IRVINE and TORRANCE, Calif. -

The children’s nursery rhyme “Itsy, Bitsy Spider,” could take on a whole new connotation when considering the recall Mazda North America announced Thursday.

Mazda said it plans to contact 65,916 owners of the Mazda6 from the 2009 and 2010 model years. These Mazda units equipped with a 2.5-liter four cylinder engine are to be inspected by franchise dealers to see if spiderwebs are blocking the fuel canister vent line. 

On affected vehicles, Mazda believes a certain type of spider — the Yellow Sac spider — may weave a web in the evaporative canister vent line, potentially causing a restriction in the line.

“If this occurs, the fuel tank pressure may become excessively negative when the emission control system works to purge the vapors from the canister,” Mazda spokesperson Jeremy Barnes explained in a message to Auto Remarketing.

“As the canister is purged repeatedly during normal operation, the stress on the fuel tank may eventually result in a crack, potentially leading to fuel leakage and an increased risk of fire,” Barnes continued.

Barnes added about 51,500 of the effected Mazda units are in the U.S. with the remainder being spread within Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

Mazda said its franchise dealers from all four countries can check the vent line for obstruction, clean or replace it as necessary and install a check-valve, which can prevent blockage in the future.

The automaker insisted there have been no fires, accidents or injuries in conjunction with this issue. 

Honda Details Civic Hybrid Recall

In another recall announcement revealed this week, Honda decided late Wednesday to recall 36,656 Civic Hybrid vehicles in the U.S and another 2,064 units in Canada from model years 2006 through 2007. The recall stems from the need to replace the DC-to-DC converter, a component of the Integrated Motor Assist hybrid control system.

The automaker explained the DC-to-DC converter may experience an internal failure that could lead to engine stalling and malfunction of vehicle headlights.
Honda insisted no crashes or injuries have been reported in relation to this defect.

The OEM is encouraging all owners of affected vehicles to take their vehicles to an authorized franchise dealer as soon as they receive notification of this recall from Honda. The company plans to begin the notification process March 18.

In addition to contacting customers by mail after March 18, Honda reminded owners of these vehicles they can determine if their unit requires repair by going online to www.recalls.honda.com or calling (800) 999-1009 and selecting option No. 4.

“When Honda identifies concerns of this nature, nothing is more important to the company than fulfilling our obligation and responsibility to alert our customers,” the automaker emphasized.