TORRANCE, Calif. -

Toyota Motor Sales USA will conduct two safety recalls involving Prius vehicles as part of the recall announced Wednesday by Toyota Motor Corp.

Approximately 670,000 Prius vehicles are being recalled in the United States — part of the 2.8 million units being brought back worldwide — to inspect and in some cases replace the steering intermediate extension shaft.

Due to insufficient hardness treatment of some of the extension shafts, the automaker said the splines that connect the extension shaft to the steering gear box may deform if the steering wheel is frequently and forcefully turned to the full left or full right position while driving at slow speeds. 

Toyota said this deformation may create increased internal clearance, and the splines may eventually wear out over time.

Franchised dealers will inspect the extension shaft to determine if it needs to be replaced and, if confirmed, will replace it.

The company thinks the inspection and repair will take approximately one hour depending on the dealer’s work schedule.

Approximately 350,000 of these same Prius vehicles are also being recalled to replace the electric water pump for the hybrid system, according to officials.

In the hybrid system, Toyota explained there is an electrically driven water pump that circulates coolant through the hybrid components to provide cooling.  The automaker found there is a possibility that the electric motor installed in the water pump may stop functioning, leading to illumination of various warning lights in the instrument panel.

In limited instances, officials said the electric power supply circuit fuse may open, causing the hybrid system to stop while the vehicle is being driven.

Again, franchised dealers have been told to replace the electric water pump for the hybrid system. The repair will take approximately two hours depending on the dealer’s work schedule.       

Toyota emphasized there have been no crashes or injuries reported for these two conditions.  Owners of vehicles covered by these safety recalls will receive an owner notification letter via first class mail starting in December.

The OEM stressed any authorized Toyota dealer will perform these recalls at no charge to the vehicle owner.

Detailed information is available to customers at www.toyota.com/recall and the Toyota Customer Experience Center at (800) 331-4331.

Two Separate GM Recalls Announced

Meanwhile, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said General Motors is rolling out two separate recall campaigns.

The larger of the two recalls is for the 2013 Cadillac XTS. A total of 12,626 units manufactured from Oct. 12, 2011 through Aug. 30 are being summoned for what federal officials said was for failing to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 202, “Head Restraints.”

NHTSA determined the rear seat head restraints may not lock in the upright position after being folded forward. If the head restraint is at its lowest position and it falls forward, it will not meet the height required by the standard, according to officials.

In the event of a vehicle crash, the agency said the lowered head restraint may increase the occupant’s risk of neck injury.

GM will notify owners and dealers will replace the head restraints free of charge. The recall was expected to begin this week, but owners may contact GM at (800) 458-8006 and reference recall No. 12258.

Finally, NHTSA also said GM is bringing back a total of 2,949 units to fix an air bag issue. The vehicles are 2012 versions of the Buick Verano, Chevrolet Cruze and Chevrolet Sonic.

Officials said the driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals. If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver’s frontal airbag, NHTSA said that airbag will not deploy, increasing the driver’s risk of injury.

Along with notifying owners, GM said franchised dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil free of charge.

Because the manufacturer has not yet provided a notification schedule, owners may contact General Motors at (800) 521-7300 and reference recall No. 12261.