UnintendedAcceleration

Toyota will announce Friday that by September, it expects to have all of its North American plants back to their normal production levels. Then, it can begin attempting to recoup the U.S. market share it lost due to shortages related to the Japan earthquake and tsunami, as well as a slew of recalls.

The carmaker hoped findings from two federal studies would put to rest speculation about its electronics system as a source for unintended acceleration. But the results may not prove enough to give Toyota a leg up in its ongoing legal battles.

In an affirmation of Toyota's claims, an exhaustive 10-month federal investigation has found no evidence of an electronic source for sudden unintended acceleration in companpy's vehicles. Indeed, human error was cited as the cause in many cases.

Last year's massive recalls -- and the resulting legal fallout -- have given Toyota's reputation a beating, cutting into its sales. But the company can't blame all of its problems on the recalls. Analysts also point to another issue: A lack of compelling new models.

Toyota managed to hold onto the title of world's No. 1 automaker last year, despite numerous safety recalls that took a toll on its sales. Toyota sold 8.42 million vehicles worldwide in 2010, enough to barely edge out resurgent General Motors, which rang up sales of 8.39 million.

Automakers recalled more vehicles last year than in any of the last six years. And while Toyota Motors accounted for much of the growth, with problems including unintended acceleration and glitchy brakes, many other car manufacturers also saw their recalls increase.

Toyota plans to rev up its vehicle production in the U.S., despite November's 7.3% drop in U.S. sales. The automaker has hired the first of an expected 2,000 workers for a new Mississippi Corolla plant, and says it expects to boost overall capacity utilization significantly from last year's weak levels.

The beleaguered Japanese carmaker is sending notices to Sienna owners to warn them of brake-light switch brackets that are susceptible to damage and could lead to eventual loss of braking effectiveness. No accidents relating to the defect have been reported.

A U.S. District Court judge will not dismiss allegations against Toyota for problems related to sudden unintended acceleration in certain car models, as the automaker had hoped.

Honda Motor may be the subject of a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation because of possible acceleration problems with its Honda Accord Hybrid that may have caused a 2005 crash that killed one person.