Toyota Motor Corp. and supplier CTS Corp. are racing to repair and replace foot pedal components that triggered this month’s huge recall of Toyota vehicles that now includes models sold in the U.S., Canada, Europe and China. In the affected models, the accelerator can wear quickly and become stuck in a partially depressed position and/or be slow to return to idle after foot pressure is released.

Elkhart, Ind.-based CTS, which supplies the accelerator pedal for the recalled vehicles, has begun building redesigned pedals at three plants. It says the part has been tested and is ready for shipment to several Toyota plants in North America for installation in new vehicles and possibly retrofitted into existing vehicles.

Denso Corp., which supplies the accelerator pedal assembly for the same models in Japan but hasn’t experienced the problems associated with the international recall, may provide replacement pedal mechanisms for the affected vehicles with CTS accelerators. Direct replacement, however, may be tricky due to differences in the wire harnesses the suppliers use.

Insisting that it was building the pedals to Toyota’s specifications, CTS says it knows of fewer than a dozen cases in which the accelerator recoiled slower than it should. The problem is believed to be caused by excessive condensation.

CTS says it’s not aware of any instance where the pedal was stuck in a partially depressed condition. It describes Toyota as a small but important customer that represents less than 3% of the company’s overall business.

Toyota hasn’t decided whether dealers should install the new pedals in unsold inventory and customer cars or if service departments will modify the existing design. The plan calls for changing the material used in the accelerator to counter condensation, according to some media reports. Others say a new sleeve has been developed to fix the issue.

In the wake of the growing global recall, Toyota has temporarily suspended sales of the eight models. Production of those models will be halted next week.

Toyota has separately recalled many of its models over floor mats which the automaker says can become lodged against the gas pedal or which prevent the brake pedal from operating.

Mazda6 showcases Mazda's new look

Mazda Motor Corp. will unveil a freshened version of its Mazda6 car at the Geneva auto show in March. The facelift is expected to provide the basis for the rest of Mazda’s lineup as new models are introduced.

Mazda describes its new look as sportier and more premium. The revised Mazda6 also gets new headlamps and rear lights. The vehicle will bow in world markets this spring.

Honda Motor Co. has begun testing a next-generation version of its prototype solar hydrogen station system at its Los Angeles research and development center. The company has been refining the technology, which would allow home refueling of fuel cell-powered vehicles, since mid-2001.

Described as the most compact hydrogen generator in the world, the new system features a high differential pressure electrolyzer that eliminates the need for a separate compressor. This improves overall efficiency by 25%, based on data from computer simulations, and should greatly reduce costs, according to Honda.

Extracting hydrogen from water using a combination of solar power and off-peak grid electricity, Honda says the new station can generate enough hydrogen (0.5 kg) in eight hours to power a vehicle for 40 miles of driving. It also is compatible with so-called “smart” grids that would allow users to sell energy back to utilities during peak daytime power loads.

The integrated unit is meant to be housed in a family garage with a car. The new design replaces the previous two-piece unit and an earlier three-piece system.

The existing 48-panel, 6-kW solar array is maintained. It uses thin film solar cells comprised of copper, indium, gallium and selenium (CIGS). The mixture is produced by the automaker’s Honda Soltec Co. subsidiary, which reduced the size of the array by 20% and further improved photo voltaic energy efficiency two years ago.

As with the previous-generation system, the hydrogen purity from the new station meets SAE (J2719) and ISO (14687) specifications. In addition, Honda says users can easily lift and remove the fuel hose, with no coiling when the hose is returned to the dispenser unit.

Honda and Toyota Motor Corp. each began leasing a handful of fuel cell vehicles in the U.S. and Japan in late 2002. They both introduced second-generation models in 2005. The third-generation Honda FCX Clarity was launched in July 2008.

Goodbye turbo, hello electric motor. That’s the strategy Mitsubishi Motors Corp. plans to take with its next Lancer Evolution high-performance sedan, Autocar reports.

The U.K.-based magazine says the upcoming Evo XI will ride on the same platform that carried last year’s PX-MiEV plug-in hybrid concept. The all-wheel-drive system will use an electric motor and lithium-ion battery pack to drive the front wheels and a new 2.0-liter gasoline engine to power the rear wheels.

In effect, MMC will use the electric motor instead of the current turbocharger to boost performance—but without the traditional turbo lag. The vehicle also will be capable of driving in all-electric mode for short distances to further boost fuel efficiency and reduce emissions.

The next-generation Lancer Evolution also will feature several other new technologies. Some of these, such as active steering and roll control suspension, were developed for the current Evo X model but never made it to production due to cost constraints and other factors, Autocar notes. The Evo XI also will get a torque vectoring system that proportions power between the rear wheels.

Hyundai Motor Co. already has begun improving its acclaimed 4.6-liter Tau V-8 engine, which bowed two years ago in the Genesis luxury sedan. For 2010 the engine’s power increases by 10 hp to 385 hp, and torque is upped to 333 lb-ft from 324 lb-ft.

More enhancements are on the way. Vice Chairman H.S. Lee tells Wardsauto.com that Mazda’s goal is to steadily improve the powerplant, which features a two-step variable induction system and dual continuously variable valve timing, every year. This includes eventually adding direct injection, variable valve lift and cylinder deactivation. There also will be continued efforts to reduce friction, cut thermal losses and make other incremental gains to boost fuel economy.

Lee, who currently heads all R&D at Hyundai, oversaw the Tau V-8 program in his previous position as head of powertrain development. He tells Wards that tradeoffs between fuel efficiency and performance have to be made in some cases. He adds that some technologies he wanted to install were too costly and/or complex to manufacture. Lee didn’t identify what features were left behind, but he emphasizes that the engine currently in production achieved 95% of the goals set by the engineering team.

Hyundai also is developing larger variants of the Tau platform. It already offers a 5.0-liter mill in South Korea on the extended-wheelbase version of the Equus sedan. In that application, the engine makes 395 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque.

Hyundai plans to launch the base version of the high-end Equus in the U.S., with the 4.6-liter Tau engine, next year. There are no plans to offer the long-wheelbase model, which gains nearly a foot in length, in North America. Prior to the Tau, which was Hyundai’s first internally developed V-8, the Equus offered an outdated 270-hp, 4.5-liter unit that was sourced from Mitsubishi Motors Corp.

Ward’s has named the Tau powerplant to its top 10 U.S. engine list for two straight years. It was the only V-8 selected this year. Editors point out that the Hyundai system has the best combination of fuel economy and power found in any luxury car, outperforming the mostly larger V-8s in the Audi A6, BMW 5 Series, Cadillac STS, Infiniti M45 and Mercedes E-Class—all of which are more expensive than the $40,000 Genesis.

The Genesis sedan has a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fuel economy rating of 17 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway. It can run on premium or regular gasoline, but it loses about 7 hp and 9 lb-ft of torque when using the latter.