CT Drivers React to Massive Toyota Recall

Floor Mat Concerns Prompt Recall of 3.8 Million Vehicles

The U.S. Transportation Department Tuesday afternoon issued a recall of some 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles, warning consumers about safety problems tied to removable floor mats that could potentially interfere with the gas pedal and cause a crash.

The government said Tuesday that consumers who bought certain Toyota models issued from 2004 to today should remove their floor mats and not replace them.

Drivers of 2007-2010 Toyota Camrys, 2005-2010 Toyota Avalons, 2004-2009 Toyota Priuses, 2005-2010 Tacomas, 2007-2010 Toyota Tundras, 2007-2010 Lexus ES350s and 2006-2010 Lexus IS250 and IS350s were part of the recall.

The government says there have been safety concerns with these mats and more than 100 complaints since 2004. Toyota is still working on a permanent fix.

"It's very much a safety issue, real dangerous because the mat can like slip under the gas pedal, who knows what can happen," said Andrew James of New Britain.

It was a deadly accident in California that prompted Toyota to look into the safety issue. Last month, four people died in a high speed crash. Investigators say it appears the Lexus' all-weather floor mat jammed the car's gas pedal to the floor.

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