicles affected by the issue are currently "off the road", adding that most of them are new, unsold vehicles.
"In regards to the braking issue at this stage the vehicles affected by the issue all currently off the road as they are from a very recent manufacturing run," said Toyota NZ.
"Most have not been sold yet. We will continue to keep customers updated, and if this changes will let those affected know."
Read more: Toyota Corolla Hatch ZR Hybrid road test — Quietly brilliant
While Toyota NZ would not confirm any specifics regarding the nature of the brake issue, Driven understands that the it specifically concerns the regenerative braking system fitted to each of the respective models.
Regenerative braking systems are a frequent feature in hybrid and fully electric cars. They're used by cars to convert a car's kinetic energy (often while rolling or braking to a stop) into energy that charges the car's battery.
The announcement completed a mixed month for Toyota NZ, following reports that RAV4 Hybrid models are sold out until 2020.