Millions in Honda recall

An international recall of 2.3 million Honda cars suspected of having a faulty electrical switch will include 6600 in New Zealand.

The company announced the recall yesterday following reports a circuit board beneath the driver's side electric window switch on some Honda Jazz models could be damaged by a large amount of liquid.

Honda NZ managing director Graham Seymour told NZPA a drink spilled in that area had the potential to cause melting, and in three instances had sparked fires.

He said exposure to rain would not be sufficient to cause issues and assured owners they were safe to keep using their cars normally.

The recall will involve Honda Jazz models from 2002-2003 and 2006-2008 (excluding the current model) which used the circuit board supplied by one of two Honda contractors.

Used Japanese imports were not affected.

Mr Seymour said owners would be notified by mail and could bring the car in to any Honda dealership for the ''relatively quick'' check.

''We've actually got very good systems of tracking individual cars so we'll be getting in touch with customers next week.''

The board will be checked for water damage and either replaced or covered.

Toyota this week also confirmed it would be recalling about 60 Avensis cars in New Zealand as part of a world wide recall involving millions of vehicles due to a faulty accelerator assembly which could cause sudden acceleration.

- NZPA