TOKYO ? Toyota Motor said Friday it plans to recall 270,000 vehicles worldwide because of an engine fault affecting cars including its luxury Lexus range and Crown sedans.

Toyota said a range of engines were defective due to faulty valve springs, which may lead to a worst case scenario of the engine stopping while the vehicle is in operation.

The company said that the defective 4.6-litre V8 and 3.5-litre V6 engines had been installed in eight top line models including some hybrids ? the Lexus GS350, GS450h, GS460, IS350, LS460, LS600h and LS600hL as well as Crown sedans. The world's largest automaker has been hit by a series of safety recalls and has pulled around 10 million vehicles worldwide since late last year.

Toyota's announcement comes as the company looks to improve its recall process following heavy criticism of the way it handled safety issues in the United States that have been blamed for more than 80 deaths.

Toyota paid a record $16.4-million fine to settle claims it had hidden gas pedal defects in the United States, and US officials have refused to rule out the possibility of more fines.