— A 2018 Toyota Tacoma bent rear axle lawsuit alleges the trucks suffer from warped brake drums because the automaker manufactured and sold the Tacoma trucks with defective axles.
Plaintiff William J. Johnson says he paid nearly $39,000 for a 2018 Toyota Tacoma that started making noise and suffering from brake issues.
Johnson says he took the truck to be repaired and was told the brake drums were warped and would be replaced. But the plaintiff claims the same problems returned shortly after he picked up the truck, and again he was told the new brake drums were warped.
Technicians kept the truck and Johnson says he inquired about the status of the Tacoma after several days of waiting. Technicians allegedly told the plaintiff Toyota was aware about the problems and was sending a representative to consult with the dealership.
This is when Johnson allegedly was told 2018 Tacoma trucks were made and sold with bent axles that warp the brake drums, and the only way to fix the problem was to replace the rear axles.
Although the replacement axle arrived, Toyota allegedly said the replacement was also bent so a second part had to be ordered. According to the lawsuit, the plaintiff was then told the second replacement axle was too big for the Tacoma, so a third axle was ordered and finally installed.
Johnson says he asked Toyota to buy back the truck, a request the automaker refused. The plaintiff claims he can't be sure the bent axle didn't create other problems with the truck considering what occurred with the brake drums.
According to the lawsuit, about 200,000 Toyota Tacoma trucks were sold in Canada and the U.S. in 2016, and during this time a Texas assembly plant started running a shift on Saturdays to keep the trucks rolling off the lines.
The plaintiff claims the plant was running at 125 percent capacity and other facilities were trying to keep up with a high demand for the Tacomas, something that allegedly caused a decrease in quality control that led to the bent axles.
The plaintiff claims Toyota knew about the bent axles before selling the trucks and certainly knew once bent replacement axles started arriving at dealerships.
According to the lawsuit, Johnson wouldn't have paid what he did for the truck, or possibly wouldn't have purchased it at all, if Toyota would have admitted the rear axles were bent and would ruin the brake drums. In addition, the plaintiff says he has concerns about the safety of the truck and what damage the original bent axle may have caused.
The plaintiff says Toyota should pay damages, stop selling the 2018 Tacoma trucks, remove the defective axles from inventory and inform dealers and consumers about the bent rear axles.
The proposed class-action lawsuit includes all consumers who purchased or leased 2018 Toyota Tacomas that were sold, leased, repaired or equipped with bent rear axles.
The 2018 Toyota Tacoma bent rear axle lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California - William John Johnson, et al., v. Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc., et al.
The plaintiff is represented by the Hanson Law Firm, and the Consumer Law Group of California.