There’s another big automotive recall today, and again it involves Toyota. And this one involves one of its most advanced models.

This is another setback for the largest automaker in Japan, and depending on the sales month, sometimes the largest in the world. And this one is for one of Toyota’s marquee cars, the Prius.

The Toyota recall worldwide totals 2.8-million vehicles.

The problem is steering and cooling. Several cars are involved worldwide, but in America it is the Prius.

“This was a heat treatment issue of an intermediate steering shaft,” says Brian Lyons of Toyota. “If you turn up against the stops for the left or up against the stops for the right, and you do that frequently and you do that forcefully, it wears the splines on the intermediate shaft. So athe complain that we saw from customers was noise.

The steering part in question comes from one of the hundreds of suppliers for Toyota. And in America, the problem will be easy to find.

“We have two different suppliers, so we’re looking for a part form a particular supplier,” Lyons told us.

But within that big 670,000 car recall, roughly half will have another problem checked.

The electric water pump can blow a fuse and that will leave you stranded by the side of the road.

It’s like the temperature warning light coming on in a regular car, except in the Prius, the system simply shuts down. And you call a tow truck.

There have been no accidents with either problem, but after the largest Toyota recall ever, 7.4-million  vehicles worldwide just last month, and 12.4 recalled for unintended acceleration between 2009-2011, this is the last thing Toyota needs.

Connected to the acceleration recall, Toyota now has to pay $25-million in lawsuits by shareholders. That settlement was announced today as well.

This comes as sales are on the rise, and Toyota was headed toward reclaiming number status this year. 

Owners, as usual, will get a letter from Toyota and then will make an appointment with their dealer.

If the water pump has to be replaced, it’s about a 2-hour job.