WASHINGTON (Aug. 14, 2006) — Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. is offering owners of 2004-06 four-wheel-drive Toyota Sienna minivans replacement tires or reimbursements to resolve a class-action lawsuit involving run-flat tires on those vehicles.
The settlement would ensure that Sienna owners who paid for replacement tires are reimbursed the same—for three years or 36,000 miles—as those owners who qualify for an extended warranty that Toyota has put on the tires, according to Mark Anderson, a San Francisco class-action lawyer.
The proposed settlement would resolve a class-action suit that alleges run-flat tires—principally Dunlop SP Sport 4000T made by Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd.—on 2004-06 Toyota Sienna minivans wear prematurely or unevenly. The tires were used on 50,000 vehicles, a company spokeswoman said.
The class-action suits originally were filed in September and October last year in California and New York, respectively.