TOYOTA TO RECALL 3,000 VEHICLES IN UAE

DUBAI, Feb 17 (Bernama) -- Over 3,000 Toyota vehicles are to be recalled in
the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over safety concerns.

The recall was initiated by the Emirates Standardisation and Metrology
Authority (ESMA), whose representatives met Toyota executives on Sunday,
according to The National daily.

Reports said problems with sticking accelerators and floor mats
trappping gas pedals, as well as those associated with brakes on new Prius
hybrids, have now led to the recall of 8.5 million vehicles.

"We told them, you have to call one by one, all the people that you have
sold (Toyota vehicles) to and coordinate with them in a timely way, to
bring in the cars and do the modification," ESMA acting director-general
Mohammed Badri was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

The Toyota models affected in the UAE are the 2005 to 2010 Avalon sedan and
the 2009 and 2010 Sequoia sport utility vehicle.

Badri said April was the deadline for dealers to complete the recall.

According to the daily, Toyota models accounted for about one-third of the
local car market, with Al-Futtaim Motors, the official distributor of Toyota
vehicles in the UAE, having sold about 56,000 cars last year.
-- BERNAMA