Akio Toyoda, the head of Toyota Motor Corp., apologized for the death of an American family in a crash that led the company to recall 3.8 million cars in the US to take out floor mats.

It should be noted here that floor mat in one of the Japanese automaker's vehicles is suspected as the cause of the fatal California mishap. These floor mats in the Toyota vehicles may cause the accelerator to get stuck.

President Akio Toyoda said, "Four precious lives have been lost. I offer my deepest condolences."

Toyota has urged the owners of 3.8 million Toyota vehicles to remove driver side mats. Loose or incorrect mats could slide out of position and cover pedals.

Toyota's has been suffering huge losses which could touch $5-billion mark this year.

Toyota expects to sell around 7.3 million vehicles this year, down from 8.97 million during the previous year.

But, Toyota still possesses over $20 billion in cash to revitalize itself.