Following Toyota’s move to buy back its first electric vehicle (EV) from customers due to the wheels falling off on some units, the automaker is officially set to start fresh in producing the vehicle.
Toyota is restarting production on the bZ4x EV with fixes to the safety issues causing some wheels to fall off, according to a report from Reuters.
The automaker also owns Subaru and shares a powertrain platform with the company, which also caused Subaru to have to recall some of its Solterra units.
In a filing on Thursday, Toyota said it plans to ensure hub bolts were replaced and tightened to avoid the wheels falling off during sharp turns and sudden braking.
Toyota Investing $5.6 Billion into EV Battery Production in Japan and the U.S. https://t.co/rlgnMeXLmI
— TeslaNorth.com (@RealTeslaNorth) August 31, 2022
Toyota also fixed an issue with the vehicles’ airbags due to improper installation and misplacement of a strap inside the airbag’s assembly, which could fail and cause injury.
“We apologise again for the concern, anxiety, and inconvenience we have caused to our customers, our dealers and our stakeholders,” said Masahiko Maeda, Toyota CTO, regarding the airbag recall.
The news comes after Toyota sold zero bZ4x units in September amidst the wheel recall.
Toyota has also continued to warn against a transition to EVs, saying that the move could leave some customers behind.
