OTTAWA, March 16 (Xinhua) -- Transport Minister John Baird said Tuesday that his department has started an investigation of safety concerns with Toyota cars as well as the company's response to gas pedal problems with its vehicles in Canada.
Baird spoke on the same day that Toyota Canada appeared before a parliamentary committee to clarify how it has responded to faulty gas pedal problems that have led to the recall of 270,000 Toyotas in Canada.
Consumers have been complaining that Toyota Canada has not acted quickly enough to deal with the problem.
The government review will focus on whether the defects were reported in time and properly dealt with, Baird said a press release.
Toyota's recall began last fall and the company has so far recalled about 8.5 million vehicles worldwide to deal with the gas pedal problem.
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