U.S. investigates steering issues in 135,000 older Toyota SUVs

Steering and braking concerns that have been connected to two crashes and five injuries in 135,000 Toyota sport utility automobiles have led to the opening of a federal investigation, a U.S. auto safety regulator stated on Friday.

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) states that it has 135 complaints from 2001-2002 model year Toyota Sequoia SUV owners reported incidents of unexpected vehicle stability control activations resulting in automatic braking of the left or right wheel and surprising steering pull.

An official probe is the first step before NHTSA informs if demanding a recall is necessary. Toyota spokeswoman Cindy Knight states the automaker is working on these concerns with NHTSA.

About half of the complaints claims a faulty sensor was diagnosed as the reason of the problem, while other complaints report comparable symptoms and driving conditions, NHTSA stated.

Majority of the complaints reported an unexpected activation at highway speeds. Some of them reported the incident as seemingly a “jerk” to the steering wheel.