NHTSA Complaint #10488668 — 2010 TOYOTA VENZA

ON OCTOBER 20, 2012, MY WIFE CAME HOME FROM WORK AND STATED THAT THE BRAKES WERE NOT WORKING PROPERLY (I.E. BRAKE PEDAL DROPPED ALMOST TO THE FLOOR AT TIMES AND BRAKES DID NOT ENGAGE PROPERLY) ON OUR 2010 TOYOTA VENZA AND THAT A MESSAGE WAS ILLUMINATED IN THE CENTER CONSOLE COMPUTER SYSTEM THAT STATED, "BRAKE SYSTEM FAILURE. CONTACT YOUR DEALERSHIP IMMEDIATELY!". I CONTACTED THE DEALERSHIP, INFORMED THEM THAT THE BRAKES WERE NOT WORKING CORRECTLY AND OF THE ILLUMINATED MESSAGE, AND WAS INSTRUCTED TO BRING THE VEHICLE INTO THE DEALERSHIP. I DROVE THE VEHICLE INTO THE DEALERSHIP AND ON THE WAY THE BRAKE SYSTEM OCCASIONALLY DID NOT ENGAGE PROPERLY AGAIN (2ND TIME IN SAME DAY). I MANAGED TO CAUTIOUSLY DRIVE TO THE DEALERSHIP AND INFORM THE DEALERSHIP THAT I DID NOT WANT THIS VEHICLE BACK UNTIL THEY WERE ABLE TO IDENTIFY THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM AND FIX THE PROBLEM. ON THE SAME DAY, I WAS INFORMED THAT THE MECHANIC FLUSHED THE BRAKE SYSTEM, TOOK THE VEHICLE FOR A TEST DRIVE, AND THE VEHICLE'S BRAKE SYSTEM FAILED FOR A THIRD TIME. I OBSERVED THE MECHANIC PLUG HIS DIAGNOSTIC LAP TOP INTO OUR VEHICLE AND HE WAS UNABLE TO FIND ANY STORED ERRORS IN THE COMPUTER SOFTWARE (DESPITE THE FACT THE VEHICLE'S BRAKE SYSTEM FAILED 3 TIMES ON DIFFERENT OCCASIONS FOR 3 DIFFERENT PEOPLE ON THE SAME DAY). THE DEALERSHIP WAS UNABLE TO IDENTIFY THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM, SO ON OCTOBER 22, 2012 THEY CONTACTED TOYOTA CORPORATE'S ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT FOR GUIDANCE. CORPORATE INSTRUCTED THE DEALERSHIP TO REPLACE THE MASTER CYLINDER AND THE ABS ACTUATOR. THE DEALERSHIP REPLACED THESE PARTS, CONDUCTED A TEST DRIVE, AND RELEASED THIS UNSAFE VEHICLE TO MY WIFE ON OCTOBER 23, 2012 NEVER STATING WHAT CAUSED THE REPEATED BRAKE FAILURE. ON OCTOBER 26, 2012, THE BRAKE SYSTEM AGAIN AND WAS THE CAUSE OF AN ACCIDENT. A FORMAL COMPLAINT WAS FILED WITH TOYOTA CORPORATION AND THEY ARE DENYING LIABILITY. *TR