Toyota Tacoma recall affects 381,000 trucks in the U.S.

Toyota says it's recalling roughly 381,000 Tacomas in the U.S. from the 2022 and 2023 model years. It seems that during production, welding debris might have accumulated on the ends of the rear axle assembly. If that happened, the debris "could cause certain retaining nuts to loosen over time and eventually fall off, potentially causing a part to separate from the axle." Obviously, the words "separate from the axle" are most dire, especially when addressed at the rear axle of a pickup truck. The recall population represents roughly 86% of Tacoma sales over those two model years.

The automaker says the fix requires a trip to the dealer to have the rear axle inspected. If the techs find any damaged axle components due to the welding debris, the components will be repaired or replaced. If there's no damage spotted, the axles will get their retaining nuts tightened, just to make sure. The service comes at no cost to owners, other than time.

Owners will be notified by mail no later than late April. Those not wishing to wait eight weeks for more information can visit Toyota's recall site and enter their truck's VIN, or call the Toyota Brand Engagement Center at 800-331-4331. The recall isn't listed yet on the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration website, but it should appear shortly with additional information on the causes and how the problem was detected. 

It's been a big week for recalls, Toyota and Lexus not left out of wider automaker actions by having to call in a total of 281,000 vehicles from their respective model lines, separate to the Tacoma news.