Toyota GR86
The Toyota GR86 has gained considerable fame in recent months: presented to the world as the refined and improved version of the much appreciated GT86, the car is highly coveted by sports car enthusiasts and it is no coincidence that it has sold-out in everything. the world in a short time. Despite these premises, several GR86 specimens are presenting technical problems, such as that of a Californian boy named Josh, who a few days ago watched his GR86 literally go up in smoke after having taken it from the official Toyota workshop following a repair.According to what reported by Josh, or @JZX_JK on Instagram, where he posted videos and photos of the incident, the car would have stood still for 4 months in the Toyota workshop to receive an unspecified repair; so you can imagine Josh's joy when he finally got his car back, too bad that just 12 hours later the beautiful blue GR86 caught fire from the engine, forcing the boy to abandon the vehicle and call the fire brigade. >
Following the media attention received, Toyota USA asked the owner to contact them to try to solve the problem, a message that triggered the piqued but perfectly understandable response from the American: “If you really care you can contact me privately, otherwise you can speak to my lawyer. In addition, you have been reported to NATSA and your dealer has been reported to the Better Business Bureau, and will be notified soon. ”
As anticipated in the opening, this is not the first strange episode involving one of the new Toyota GR86s. : just a few days ago on the internet there was once again talk of another case of a broken GR86 due to the material used as a gasket for some elements of the engine.
At the moment Toyota has not released official statements on the issue and does not seem willing to launch a recall campaign.
Toyota GR86 catches fire in the US after dealer repair, sparks legal threat
A US customer’s Toyota GR86 sports-car caught fire following a four-month dealer repair, now the owner is threatening legal action.
Japanese car giant Toyota has been threatened with legal action from a US customer after a GR86 caught fire following a four-month repair by a Toyota dealer.
In a post on social media platform Instagram, the owner (known by the username JZX_JK) claims his GR86 had undergone a four-month repair by a Toyota dealer in Orange County, California. It's not clear what repairs were being completed.
The owner claims the Toyota GR86 caught fire less than 12 hours after the car was collected from the dealership.
It is yet to be determined why the car caught fire, or whether the repairs undertaken by the Toyota dealer contributed to the fire, or if the fire was the result of a manufacturing fault or a vehicle modification.
A series of photos posted by the owner on Instagram show the fire caused extensive damage to the Toyota GR86, with the heat of the blaze causing the windscreen to shatter and body panels to melt.
A representative from Toyota USA commented on a subsequent video of the car on fire, asking the owner (Josh) to contact them about the incident.
“Hi, Josh. We’d like to speak with you about this experience further,” said the Toyota USA representative.
“When you have a moment, please send us a DM. We look forward to speaking with you.”
The owner replied to the Toyota USA representative, claiming his direct message had not been acknowledged and he was planning to take legal action against the car maker.
“I had sent a DM (direct message) yesterday with no response. So I unsent it which I’m sure you can see,” the owner replied to the Toyota USA comment.
“So if you really care enough you can send me a DM or try to contact me directly. Other than that you can speak with my lawyer.”
Toyota had denied the warranty claim for an engine failure when it discovered a photo of the car “drifting” and performing skids at a closed-course event.
However, Toyota later honoured the warranty claim after an inspection of the GR86’s Subaru-built engine revealed the failure was as a result of silicone – which is used as an engine sealant – leaking into the oil pickup and causing the engine to seize.
There are currently no recalls for the latest generation Toyota GR86 or its Subaru BRZ twin in the US or Australia.
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