Consumer Catch-up: Toyota Prius recall, Mattress Firm files bankruptcy, millions of Real IDs expected

Friday, October 5, 2018
This undated image shows the back of a Toyota Prius.
This undated image shows the back of a Toyota Prius.
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Toyota recalls 2.43M Prius cars

Toyota is recalling 2.43 million Prius hybrids because they can stall while driving.

That includes about 807,000 in the U.S. alone.

The company says in rare cases, the cars might fail to enter a "failsafe" driving mode, lose power and stall.

Power steering and braking would continue to work but a stall at a fast speed could increase risks of a crash.

The recall involves Prius vehicles from 2010 to 2014 model years. Prius "V" cars from 2012 to 2014 are also impacted.

Dealerships will update the software for all involved vehicles, at no charge. Toyota says it will notify affected customers once the software update is available.

Mattress Firm files bankruptcy

Mattress Firm is filing for bankruptcy protection, and plans to close as many as 700 stores.

Court documents show the country's largest mattress retailer owes more than $1 billion. It owes its largest creditor, mattress maker Simmons, almost $65 million.

Mattress Firm CEO Steve Stagner says the filing will allow the company to "strengthen our balance sheet" and close stores in areas with multiple locations close together.

The company has more than 3,000 stores in the U.S.

DMV expecting 23.5M Real IDs

The state DMV expects tens of millions of people to request Real IDs before the federal deadline of October 2020.

At a hearing this week at the state capitol, the DMV says it has issued 1.5 million cards since the program began in January. Officials expect 23.5 million more have yet to be issued.

The DMV has said a spike in applications for the Real ID license has contributed to major wait times at field offices. Officials say they have managed to get wait times down by 57 minutes in the last two months.

After Oct. 1, 2020, airport security checkpoints won't accept licenses without the Real ID security markings.

Click here for a look at more stories by Michael Finney and 7 On Your Side.

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