Car Features - Largest Vehicle Recalls in the Philippines and Around the World

Vehicle recalls are meant to call back your vehicle (duh) to fix something that may put your car and you in harm. Recalls can put the brand in either two ways: they are concerned of you or just hiding something without informing. The Philippines, although a small market, had its share of vehicle recalls initiated by the manufacturers themselves. However, in a worldwide point of view (mostly in the United States), there are millions of vehicles that are usually involved. So lets list down the top five vehicle recalls in the Philippines and around the world.

5 LARGEST VEHICLE RECALLS IN THE PHILIPPINES

5. Honda

Cause: Metal bands holding the fuel tank has the tendency to snap and the tank to detach when it vibrates.

Units affected: 12,480

Models involved: 2001-2004 Honda Civic

Date: June 2005

4. Mitsubishi

Cause: Front suspension arm's weld condition can be lacking that it would tend to break when vehicle is overused.

Units affected: 15,453

Models involved: 2011-2012 Mitsubishi Montero Sport and Strada

Date: August 2013

3. Honda

Cause: Lighting switch tends to wear out especially if it is turned on that stresses the low beam wire.

Units affected: 20,587

Models involved: 2002-2004 Honda CR-V

Date: March 2012

2. Honda

Cause: Silicone component that enters into the power window master switch that accelerates wear in the contact area whose resin material of the unit switch may cause smoke or partial burning of the window switch cover.

Units affected: 20,674

Models involved: 2006-2008 Honda City, 2005-2007 Jazz, and 2005-2006 CR-V

Date: September 2011

1. Toyota

Cause: Spiral cable retainer whose location and figure may have a loss of connectivity towards the driver's airbag which will not deploy in case of crash.

Units affected: 50,000 approximate

Models involved: November 2004-June 2010 Toyota Fortuner, Hilux, and Innova

Date: April 2014

5 LARGEST VEHICLE RECALLS WORLDWIDE

5. Toyota

Cause: Unintended acceleration either caused by sticky pedal mechanism or floor mats that dealers love to give away. Two recalls were done to the above mentioned issues to stop the wild behavior.

Units affected: 6.67 million

Models involved: 2004-2010 Toyota Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Highlander, Matrix, RAV4, Tacoma, and Tundra; Lexus ES and IS; Pontiac Vibe 

4. General Motors

Cause: Engine mounts, when separated, can result to a devastating phenomenon of the engine falling back on the throttle cable which produces full throttle or unintended (before Toyota went under fire with this issue) acceleration.

Units affected: 6.7 million

Models involved: 1965-1970 Chevrolet Bel Air, Brookwood, Camaro, Caprice, Chevy II, G Series, Impala, Kingswood, Nova, P Series, C Series, and Townsman; GMC C Series, G Series, and P Series

Date: December 1971

3. Toyota

Cause: Switch assembly in the power windows had insufficient amount of grease placed which may result to friction, smoke, or fire. It was a worldwide affair, prompting Toyota Philippines to recall five models in October 2012.

Units affected: 7.43 million worldwide

Models involved: 2005-2010 Toyota Auris, Belta, Camry, Corolla (various models worldwide), Highlander, Ist, Matrix, RAV4, Ractis, Sequoia, Tundra, and Yaris/Vios/Vitz/Belta; Scion xB and xD

Date: October 2012

2. Ford

Cause: Ignition switch is faulty especially that some of them self-ignite by themselves (we are not kidding here) causing electrical shorts and steering column meltdown.

Units affected: 7.9 million

Models involved: 1988-1993 Ford Aerostar, Bronco, Crown Victoria, Escort, F Series trucks, Mustang, Tempo, and Thunderbird; Lincoln Town Car; Mercury Cougar, Grand Marquis, and Topaz

Date: April 1996

1. Ford

Cause: Cruise control posed as a fire hazard, especially that the switch has the tendency to overheat, smoke, or burn hours after when the vehicle parked. For older models, it would tend to spread to the ABS system.

Units affected: More than 14 million, although 4.5 million units were originally recalled.

Models involved: 1992-2003 Ford Explorer, Excursion, Ranger, Windstar, E150-E450, and F150-F450; Mercury Mountaineer

Date: 2008 for the original 4.5 million units, October 2009 for the expansion