Toyota’s ‘Out-of-Control’ Recall
Whenever I hear the words “out of control” from a reporter or pundit in the media when referring to Toyota’s now infamous stuck-throttle problems, I want to scream. Obviously, I’ve had way too many chances to scream lately.
So let’s set the record straight about how a perfectly normal Toyota, or any other car, truck, or SUV, can accelerate wildly “out of control” with an even reasonably competent driver behind the wheel. Can’t happen. Period. End of story if the driver simply puts the gearshift in neutral (that “N” just above “D”) and safely steers over to the shoulder of the road. And if the engine races until you shut it off, so what? All you really care about is keeping you and your passengers safe.
So how come there are all those reported accidents that involve Toyotas that race wildly out of control like “Christine,” the 1958 Plymouth Fury in the Stephen King novel that was made into a horror film in the early 1980s? I can only assume that the self-victimized drivers have avoided neutral like a late-night comedian. Or they’re too panicked to make that simple selection with the gear lever. Or it could be that some drivers have never ventured into neutral and have no idea of its remarkable attributes as a non-gear.
When people hear about the tragic accident involving an off-duty California highway patrolman who lost control of a 2009 Lexus ES350, it’s natural to assume he was unable to intervene. After all, if a professional driver can’t control a modest sedan, what chance does the general population have?
We’ll never know what really happened in that tragedy. What we do learn from press reports is that the same Lexus, a loaner from a local dealer, apparently suffered “pedal entrapment” from an improper floor mat (one for a Lexus SUV) that had been reported by a previous customer. That driver, Frank Bernard, discovered the defect when he accelerated onto a highway — and the Lexus “kept accelerating on its own” after he lifted his right foot.
Bernard attempted to free the throttle pedal, then tried to turn off the engine with the “start/stop” button, all while slowing the car with the brakes. Then he shifted the lever to neutral and proceeded to a safe stop while the engine made an annoying “whining, racing sound,” but was otherwise no longer involved in any acceleration or runaway drama.
The teachable lesson from this and other misfortunes that are the results of “unintended acceleration” events is simply to pick neutral first. Don’t worry about ignition key switches or start/stop buttons. And about those brakes — they out-power the engine in a big way, so even before you push the shift lever into neutral, they’ll slow the vehicle. Think of Arnold Schwarzenegger-sized brakes arm-wrestling a Danny DeVito-sized engine — it’s no contest.
Have Mr. Toyoda travel by tramp steamer with a Camry from the Toyota City headquarters in Japan to California, then drive to D.C. Its ends the right message
Better not since Mr Toyoda is used to driving left side of the road so there is a significant risk he has an accident, even with an americanized Toyota.
Still driving my ’09 Matrix, and loving it! The fact of the matter is, a re-called Toyota is still a better automobile than any American-made piece of junk. Toyota reached the top of the auto world by building the best cars for the past 20+ years, while the Big 3 were pushing poorly designed gas hogs on the American public.
Brian,
Obviously your suggestions are correct regarding how to deal with this issue. However, when anyone, myself included, is confronted with this fearfull situation there is a great chance that panic will set in, thus rendering rational behavior moot. In certain situations the unfortunate driver will not have the time or space to regain their senses. I suspect that is the greater concern regarding the recall. But as you said, Toyota has not handled this very well, to their financial detriment.
Of course, the fact that anyone should be able to correct from the sudden acceleration doesn’t change the fact that it shouldn’t be happening at all. I don’t accept a computer manufacturer saying that it’s easy to recover from a crash. I certainly wouldn’t trust the safety of my daughter to a failing vehicle on the reasoning that I can just steer off the road.
Good article, but I’m not sure what good using logic and common sense is going to do you when fighting with the federal government. They don’t speak those languages.
Most drivers have never had to shift gears. Their gear shift levers are simply a forward/back selector with extra letters and numbers. In 25 years, I don’t know if I’ve ever shifted into neutral intentionally or that I’d think to do so should the engine accelerate on it’s own.
Perhaps it has more to do with government owned GM and Chrysler than a stickey gas peddle. What better way to bring a competitor down a notch than to have the Secretary of Transportation say in a congressional hearing that he believes the “safest” option is to stop driving your Toyota.
Oh, and I’d check out those Prius breaks too!!!
We are Venezuela in the making!
The ignorance and incompetance of the average driver is mind numbing. One only has to ply the average highway during an average rush hour to see numberous examples (and to take one’s life into one’s own hands!). To expect Mr. or Mrs. Average Driving Moron to react appropriately in the case of a minor thing like a stuck gas pedal is, apparently, asking way too much. Let’s all lawyer up instead! I too scream at the ignorant babble I hear coming from the media, I try not to listen too often.
Brian, I suggest you read the accident report on the Lexus crash. For one thing, the brakes were severely burned in the attempt to stop the car. Asking the brakes to stop a 2+ ton car from high speed while also trying to absorb the energy of 200+ HP from a runaway engine is expecting them to do way more than they were designed to do. In addition, both the victim CHP driver and your levelheaded Bernard were unable to turn the engine off! Few drivers are going to have the presence of mind to hold the still-unfamiliar (after a century of keyed ignitions) start/stop push-button in for a full 3 seconds while in a panic. The dual mode transmissions are also novel. As I understand it, when in manual mode, the “Neutral” position is the “Downshift” position. Bernard figured that out. Good for him. The victim driver didn’t. However, finding “Neutral” should be a no-brainer!
Finally, as I understand it, Bernard was accelerating onto a nice highway, while the victim was contending with a terrifying situation on a mountain road. Also, it is unknown at what speed the respective drivers discovered the problem. That alone could account for the different outcomes.
To sum up, I find this a very disappointing article. I’m not an automotive writer, but I’ve driven enough mountain roads to have experienced brake fade. I have far less faith in brakes than you do.
Mr. Douglas:
The issue is not whether a driver can shift into neutral to prevent a run away. The problem originates with poor software engineering. German software protocols prevent run away acceleration by having rules that drop fuel intake to idle levels whenever the brake or clutch is depressed so if an ECU or mechanical problem causes unintended acceleration you can brake to a stop. This problem has been known for years and it is only Toyota’s negligence that this simple safety protocol was not implemented.
“So let’s set the record straight about how a perfectly normal Toyota, or any other car, truck, or SUV, can accelerate wildly “out of control” with an even reasonably competent driver behind the wheel. Can’t happen. Period. End of story if the driver simply puts the gearshift in neutral (that “N” just above “D”) and safely steers over to the shoulder of the road. And if the engine races until you shut it off, so what? All you really care about is keeping you and your passengers safe.”
About feakin’ time somebody said that.
Is the toughened stance an indication that what is good for GM is good for the Obama adminstration?
Don’t know how true but I heard that the fatal accident involving the late model Lexus loaner had some circumstances that have not been widely reported. Specifically, when the car is in motion there is a 5 second delay between the time you move the shifter to neutral and the when it actually takes effect. A similar delay also applies to the start/stop button. The engine will not turn off until the button has been held in for 3 to 5 seconds when the car is moving. If true, I can easily understand how even an experienced police officer might have trouble controlling the vehicle, especially a totally unfamiliar vehicle.
I’m sure that everyone whose car is accelerating wildly out-of-control is thinking clearly enough to quickly put their car and neutral and turn off the road.
If it happens, they’re likely trying to slam on the brake.
I’m sorry, but your post is really a pretty clear attempt to cover for Toyota’s inexcusable lapse of quality control. All it’s going to take is a few interviews with some frail grandmas who use their Toyotas to take the grandchildren to school to convince the public of the true severity of the problem…
You are correct that a racing engine can be stopped by putting it in neutral and safely coasting to the side of the road.
However, you forget one important thing, that is on a dry road.
If you have a car and you are driving down a road in winter and you attempt to slow down, not knowing that your accelerator will stick/race (due to floor mat or whatever problem) and it happens that there is black ice, you can easily careen off the road with no time to pop a gear in neutral. The car doesn’t go in the usual skid. I know because it happened to me. As the rear skidded the front wheels got traction and took off like a shot across traffic into trees due to a sticking accelerator – foot was completely off the accelerator.
I imagine that a similar thing could happen if one is hydroplaning.
And by the way – I didn’t sue or anything. Accidents happen and insurance covered it all.
Dude, I have a 2005 toyota that has accelerated all by itself twice in the last year for about two seconds each time. No floor mats. Fortunately, it happend on open roads. If this happend at a stop, there is no time to shift it into neutral before the crash unless you have spiderman reflexes. The car is now parked. I am terrified to drive it. Dealer says that nothing is wrong. I personally think it is the electronic throttle (I am an electrical engineer). Interestingly, I tried to get the part (+$600) and am told they are on back order from the factory and they do not know when they will have any. Gee, I wonder why that would be? Toyota says there is no electronic problem. Lest you think I am a “buy American” moron. I own 3 other Toyotas (2001′s) and a Honda and love them. Toyota made a mistake with the new design and can’t afford a 1000 bucks for each car since 2002. The lawyers will get to the bottom of it.
1. Floor mats can cover an accelerator pedal and cause it to stick
2. Floor mats wear out, get holes, bunch up, creep forward
3. Floor mats are replaced with non-OEM floor mats
4. No one can guarantee that all floor mats in all states of repair won’t cover any accelerator pedal
5. Drivers MUST be responsible for recovering from said situation WHEN it happens
Spot. On.
That turns out not to be the case. Years ago a pin sheared off the accelerator in an old Ford I was driving and it suddenly accelerated to the max. I was able to stop the car by slamming on the brakes and putting it in neutral, but there were several WTF moments before I figured out what was going on. I was lucky there was nobody directly in front of me.
If the engine is racing, doesn’t engine vacuum decrease? Wouldn’t this cause a loss of braking assistance from a vacuum-operated brake booster? Folks like my Mom would concentrate on screaming and wildly gesticulating rather than calmly selecting neutral and holding her foot on the brake pedal rather than stabbing it and depleting any residual boost.
Automotive expert, indeed.
Another good reason to buy a car with a manual transmission. Clutch in, engine disengaged.
In my many cars over the years, they have all had mechanical throttle linkage. I do know the resume speed is tied to cruisecontrol and will pull the accelerator down. No one mentions cruise control or it’s linkage in any posts. Yes one can hit neutral and cut off power to the transmission and turn off the ignition.
Obama is pushing for trains so driving impaired folks have an alternative.
In respect for Toyota. They may be working a fix for a problem that is imagined.
1. As I understand it, the power brakes do not work in Toyotas if the car is fully accelerating — there is no vacuum or something.
2. The gear shift is not the straight forward-back thing but one of those side-to-side meandering things with lots of little pockets and a Tiptronic section. Not all that clear WHERE neutral is unless you take your eyes off the road to find it. And certainly not clear in a rental car that you are not used to.
3. The on-off button is useless until you remember that you have to HOLD it in for 3 seconds.
So, it takes more than average competence to find the correct solution, when of the “obvious” alternatives, only one works, and it is the one that people never normally use.
Arrogant much?
I’m reminded of the “A times B times C equals X” dialogue from “Fight Club”.
Shouldn’t the federal government have to recuse itself from regulating Toyota because of the glaring conflict of interest? Regulators can make a mountain out of a mole hill any time they choose and, what a coincicdence, they have done just that precisely when Government Motors was about to fail, again, even with our tax dollars propping them up. My next car will be a Toyota or Lexus. We have to fight these gangsters.
Help, If the dealer says that there’s nothing wrong with your car and you are scared to drive it, why not sell it? It might be an expensive alternative, but in the long run a safer one.
“Still driving my ‘09 Matrix, and loving it! The fact of the matter is, a re-called Toyota is still a better automobile than any American-made piece of junk.”
ROFL. No, it isn’t.
I read that there are only 100 documented instances of this accelerator sticking problem. How many million Toyota vehicles are driving around in this country? I own a Volkswagen and have never owned a car that has had more recalls than this one. I’m looking to replace it – and will definitely look at Toyotas. I think a lot of this is Obama trying to destroy Toyota, since during his “Cash for Clunkers” program more people traded in their clunkers and bought Toyotas than any other car.
6. Joe:
I think you’ve inadvertently made the case for Americans to stop catering to idiots. Case in point, Utah (I live there) has an open book driving test. Now, I’ve lived and driven in alooot of states and Utards are by far the biggest bunch of dumbass drivers I’ve ever shared the road with. Worse than Californians even.
What you’ve just said immediately translated (for me) into the headline we’ve all seen in one form or another. “Driver loses control of (whatever model car), veers into oncoming traffic and kills family of four.” I dunno, it just seems like we shouldn’t cater to the mentally inadequate that cant figure out neutral or that coffee, by definition, is likely going to be hot.
You just cant fix stupid.
Having a stuck accellerator pedal is a surreal experience, for anyone who has actually experienced it. Shifting into neutral and getting off the road are all good advice, except for the part where your brain is still trying to process the completely unexpected, which is having your foot off the gas while the car continues to gain speed. The next instinct is to try and bring the vehicle down to a controlled speed with the brakes, as opposed to a full stop (which may not even be an obvious or safe response in the middle of moving traffic). Carry that on for very long under heavy accelleration, and they will rapidly overheat and become useless.
Given how overpowered most modern vehicles are, the potential for a panic attack, an incorrect response to the situation, and subsequent serious accident, are very real. Some of the floormat issue does relate to consumer error (logically, the more things you place on the driver’s floor, the more opportunities there are for something to wedge in a bad place) but the more recent recall for the faulty pedal mechanism is very clearly Toyota’s fault. The calculus of how many times it has happened, does not make it acceptable that it can happen at all, certainly not on a late model vehicle.
Anyone seen the latest (March) issue of Car and Driver?
They tested the effectiveness of the brakes to stop a car with a throttle stuck wide open. They tested 3 wildly different vehicles: A V6 Toyota Camry, an Infiniti G35 (due to different programing that Nissan uses as opposed to Toyota), and a supercharged tuner Mustang (to test the idea that an EXTREMELY powerful heavy car can perhaps overpower the brakes).
For each vehicle, they performed 4 brake tests: normal braking from 70mph to a stop and from 100mph to a stop to establish a baseline; then braking from 70 and 100 to a stop with the throttle held wide open. All tests done in the dry.
In EACH case (even with the extremely powerful blown Mustang) the brakes were more than adequate to stop the car from 70 to 0. I don’t recall any discussion of the effect of a lack of vacuum affecting brake performance when the throttle was held wide open.
Even when stopping from 100 mph, the brakes were able to overcome the open throttles in the Camry and G35, although obviously the distances were extended by perhaps 20%. The Mustang however had an extremely long stop (over 900′ from 100mph if I recall) which was substantially longer than a stop without the throttle held open.
They did however note two items where they felt Nissan had a distinct advantage over Toyota:
First, the programming of the electronic throttle of the Nissan cuts the fuel delivery off when the brakes are applied. This could be seen in the brake tests where the Nissan stopping distances with the ‘stuck throttle’ were barely longer than under normal braking. Of course, if a stuck throttle occurs due to a glitch in the electronics, who’s to say if this feature would still work. Car and Driver didn’t muck about with the electronics in the G35 to find out.
Second, the pushbutton ignition switch in the Nissan will cut the engine off after being held for only a little over 2 seconds versus over 3 seconds in the Toyota. Also, in the Toyota, if the driver is madly STABBING at the button instead of holding it in, it will NOT cut off at all. In the Nissan, if you stab the button quickly 3 times (like someone may do who is panicking), the Nissan will shut off.
Car and Driver hinted that Toyota may be QUICKLY moving to adopt both of these strategies in their cars.
I wrote about my experience on my blog a few days ago … I was 19 or 20 and had a (newly paid off) 87 or 88 Toyota Corolla (it’s been 10 years…I can’t remember what I did yesterday!).
I’m driving to work on a back road/residential area and all of a sudden the car keeps speeding up even as I’m trying to slow down using the brake. I was TERRIFIED…being a fairly young and inexperienced driver. Even though I tend to completely freeze up and panic in emergencies, I managed to figure out to shift into N and turn the car off.
It happened two more times while I was trying to get to work and that night I went to the Toyota dealership and bought a new (used) car. I told them what had happened and they were NOT surprised!!!!!!!
This is not a new issue (again, this was 87/88 Corolla!) and the dealership basically said that they had seen it happen in several of their Toyotas.
I drive a Rav4 today and I love it. It’s an 04 and I hope that it doesn’t get pulled into the recall. I’m still driving it and hopefully I won’t freeze up if the accelerator ever sticks.
The government attacking competitors of its car company. Happy with my recently purchased toyota. The idea of buying an american car from a bankrupt or government operated car company is ridiculous.
Surely in this day and age, most literate readers know to ignore media and government alarmism. It always turns out to be wrong in the fullness of time.
Toyota is doing damage control, primarily because the audio on this car crash is so horrifying, so vivid, they figure they will lose that case no matter what.
Listen: http://www.cardealerreviews.org/?p=247148
I worked for Toyota for a long time and they hide problems and try to blame customers for the problems, they wait until they are forced to do a recall. Domestic companies do the same thing, wait until they are forced to do a recall. Toyota had a problem with their V6 engines for years, engines would sieze because of oil flow and it was an engineering problem but they tried for years to blame the customers. They would tell the customers that they didn’t change the oil enough or they didn’t use Toyota oil and filters, it was all BS. Then after years they did a “silent” recall, this kind of a recall is done with the Japanese vehicles more often then the domestics. Honda had a silent recall on transmissions in the Odyssey for years and wouldn’t tell the custmomer just repace the transmission.
CNN, among others, is running the Toyota recall story into the ground. This is sheer political maneuvering to bring down Toyota in the hopes that it will benefit Government Motors (i.e., save them from their inevitable fall). Okay, that’s a conspiracy theory, but at this point I’d believe anything about this government.
There is a fix for this problem,bring back simple cars.
I might help here,but I won’t…no one would listen.
You just drive bad,and cars today re-enforce bad driving habits.
Cars are bad enough,but large trucks are going the same way with
automatic transmissions and computer controls etc…
A four ton car makes a wreck, an forty ton truck is a disaster.
Maybe some people should not be behind the wheel?
After 25 years of driving trucks, I’m going back into the auto repair business.
If you could see kids and parents,the kids have the same bad driving habits as
their elders,if parenting is tough you expect them to teach their kids to drive?
To me the point would be that they knew there was a problem.
Several people have died as a result. I would never drive a toyota again. A young driver in one of these cars would be a disaster.
I also agree that General Motors will benefit from the constant grating..We would also…NEVER …NEVER…buy GM…did I say NEVER??!! NEVER!!
after the bailout crap, NEVER!!!
My 70-year-old Aunt died from a runaway Camry (no floor mats)driving down a residential street here in the SF Bay Area. The car got up to over 60 MPH and bounced off several parked cars. To suggest that she have the presence of mind to shift into N is ridiculous. Obviously you have never been in an accident, Brian. It is far easier to type words on a keyboard than to react almost instantaneously to an unexpected and frightening change in the behavior of your car, especially when it is bouncing off parked cars. If I owned a Toyota, I would only be driving it straight to the dealer. Toyota owners who ignore the recall are just asking to be removed from the gene pool.
Cars are bad enough,but large trucks are going the same way with
automatic transmissions and computer controls etc
I hear you loud and clear. I can’t stand automatic transmissions: they take too much gas. A vehicle with manual transmission takes less and is easier to drive over hilltops. If more Americans had considered that years ago, they would’ve saved tons of money on gas, and local oil reserves wouldn’t be used up so soon.
The next time you buy a car – especially a big car – ask your dealer to get you one with manual transmission. I do hope Peugeot/Citroen will come back to sell in the US, as their cars get pretty good mileage, ditto their trucks and vans.
Yes the answer is easy and obvious if you are sitting at the keyboard. We also have the advantage to know what the exact problem is. It is not so obvious when it is happening to you.
Then there is the whole time and distance problem. Let’s see at 100 mph that 147 fps, even just 60 mph is 88 fps. Typical reaction times are .25 sec.
First you have to notice that there is a problem, then you are going to try something obvious like stamping on it, then wait for that not to work, you’re going even faster now.
Every time you make a decision you are moving 40-80 feet down the street, time is a big factor. There are often only 1000 feet between streets.
You would think Drivers Ed would teach about dealing with crazy situations, but they never do.
DMiller:
The instinctive thing for any person, when confronted by a case of runaway acceleration, is to hit the brakes. I personally think that very few people will be thinking to shift to neutral if, for whatever reason, their attempt to stop the car with the brakes is unsuccessful.
Car and Driver magazine just released (in the current March 2010 issue) the results of a test in which they tested the effectiveness of the brakes to stop a Camry with the throttle held wide open. The brakes had NO problem stopping the car from a speed of 70 mph even while the throttle was held wide open.
I think it reasonable to assume that your Aunt attempted to slow down by hitting the brakes prior to her crash.
If your Aunt’s Camry got UP TO 60 mph, on a residential street, and there were no floor mats to interfere with the pedal operation, I think we can draw the following conclusions:
1) there was an electronic and/or mechanical issue which caused BOTH the runaway throttle AND the failure of the brake system simultaneously in that Camry, or….
2) there was a biological issue which caused BOTH the runaway throttle AND the ‘failure’ of the brake system simultaneously in that Camry.
I’m not saying that Toyota doesn’t have an issue with their vehicles – I’ve read too many accounts of people having the issue WHO SAFELY BROUGHT THEIR VEHICLE TO A STOP WITH THE BRAKES to believe that all accounts are simply driver error. However, when I read accounts of runaway vehicles (Toyota or otherwise) in which the brakes ALSO mysteriously seem to have no effect (and these accounts usually involve either elderly or very young drivers), it makes me suspect driver error.
When one participates in any activity, be it walking to mountain climbing, there are certain risks involved. The most disturbing aspect of this entire issue is that of our society’s penchant for finding a “responsible party” to sue, hitting the jackpot and living happily ever after without the necessity of working. This is an evolved behavior that can be attributed directly to trial lawyers.
If, in fact, Toyota acted with malice or gross negligence they should be punished. But, reason should apply.
DMiller, if someone doesn’t have the presence of mind to shift into N, then that person most certainly doesn’t have the presence of mind to negotiate public streets filled with other moving vehicles, pedestrians, and complex intersections with lights. A person like that should never have been on the road in the first place, being in charge of a potentially deadly moving 2000 lb vehicle.
Remember Barako owns GM & Chrysler. Why would he cater to Toyota? If that is hard to believe,I can think of many theory’s that did come true with this administration.
Maybe I’m just overthinking it, but I’ve planned for that scenario and “shift into neutral” wasn’t the first thing to pop into my head. My instinct would be to pull the emergency break, lower the windows to increase drag, and use the horn to warn other drivers.
I think every electronic throttle car should have a big red dome switch on the dash that cuts the ignition (or power to fuel pump in diesels). These are common in industrial equipment for emergency shut offs. Just slap the switch and power is instantly cut off.
Better yet,
……stay out of Toyotas.
So many want to argue this or that blahblahblah. Toyota had a problem, they denied it, covered it up, people died. End of story.
I just want to check and see if I have all the required information;
1. toyota is having a problem with the accelerator.
2. the government, who coincidentally owns gm and chrysler, advises it’s citizens NOT to drive toyota’s.
3. the democratic congress decides to investigate toyota
4. toyota, coincidentally, uses non-union labor
5. other auto manufacturers such as ford, who are having with premature deployment of airbags on the F-150, are not investigated or sanctioned.
6. did I mention that toyota uses non-union labor???
7. The beat goes on as Obambi also advises the citizens what to watch and what not to watch on the TV, and where they should go to party. That would be NOT LAS VEGAS.
Non Union. The magic words…Non Union…and obviously Obama people will do everything they can do to destroy these people. 50 you are right.
Obama thinks they must now be destroyed…not because of any problems, but they are non union!!
however, toyota was also very wrong.
While there is definitely a problem here, I’m another one who believes that the government-media complex is pushing this story as hard as it can in the interest of saving the union jobs at Government Motors.
Heh, I wonder how people would handle driving an older vehicle? My first car was a 1982 Buick Regal, brown primer colored and a good 1/4 of the body was Bondo. The motor mount broke and so the engine developed this habit of lurching out of the engine bay and up against the hood, which happened to pull the accelerator to the floor, which made it lurch further…would have to cut off the engine and restart it. My dad wrapped a chain around the engine block to hold it down, but the fan had already eaten right through the insulation under the hood (and why don’t they use that anymore these days? Can’t remember the last time I saw anything other than painted metal.)
The whole thing is so clearly Obama’s fault. Throw the bum out.
But apart from that, being a centrist, I obviously know what neutral is and sometimes use it to coast down hills and save a few rpm’s and a little gas consumption. My other car has a clutch.
If you want to convince me that a number of people (regardless of political persuasion) are clueless about many things in relation to driving or to life, you won’t have to try very hard, but one would hope that now that the problem has been well-publicized, that people driving Toyotas, and anyone, for that matter, are now thinking: 1 brake, 2 neutral 3 (maybe) turn off ignition. (You lose your power steering once the engine is off, at least in my old Buick Roadmaster.)
My neice, who seems to be an intelligent person called someone with her cell phone to tell them that her accelerator had stuck (in a Volvo) on the interstate and that she was worried about making a curve/exit combination ahead of her. How the hell she would not have thought of going into neutral etc. is beyond me, but obviously some of the BASICS of what propels us and what stops us in our vehicles is completely alien to a certain subset of the population.
If said situation helps Ford, GM, Nissan etc, so it goes. I don’t think that conspiracy theories make a whole lot of sense in this case, even if a few people here may think that tonight’s sunset is a conspiracy by the Obama administration to deprive us of heat and light.
GM has been putting bad brakes on on trucks for years. I own an 03 1/2 ton and was experiencing severe issues with the antilock kicking in unexpectedly and for no aparrent reason greatly increasing stopping distances. This would happen on warm days on dry pavement. A friend had an 01 1/2 ton. Exact same problem different model. Why was this not corrected during the redesign? New for my model were rear disc brakes using a innefective, defective single piston caliper from the Astro van. Basically they took a really bad dangerous system and made it worse. I recieved no warranty/recall work from GM, and finally on the advice of a GM mecanic disabled the antilock system myself by unhooking one of the sensor wires. Yeah, the ABS light is on all the time now, but it sure beats rolling out into the path of a semi at some busy intersection. Recently I also replaced the rear calipers myself. Watching the fed and the media chastise Toyota makes me sick.
Two words: “Manual transmission.”
Does it take a bit more training? Yes. But once you get used to it, YOU are in, as they say, the driver’s seat. Your engine can’t take you ten yards you don’t want it to. If it tries any monkey business, your left foot hits the clutch and your right, the brake. Disregarding any roar from under the hood, you steer out of traffic, onto the shoulder. Then flip the ignition key to “off”. Without battery power to light up your spark plugs, you now have The Little Engine That Couldn’t.
Plus one more benefit of a manual: If, for any reason, the engine stops abruptly while you’re on the road, here’s what to do. Coast to the shoulder. If you haven’t quite made it, hit the starter button (or switch) while you’re still in gear. That’ll engage the starter, which will at the very least, drag you the last few feet, and safely out of traffic.
I know this sounds out of character for a resident left-wing moonbat, but I actually have fond thoughts for toyota for doing this recall. It shows that they’re taking a problem seriously and they’re prepared to take what’s coming to them to get it fixed. The recall wasn’t forced on them – they chose to do it. Yes, it was a screwup in testing, it shouldn’t have happened, all of that – but good on them. Hats off. I’m considering buying a bunch of toyota shares, too – because they’ve got to be a good buy right now. THIS is what keeps us safe – companies willing to face the music when they get it wrong.
We’re pretty spoiled these days for cars. Cars are just so good now that when something like this happens it’s a big shock. You don’t have to go too far back in time to find cars which were known for just catching fire (no names – and no, extremely rapid rusting does not count as “on fire”). A sticky accelerator is small beer.
We had an incident here in oz (NOT canada) recently, which saw a guy in an SUV (ford discovery, I think) who did the whole “hello, emergency, my car’s run away with me and I can’t stop it” routine. I have my doubts about the story – but he really did end up with a police escort clearing a freeway until he could get it stopped. My eyebrows are sort of permanently raised when it comes to these stories – but apparently he couldn’t turn off the engine, couldn’t get it out of gear, and couldn’t apply enough force to the pedal to stop the car. I remain very skeptical. I’m dying to find out the real story.
Loki 1:
I absolutely agree. I don’t understand why someone would willingly give away so much control over what the car does. I actually LIKE having to change gears – because it means the car will always be in exactly the gear I want it to be in, ahead of time, and it will stay there until I decide otherwise. With an auto, you’re forever waiting for the car to figure out what you’re wanting to do – it’s always late, and it’s often wrong. And what do you get? Worse fuel consumption and worse performance. Oh, yay.
But one exception – highway travel. I drove a CVT car cross-country for about 16 hours last year (and in a hurry, too – my christmas commute to the family interstate), and it was brilliant. Horrible around town, but on the highway with cruise control it was genuinely fantastic.
26. TL:
“Shouldn’t the federal government have to recuse itself from regulating Toyota because of the glaring conflict of interest? Regulators can make a mountain out of a mole hill any time they choose and, what a coincicdence, they have done just that precisely when Government Motors was about to fail, again, even with our tax dollars propping them up.”
I remember the same exact “problem” back in the late ’80′s [IIRC] with the Audi, which was accused of unexpected, random acceleration.
After monumental loss of sales, it was finally determined that in each and every case, it was the driver’s fault.
So far there has been no proof that Toyota has a design problem. No proof at all. At this point it is pure speculation.
Until proof is provided, I think the very few cases of unexpected acceleration are driver error. Naturally, people will blame anyone but themselves.
Toyota is a top quality company. And the fact that the GOVERNMENT owns a big piece of GM means they have a vested interest in demonizing Toyota.
So who to believe? Toyota? Or the Obama Administration?
You decide.
I have a neighbor who bought a lexus a couple years back, I am a retired machanic and we were talking, he was upset his car burns a quart of oil every 1000 miles he took it to the dealer and was told that is normal. I told it is not any car burns that much oil is poor machined or valve guilds, bad rings not seated or not bored out right since it was the not leaking oil the seals and gaskets were good.He look at my buick and ask how I liked it, it was close to 10000.00 on it I told him I burn less then a quater of a quart evert 3500 when I oil change oil, no major problems except general maintance I do all myself.The following week he pulled in his driveway with a new buick says he loved it and it is so quite no road noise. I told old machanics know what are good cars after pulling wrenches all your life.Also had a freind who had a toyota and his engine was dammaged toyota said it was jelled I check around what they mean, in my day we called it sludge from oil if you do not oil change it very often instead of doing it every 3 to 4 thousand miles a look at the set on the EGR system was not a good engeering breathing system. He paid about three thousand for a new engine I really think he was had. he showed me all the times he had it oil changed it, but toyota said it was his fault.
Fascinating that people are complaining about driver ignorance while apparently being unaware of the drive-by-wire nature of Toyota transmissions. The day when putting the lever in Neutral guaranteed that you’d put the car in Neutral is long gone.