InsideJapan News Network

Japanese car manufacturer Honda has announced it is to recall more cars due to fears over the safety of brake pedals.

Following the recall of millions of cars by Toyota, Nissan and Honda over the past few weeks, the firm is now to call back 412,000 minivans and SUVs over potentially faulty brake pedals. Some customers have complained that the pedals "feel soft" underfoot and needed to be pressed extremely firmly to work as the cars got older.

In total, 344,000 Honda Odyssey minivans will be recalled, alongside 68,000 Element SUVs. All of the cars are from 2007 and 2008.

According to Honda, the brake problems could stem from air getting into the vehicle's stability assist modulator.

Honda spokesman Chris Martin told the AFP news agency that the problem can be hard to trace in many cars.

"It's a very slow progression because it's a tiny, tiny amount of air that gets in - it's smaller than a drop of water," he said.

Toyota has been worst hit by safety scandals with a number of deaths said to be linked to faulty accelerator pedals which cause people to lose control of their cars.

Written by Kimberley Homer.


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