As Toyota Motor Corp. faced a possible recall of its best-selling Prius hybrids over brake-related problems both in the Unites States and Japan, safety concerns that were largely considered an overseas issue have quickly spread to the home market.
In a fresh blow to its already faltering reputation for quality, complaints about braking problems in the latest model of the gasoline-electric hybrid have been filed at the transport ministry and Toyota dealers across Japan.
Such defects, experts say, may be traced to the fact that an increasing number of cars carry sophisticated electronics and that carmakers are consolidating these units to achieve lower costs.