When a western Pennsylvania resident buys a new vehicle there is an expectation that it will meet certain safety requirements. But despite efforts to make sure all components of a vehicle are working as they should before it leaves the manufacturing floor, there are some cases where the quality level does not fit the bill. When an auto defect is discovered, often a recall is issued.

Over the past ten years, Toyota, who was recently named the world's largest automaker, has had to recall a million vehicles due to problems with either the airbags or the windshield wipers.

The airbag issues applied to the majority of the problem, with more than 750,000 recalls issued for Corollas and Corolla Matrix vehicles sold in 2003 and 2004. The recall came when it was it was discovered that the airbags on these cars had the potential of deploying without an accident. Problems with the airbags were reported 47 times, along with 18 minor injuries, and two possible crashes.

The windshield wiper problem was more recent, and occurred with 270,000 Toyota Lexus IS models that were sold in 2006 and in 2012. A nut on the wiper arm was not sufficiently tightened at the factory, which led to a reduced functionality of the wipers that were exposed to heavy snow. Although the potential for injury exists, so far none have been reported.

Whether the product is an automobile or something else, manufacturers attempt to get the word out, but often those people who own the products do not get the message. When a vehicle malfunctions in some way, it is more likely that a driver could lose control and cause injuries to themselves, their passengers, or others they encounter on the road.

Source: CNN Money, "Toyota recalls 1 million cars in the U.S." Mark Thompson, Jan. 30, 2013