Toyota’s first attempt at a mass-produced electric vehicle (EV) with the bZ4X hasn’t gotten off to a good start, with the Japanese automaker recalling all 2,700 units that had been sold around the world due to a safety issue.
The safety issue that caused the recall was that sharp turns and sudden braking could cause a hub bolt to loosen, increasing the risk of a wheel literally falling off the EV.
That recall was in June, less than two months after it launched, and Toyota has not sold, and will not sell any more units, until the problem can be resolved.
Now nearly four months later and it looks like Toyota’s engineers have finally come up with a fix.
According to a report by Reuters Toyota is expected to submit the fix to Japan’s transport ministry on Thursday. If approved it would allow Toyota to restart sales of the bZ4X.
The recall didn’t affect just the bZ4X. Toyota’s sister company Subaru has also halted sales of the Solterra EV, which is built on the same platform and shares much of the same architecture.
The Solterra EV didn’t even get a chance to launch in North America before the recall was issued, but dealers were already attempting to cash in with market adjustments on the MSRP.
While the recall has been in effect, Toyota has been warning owners not to drive the EV. The automaker even offered to buy the EV back from customers, offering additional incentives like a loaner vehicle, reimbursements, free charging and more if they chose to keep it instead.
