Toyota has issued a recall of more than 4,500 examples of its GT86 sports car in Britain because of a fault that could lead to a loss of power-assisted steering. The related Subaru BRZ is also affected by the recall.
The issue reportedly affects all right-hand drive examples of the GT86, which shares virtually all of its components with Subaru’s BRZ. Toyota Australia has carried out a recall of nearly 15,000 GT86 models built between April 2012 and March 2015.
In Britain alone, 4,556 units of the GT86 are believed to be involved in the recall, accounting for the vast majority of examples sold in Britain.
The steering issue explained
Toyota has explained that the fault on the GT86 is connected to the driver’s knee airbag cover, which can interfere with the wiring harness for the car’s electric power steering system. There’s a risk that the electrical contacts can disconnect, resulting in the loss of assistance.
There’s the possibility that the steering will become much heavier at slower speeds and appreciably weightier while on the move. Toyota adds that a yellow icon illuminated on the dashboard and an audible warning should also occur to confirm the steering fault has occurred.
No accidents or injuries related to this steering fault have been reported but Toyota has confirmed that registered GT86 owners will be contacted within the coming weeks via post or telephone. At the time of writing, there has been no official comment from Subaru UK.
GT86 customers will be urged to book their car in to have the fault addressed at their nearest Toyota centre. Affected cars will have their electric power steering engine control unit and wire harness replaced, something that will take around an hour according to Toyota.
