Business Day published the article below on Saturday. Two interesting points, the first one Toyoto don’t seem to understand, and the second which I don’t understand.
1. The affair has been embarrassing for Toyota - I am not sure Toyota actually understand how bad this is for their brand. Let’s all get together, hug, and say: Ostrich effect!
2. who have said
the top-of-the-range three-litre diesel model will soon come with
electric stability control, “which fixes the problem”. - I thought the tires caused the problem? Why on earth would they replace the tires of stability control is what is needed? My non-top of the range 4.0l petrol doesn’t seem to have a big enough problem to warrant a stability control.
Article follows:
TOYOTA SA has confirmed that its Fortuner SUV may be unstable on gravel roads.
Public concern was sparked by an internet forum , where members
realised that many Fortuner owners had experienced fishtailing while
driving on dirt roads.
The Fortuner is SA’s best-selling SUV.
Gordon Arons of Pretoria phoned Talk Radio 702 to discuss the problem, saying his car was “unstable at 80km/h on tar”.
Some motorists reported fishtailing at speeds as low as 35km/h.
While numbers are not available, car magazines such as Drive Out and Wegsleep have all reported rollovers.
“There have been accidents,” says Ferdi de Vos, spokesman for Toyota SA . “That’s why we’re looking into this.”
According to De Vos the Toyota Fortuner is an SUV based
on the chassis and design of a Hilux bakkie, a load-carrying delivery
vehicle.
As such it would have flawed on-road dynamics .
In order to improve on-road driving characteristics,
Toyota fitted the Fortuner with rear coil springs rather than the leaf
springs found on the Hilux.
Coil springs offer less grip on poor corrugated roads, says De Vos.
“There are limitations to the chassis .
“ The Fortuner is not a baby Prado as many people think. It’s not designed to handle dirt roads like a Prado.”
The Prado is an expensive SUV built by Toyota.
De Vos says the Fortuner is only available in developing
countries and by basing it on the Hilux bakkie, Toyota could keep
prices low.
You can buy a new Fortuner today for as little as
R320000, which is an excellent price for such a large SUV. Inevitably,
such savings come at a cost.
Arons says he understands that the Fortuner is “not a Prado” and is a cheaper vehicle, “but it should still be safe”.
De Vos says Toyota’s pre launch research indicated that
90% of Fortuners sold would not be used on gravel or in off-road
situations, and the company decided to fit road-biased all-weather
tyres called General Grabbers as opposed to 4×4 tyres.
That decision was made, says De Vos, in the interests of what motor manufacturers call NVH — noise, vibration and harshness.
“If we made a mistake, it was not understanding the broad
range of uses ( the Fortuner would be subjected to) and to spec those
tyres.”
De Vos says Toyota SA will help Fortuner drivers who are
concerned about their car’s dirt-road handling to fit improved Grabber
tyres.
The Grabbers have a stiffer side wall and other
characteristics that handle “the very specific circumstances ” that can
lead to instability far better — at the cost of some NVH.
De Vos urges all concerned Fortuner owners to contact their dealers.
Arons, who after waiting many weeks for new tyres, says
Toyota is inaccessible and uninterested, and they only responded to his
problem after he spoke to 702 presenter John Robbie . He says he is
still unhappy with his car’s stability.
The affair has been embarrassing for Toyota who have said
the top-of-the-range three-litre diesel model will soon come with
electric stability control, “which fixes the problem”.
Sun, Nov 16, 2008
Toyota Fortuner