Toyota Will Pay $1.6 Billion on Acceleration Claims

A federal judge in California has approved a $1.6 billion agreement to settle economic claims in a class-action lawsuit about lost resale values for Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles involved in sudden-acceleration recalls.

The lawsuit was on behalf of Toyota, Lexus and Scion owners who claimed that recalls in 2009-2010 hurt the resale value of their vehicles. Toyota recalled more than 10 million cars and trucks worldwide during that period to fix loose floor mats and sticky accelerator pedals that could cause unintended acceleration.

The final settlement includes $227 million for attorney's fees and $530 million to compensate Toyota customers who sold their vehicles between September 2009 and the end of 2010. The court says customer payments will range from $125 to $10,000 each.

Toyota will spend another $875 million on auto safety research and retrofitting brake override systems in about 4.8 million of its vehicles. The devices cut engine power if the accelerator and brake pedals are pressed simultaneously.

The company still faces numerous state and federal lawsuits claiming wrongful death or personal injury attributed to unintended acceleration.