Mazda recalls 215,000 cars in the US
The Mazda recall involves model year 2007-2009 Mazda3 and Mazda5 cars.
Mazda has recalled 215,000 Mazda3 and Mazda5 cars sold in the US because of a possible defect that results in a loss of power steering which could cause a crash.
The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said Tuesday that it had received at least 33 complaints alleging steering problems in the 2007 to 2009 model-year Mazda sedans with three of the complaints alleged that the loss of steering control caused a crash, ABC news reported.
Earlier this year, Mazda said it realized that more US owners were experiencing the loss of power steering.
The Japanese car manufacturer will start to inform owners concerned from next month, says the NHTSA website. The recall is anticipated to be completed by February 2011.
In June, NHTSA opened a preliminary inquiry of the problem.
It's the latest in a long list of technical defects for Japanese car firms. The automaker's larger rival Toyota Motor Corp faces continuing scrutiny of its handling of safety recalls.
Toyota was fined a record $16.4 million by NHTSA, the maximum then allowed, for moving too slowly to recall vehicles with defective accelerator pedals.
Earlier this year, Mazda recalled nearly 90,000 vehicles sold in Japan and China because of an oil hose defect.
MVZ/MVZ
