WASHINGTON - Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says he misspoke when he told the owners of more than 2 million recalled vehicles to stop driving and bring them to a dealer -- a comment that sparked fears among owners and drove down Toyota's stock, reported The Detroit News.

"My advice is if anybody owns one of these vehicles, stop driving it, and take it to a Toyota dealer," LaHood said today at a House hearing.

This afternoon, LaHood said he directed that statement to drivers who have experienced problems with sticky pedals -- a condition that Toyota says is extremely rare.

"If you are in doubt, take it to a dealer," LaHood said. "What I said in (the House hearing) was obviously a misstatement."

Toyota's U.S. sales arm issued a statement saying the company appreciated LaHood's "clarification of his remarks today about Toyota's recall" for sticking accelerator pedals.

The White House defended LaHood and denied that the U.S. government's ownership stake in General Motors Co. had a role in the government's hard line with Toyota.