Toyota recall woes continue: 1.1m cars pulled

Toyota faces another embarrassing recall, this time pulling 1.1m cars back into dealerships to address two independent flaws affecting Corolla, Corolla Matrix, and Lexus IS models. The recalls, which affect cars in the US, Japan, Canada, and Mexico, Reuters reports, are over faulty airbag electronics that could trigger unexpected inflation, and recalcitrant wiper assemblies that could fail in arduous conditions.

The airbag issue is the broadest and most worrying of the two problems, having already caused "minor injuries" in eighteen cases, Toyota admits. A chip in the control unit can be confused by electrical interference from other systems, it's said, and will require a filter be installed. That could take between 60 and 90 minutes per car, with 752,000 Corolla and Corolla Matrix models impacted.

As for the wiper worry, that has affected 385,000 Lexus IS models and variants, with the front arm nut apparently not being tight enough to ensure consistant performance even in tougher conditions such as snow. The nut will be replaced by dealerships, a process expected to take around half an hour.

The two recalls are further embarrassments for Toyota, and come on the heels of several other multi-million call-backs in the years following the acceleration issue that prompted over $17m in US regulator fines and more than a billion dollars in lawsuits. The company announced it was the world's largest auto maker earlier this month.