Toyota recalls 2.4M Prius hybrids for software glitch that could cause stall

Oct. 5 (UPI) -- Toyota recalled more than 2 million Prius hybrids worldwide Friday over a software flaw that could in rare cases cause the cars to stall out at high speeds.

The recall impacts about 2.4 million vehicles -- 1.25 million in Japan and 830,000 in North America, Toyota spokesman Jean-Yves Jault told Bloomberg Friday. About 807,000 are in the United States.

The cars were also recalled for a related issue in February 2014 and July 2015, Jault added.

Friday's recall involves certain 2010-2014 model year Toyota Prius and 2012-2014 Prius v vehicles.

"The involved vehicles were designed to enter a failsafe driving mode in response to certain hybrid system faults," Toyota said in a statement. "Toyota has found that in rare situations, the vehicle may not enter a failsafe driving mode as intended. If this occurs, the vehicle could lose power and stall.

"While power steering and braking would remain operational, a vehicle stall while driving at higher speeds could increase the risk of a crash."

Toyota said owners will be notified once the software update is available. Friday's is the second Prius recall in the last month.

Toyota issued another recall affecting 1 million Prius hybrids worldwide due to fire risk on Sept. 5.