Toyota has been pulled up by the ACCC for making false claims about the 'leather' interior of some car models, which were partially made from faux leather.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims said in a statement the watchdog was concerned some consumers were being mislead by Toyota's claims.
“If consumers are prepared to pay a premium to have quality finishes for their car interiors, they are entitled to get what they paid for,” he said.
The ACCC said it was concerned Toyota dealers were also misrepresenting the vehicles, with customers lead to believe that 'leather accents' meant the entire upholstery was made of leather.
The vehicles under investigation were sold between 2005 and 2009, and include the Aurion, Camry, Kluger, and Prado models.
In total around 98,500 vehicles are impacted.
In a statement Toyota acknowledged claims by the ACCC and said it was sorry if consumers had been mislead.
“In most cases everything that people sit on or touch is genuine leather in the affected vehicle models,” it said.
“The areas where synthetic material is used are those that are more prone to wear and tear, such as the back of the seat and door trim. This helps make the areas easier to clean and wear more consistently.”
Toyota has offered affected customers $200 off the purchase price of a new vehicle, and has agreed to advertise leather interiors only when the upholstery is 100 per cent leather.
In cases where there is a mix of faux and real leather the terms 'leather accents' or 'leather accented' must be used.