Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. Announces Safety Recall Campaign

CYPRESS, Calif., Jan. 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp., has announced a safety recall campaign on a limited number of Toyo® brand tires.

The company has determined that select Toyo® Extensa® A/S tires distributed to retailers within the United States may have been produced with a kink at the bead area of the tires.  Under certain circumstances, the kink may eventually lead to a crack in the bead area, which is near the rim. If a crack develops and is left undetected, the tire may fail, potentially causing loss of vehicle control and a crash.

The following model tire is included in this safety recall campaign:

The recall tires were manufactured at the Toyo Tires plant in Georgia, U.S.A., and can be identified by examining the sidewall stamping for the above information, and the "Made in U.S.A." mark. These tires were made during the period from the 38th week of 2009 through the 44th week of 2010, as identified by the last four digits of the Tire Identification Number (TIN), ranging from 3809 to 4410, stamped on the sidewall.

If the tire was manufactured before or after this period, or has the "Made in Japan" or "Made in China" mark on the sidewall, they are NOT being recalled.

There are approximately 68,763 tires covered by this campaign.

Toyo Tires is committed to providing tires of only the highest quality.  Consumers who have purchased Toyo® Extensa® A/S tires since September 2009, are encouraged to inspect their tires.  If a consumer is unable to determine if they have a recalled tire, they should visit an authorized Toyo Tires dealer for a free inspection.

A list of authorized Toyo Tires dealers is available at: www.toyotires.com

The following steps have been taken to assist Toyo Tires customers during this campaign:

• Free Replacement: Affected consumers will have their recalled tires replaced at no charge.
• Web site: A dedicated page at www.toyotires.com/recall-campaign provides information on this safety recall campaign including photos to assist in identifying recalled tires and instructions on how to return recalled tires.
• Toll-free hotline: Consumer Relations staff is available at Toyo Tires to answer questions such as how to identify and replace recalled tires.  Consumers should call the hotline at Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp., Consumer Relations Department, 800-442-8696 (6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST, 9:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. EST).
• Notification letter: Consumers who have registered the recalled tires with Toyo Tires will receive a letter that includes photos and instructions to assist in identifying and returning the recalled tires.  A copy of the consumer notification letter is available on the Toyo Tires website (www.toyotires.com/recall-campaign).

This campaign expires on May 31, 2012.

About Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp.

Toyo Tires has stood for innovation, quality, performance, and excellent service for over 65 years, including 45 years in the United States.  The company offers a complete selection of premium replacement tires for nearly every make and model including high performance cars, luxury vehicles, light trucks, and SUVs as well as commercial trucks.  Popular consumer product lines are Proxes® (for high performance passenger cars, light trucks and race cars), Open Country® (for light trucks and SUVs), Versado® (for luxury passenger cars), and Extensa® (high value tire for passenger cars and minivans). Many of the tires are built here in the United States at their state-of-the-art factory in Bartow County, Georgia.  Learn more at www.toyotires.com and connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.

SOURCE Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp.