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Well, it’s a start.

Word out of Washington early this morning is that Toyota will agree today to pay a record $16.4 million fine to the federal Department of Transportation over its slow response to complaints about those sticky pedals. The Japanese auto giant won’t acknowledge guilt in the paperwork but government officials are telling reporters that Toyota’s decision to accept the maximum fine is about as close to an admission as you can get, and that it is “accepting responsibility” for delays in responding to safety issues.

Toyota also reportedly is under separate investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The agreement, if signed, is separate from the outstanding legal claims by consumers who bought the faulty cars — or by surviving family members of those allegedly killed in related crashes. Those cases, as we’ve reported, are going to be handled in U.S. district court in Santa Ana, in Orange County.

The New York Times reports an interesting aspect of the federal fine structure. There’s a cap. And it may have saved Toyota from a massive bill. From the story:

The fine is the maximum amount allowed by law. If not for that cap, Toyota could have been ordered to pay $13.8 billion instead — $6,000 for each of 2.3 million vehicles sold with defective pedals — the agency’s chief counsel told the company in a letter this month. The letter also said the agency was considering a second $16.4 million fine against Toyota, based on evidence suggesting the pedals might have had two separate defects.

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