Toyota to Recall 50,000 Sequoia on Sudden... Braking

If it weren't a possibly serious fault, Toyota's latest screw-up would be quite funny: after months and months of sudden acceleration reports, complaints and recalls, the Japanese manufacturer sees itself placed in the awkward position of recalling 50,000 2003 Sequoia SUVs because... they brake all of a sudden.

The recall is to be officially announced today, according to DetNews, and comes as a result of a 16-months NHTSA investigation into the matter. NHTSA was acting on 64 complaints concerning "inappropriate activation of the electronic stability control or the traction control system."

A car braking on its own is dangerous enough, but the Sequoia apparently takes the playing-with-death game a bit further: the NHTSA found that when the car brakes as it pleases, it doesn't even bother to light up the brake lights, so the ones behind you have no idea of what's happening.

"During the activation of either system, the driver loses throttle control and one of more brakes may apply, causing the vehicle to slow suddenly," NHTSA said in a filing. "During these activation events, the brake lights are not illuminated to signal to following traffic that the vehicle is slowing."

As for Toyota, it believes the traction control system is at fault, and not the electronic stability control. The carmaker is so convinced it has pinpointed the culprit that it's expected to include the fix in the official recall bulletin.

As usual, we'll keep you posted on how this develops. Additionally, we'll also start counting the jokes bound to be born out of this sudden-braking-sudden-acceleration-sudden-death maze and compile them for you...