Toyota to recall cars with Denso fuel pumps

December 16, 2021 Update – Japanese manufacturer Toyota (NYSE:TM) has remedied issues on 101,964 Denso fuel pumps that cause car stalls while driving. In addition to this, 22,555 of these Toyota parts have been categorized as unreachable and 26,994 have been removed from the recall. All of these issues that cause the pump to stop working were remedied between the first and third quarters of 2021.

Southfield, MI – December 11, 2020 – Japanese manufacturer Toyota (NYSE:TM) is set to recall 1,517,721 cars with faulty fuel pumps manufactured by Denso (OTCMKTS:DNZOY), an auto parts maker that forms part of the Toyota Group. This is the latest installment of recalls conducted by various car manufacturers due to an issue with the pumps that may cause cars to stall, increasing the risk of a crash.

Toyota has yet to announce the details of this recall. The following numbered Toyota parts are affected:

  • 195140201
  • 195140222
  • 195140249
  • 291100043
  • 291200100
  • 291200200
  • 291200202

Recall summary  

The recall concerns the fuel pump, which is responsible for moving gas from a car’s tank to its engine. The fuel pumps in question have a small plastic turbine called an impeller that sucks gas through the pump. These impellers may have been manufactured in a way that causes them to weaken and deform as they soak in fuel. This may cause the whole pump to stop working. 

Series of Denso recalls

This recall is the latest in a series issued by automakers who installed Denso pumps in their vehicles. In the United States, Subaru, Toyota and Honda have issued recalls. According to documents Denso submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Ford, Mazda and Mitsubishi also purchased faulty fuel pumps. 

Toyota issued their first Denso fuel pump recall in January for nearly 700,000 vehicles. Less than a month later, a class action lawsuit was proposed in the Eastern District of New York which complained that the initial Toyota recall was too small, and left out cars that were built with the same defective pump. Toyota has since expanded the recall two times, and by the end of October they had recalled nearly 3.35 million vehicles in total. 

Risks

A car that stalls while in motion is at a high risk of getting hit from behind. 

Denso has warned in recall documents that vehicles may stall while driving. Drivers should keep an eye on the check engine light and other warning indicators. If the car is “rough running” or fails to start, these are signs that something may be wrong with the fuel pump.

If your car stalls:

  • Turn on the emergency hazard lights.
  • Try to shift into neutral and maneuver your car to the side of the road. 
  • Call  your roadside assistance provider
  •  Be sure to stay in the car. The shoulder is very  dangerous for pedestrians.

The repair

Denso has notified Toyota of the recall expansion, and it is now Toyota’s responsibility to recall the fuel pumps and provide a fix. If it is anything like the previous Toyota recalls of Denso fuel pumps, Toyota will notify owners and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly with a nondefective one for free. Toyota owners were only notified of the prior recall on November 23, but the remedy has not yet become available.

Is your vehicle part of this recall?

Over 1.5 million vehicles have been added to this Denso recall. To see if your car is one of them, use MotorSafety’s free vehicle lookup tool.

Rebecca RandToyota to recall cars with Denso fuel pumps