Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood "Don't Drive" wait "Do Drive"

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood balked his pitch on the Toyota (NYSE:TM) recall craze, he now says he misspoke when he had advised in congressional testimony that people stop driving recalled Toyota cars.

Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) pared earlier declines after U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said he had misspoke when he had advised in congressional testimony that people stop driving cars involved in Toyota's recall, advice that had initially caused a steep drop in Toyota's shares.

Testifying before the House Appropriations committee, where he was scheduled to talk about the fiscal 2011 budget, LaHood was asked what advice he would give to owners of Toyotas subject to the recall.  "My advice is, if anybody owns one of these vehicles, stop driving it, take it to the Toyota dealer because they believe they have the fix for it," LaHood said.

Afterwards he told reporters that wasn't what he meant to say.

"What I said in there was obviously a misstatement," LaHood said outside of the hearing room. "My advice is if you have one of these vehicles, if you are in doubt, take it to the dealership today."

DOT spokesman Bill Adams said in an email, "The DOT is advising owners of recalled vehicles to contact their local dealerships to arrange for fixes as soon as possible."

The Japanese auto maker said Monday it has the fix for the problem and would begin shipping the new parts to auto dealers. It said in a statement on its Web site that it "appreciated" LaHood's clarification.

"We want to make sure our customers understand that this situation is rare and generally does not occur suddenly. In the rare instances where it does occur, the vehicle can be controlled with firm and steady application of the brakes," the statement read. "If you are not experiencing any issues with your pedal, we are confident that your vehicle is safe to drive."

SOURCE: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100203-713248.html?mod=WSJ_World_MIDDLEHeadlinesAsia