First launched in February, the NHTSA announced on Monday that it has upgraded its probe of certain popular model Toyota vehicles from a preliminary investigation to an engineering analysis. The move signals a recall could be forthcoming.
The investigation centers on the design of Toyota's power window master switch design, which is allegedly prone to catching fire. The NHTSA and Toyota have collected 161 reports of fires or crashes related to the defect, with nine of those resulting in injury. Toyota has received another 49 warranty claims for "thermal events". No deaths have been linked to the faulty switch.
In all the investigation now covers 1,424,747 Toyota models.
Just last week the NHTSA expanded its investigation of the 2006-2007 Chevrolet TrailBlazer for a door fire issue, but the agency has yet to confirm if the two cases are linked.
