WASHINGTON --- The Obama administration's top transportation official sharply criticized Toyota Motor Corp. on Tuesday for dragging its feet on safety concerns over its gas pedals, suggesting the automaker was "a little safety deaf" to mounting evidence of problems.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told The Associated Press that federal safety officials had to "wake them up" to the seriousness of the safety issues that eventually led Toyota to recall millions of popular brands such as Camry and Corolla. That included a visit to Toyota's offices in Japan to convince them to take action.
"They should have taken it seriously from the very beginning when we first started discussing it with them," LaHood said. "Maybe they were a little safety deaf."
LaHood also said the government was considering civil penalties for Toyota over its handling of the recalls but declined to elaborate. The potential fines were first reported by the Detroit News . The largest auto industry fine came in 2004, when General Motors paid $1 million for responding too slowly on a recall of nearly 600,000 vehicles over windshield wiper failure.
Toyota executives apologized Monday to consumers for the problems, which have shaken the confidence of many Toyota drivers.
That problem prompted the company to recall 2.3 million vehicles two weeks ago in the United States. Toyota hopes a small steel insert the size of a postage stamp will solve problems with friction that are blamed for the potential glitch. Dealers said they expected to receive parts for the fix today.
LaHood said the Toyota recalls "may be the most serious safety issue that we have faced here at DOT" during his tenure.
Asked for reaction to LaHood's comments to the AP, Toyota said in a statement Tuesday: "Nothing is more important to us than the safety and reliability of the vehicles our customers drive. Secretary LaHood said to us that the soonest possible action would be in the best interests of our customers, and we took his advice very seriously and instituted a recall."
LaHood said there appeared to be a disconnect between Toyota's North American offices and the company's headquarters in Japan. Toyota officials in North America took the problem seriously, but the Japan operation needed to be prodded, he said.
LaHood confirmed the government was investigating potential electronic problems in the Toyota vehicles but declined to discuss the ongoing investigation. A transportation official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation, said the government was taking a fresh look at the electronic throttle control system and potential electromagnetic interference.
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