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NHTSA should mandate the installation of one of these on the dash of every Toyota:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/andyi/172023975
Maybe it’s a Kamikaze virus under the hood?
“The brakes were definitely down to hardly any material” Neibert told reporters Tuesday.
I’d like to see a good close-up picture of those brake pads and rotors.
It is my experience that brakes will catch on fire before wearing signifcantly, in this situation. I’ve seen this happen on an x-GF’s car and semitrucks.
What I’m wondering, (and maybe it’s a question for No Agenda), is why are all the cases I hear of in the US? I’m not seeing anything in the UK press about cases in the UK or Europe.
Is it a US verion only problem or, (put’s on my No Agenda tin-foil hat) a scam in (and by) the US on Toyota?
# 16 Awake said:
c) Turn off car by holding down your igniton button for 3 seconds. Be prepared to lose steering and brakes.
Here’s the verbatim text from HIS LINK:
“_ If you’re unable to put the vehicle in neutral, turn off the engine. This will cut off power assist to the steering wheel and brakes, but as long as the key is in the ignition, you will still be able to steer and brake. If you have an engine start/stop button, press it firmly for three seconds to turn the engine off. Do not tap it. If you have a conventional key ignition, turn the ignition key to the ACC position. Do not remove the key from the ignition.”
It clearly says: “no power assist” but you still have steering and brakes. Why the hell do you specifically, misleadingly, say “Be prepared to lose steering and brakes” when that’s obviously not true, as per the source you quoted yourself. What is your agenda here?
My comment: Smells to me like this is either (a) an idiot that should lose his license, along with all other idiots that think that driving is an entitlement and not a privilege (like the woman in FL shaving while draving), (b) a plant by GM or other special interests to give Toyota more trouble or (c) someone who wants to get out of a car loan. Fishy, fishy…
P.S. BTW, cars come with a little thing called a “manual” for a reason, people should, you know… read it.
Off topic, but related to hybrids and electric cars: http://tinyurl.com/yfxefnv
‘Some interesting issues.
a) The computer in Toyotas is currently programmed to give priority to the accelerator over the brakes. Yes, the computer decides how hard the brakes will apply, regardless of how hard you push. They are changing that in future models. (DUH!)’
I’m not buying this BS at all. The computer will not control any aspects of the brakes. Only the ABS system. Brakes will remain mechanical just for this type of emergency\reason. There’s no way DOT, NHTSB, or the auto insurance industry in this country or any other would allow such a thing on the highway.
‘b) The computer in Toyotas will not allow you to shift into neutral if the accelerator is past a certain point to avoid damaging the engine by over-revving. They are officially changing that ‘policy’’
This is also BS. Over revving is controlled by killing the ignition temporarily, cutting fuel deliver to the injectors, or both. Never by selecting neutral. Again, the governing boards of auto safety would never allow this on the road.
‘c) If your vehicle is in gear, and you are moving above a few MPH, the computer will avoid turning off the engine to protect you from losing steering and brakes. Many cars do not even have a key, they just have a ‘press to start/stop button. The button is under control of the computer. If you have a ‘real’ key, the only way to override the computer is to physically remove the key, which LOCKS your steering wheel into it’s current position. Assuming you can even override the key removal lockout when the car is moving… what kingd of idiot would lock the steering wheel hard, knowing that there will be virtually no brakes available at the same time.’
Shutting off the motor is rarely a smart idea. Considering the brakes can easily stop the vehicle on their own if they are in good shape, of course. The biggest piece of safety equipment you can have in a car is a cool headed driver. Honestly, Toyota and alike have been making drive by wire vehicles for eons in Japan and Europe and for almost 10 years in the US. And we hear issues now? Shit happens for sure but ONLY from Toyota?
Dude needs to lose his license for being stupid. They should replace it with a bus pass.
He was told MULTIPLE times by law enforcement and the police dispatcher to put the car in neutral and he “failed to respond.” Yet he supposedly leaned down in that tiny tin can and pulled up on the accelerator?
Dweeb. Sorry. No sympathy. This is basic stuff you learn in driver’s ed. He apparently missed class that day.
I’m broke too so I think I’ll devise a way to sue Toyota myself 😀
Could that be just another publicity stunt, like that stupid story of a boy in the baloon…
Now everybody with a Toyota is allowed to have some fun on the road.
When stopped by a police:
-Oh, sorry officer my accelerator got stuck…
That specific car should be properly inspected.
The Prius can go up to 95 MPH???
Audi (accelerate under demonic influence) – big publicity following TV special reports, lots of law suits, NHTSA couldn’t find anything and it only happened in the USA
Toyota – big publicity following TV special reports, lots of law suits, but NHTSA couldn’t find anything and it only happened in the USA.
Am I spotting a pattern here?
I love all the conspiracy theories. Very entertaining.
I’m impressed that so many of you know exactly what happened… more so than the guy driving, or the police. It’s like you have a fact tree, and you can just reach up and pick some.
I wonder what it’s like trying to steer a car doing 95 mph, trying not to hit other cars doing 60, that aren’t aware you are out of control, while trying to listen to blowhorn instructions and a 911 operator, while you fumble with the electronics of unusual technology to try various suggestions and guesses to stop your car before you kill someone or yourself.
I give the guy kudos for getting out alive without killing anyone in the process.
http://bit.ly/Bloomberg_Braking_Story
“Complaints of defects aren’t limited to Toyota vehicles, and the entire U.S. auto industry should be examined, Senator Daniel Inouye, a Hawaii Democrat, said at the hearing.
“It is not a Toyota problem,” Inouye said. “It is an industry problem. If it is an industry problem, we should hear from the industry, not just Toyota.”
Toyota’s 2,600 reports of unintended acceleration in the past decade are second to Ford Motor Co.’s 3,526, according to Transportation Department data. “
#38 The prius has regenerative brakes. Basically they charge up the battery using the car’s kinetic energy when you brake, this is why the prius gets better mileage if you drive like an old lady start-stop-start-stop.
The handbrake might be mechanical but the regular one sure isn’t.
Regardless, I think this whole thing is total bullshit. The prius has been around for many years now and yet its only in the past 6-9 months that any of this has been occurring, and ONLY in the US. Other countries have the prius too, and there are many more outside the US than in it, and yet none of the non-us ones have this issue.
Its a scam, pure and simple. But to what end, NoAgenda puts forward an interesting theory, and this guy could very well be a stooge for the US auto industry.
1. READ THE MANUAL..
I have an interesting thought..
If these are Computer controlled breaks..
Will radio signals create a problem.
Also, I would like you to consider a SMEAR CAMPAIGN..
#46, Zybch… Bull.
The acceleration problems have been around since 2000 US when they were first imported. Problems are worldwide…. Japan just won’t reveal how many complaints they have gotten at head office.
Just like in AGW… you really don’t have a clue of the facts.
For the many of us like HMeyers who actually know about neutral, I bet this is a really good time to buy a prius. Too bad I’m a bit short on cash at the moment … and still have my 18 year old/134K mile camry running just fine. I can’t quite bring myself to cough up the cash or waste a perfectly good car, a bigger toll on the environment than any environmental good from the extra 20 MPG.
This is all a scam, seriously people wake up. Chevy is releasing an electric/hybrid (ugly car) vehicle soon and what better way then scare everyone of these prius cars then do stunts like this. Now this probably was also a guy who wanted to live his california dream and cash in millions with this stunt, having not only a recorded 911 message but police intervention PLUS news coverage. These cars come installed with a cutoff system for when the breaks are applied AND you can put it in neutral. Just watch and learn. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiSQeaeWxGU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=II_03lbr-Jw&feature=related
It’s faked, he drove lightly on the breaks while pressing the gas pedal down. He’s just in it for money, welcome to American! To prove this guys full of crap just check out these youtubes.
Add youtube to the begining of .com link –>
.com/watch?v=II_03lbr-Jw&feature=related
Saw another video that included a LOT of footage of the guy – he really liked being on TV – including the 911 call. In the call he claims that he didn’t want to try putting it in neutral because he didn’t “know about these cars” and that he thought it might flip the car. I didn’t want to put it in neutral because I thought it might flip the car???? Did he get the Batmobile edition Prius? This guy’s a fake. (I think I saw that he’s a lawyer… Hmm…)
#41, Alex
i had exactly the same thought. that guy obviously wanted to get some attention. why else would he get a prius?! it’s expensive, slow and has a poor mileage if you compare it with a diesel.
as a site-note: why does the us use that misleading and ass-backward mileage system? mpg tels you less about fuel economy than a simple gallons(liters)/distance(f.e. 100mi)
i won’t even mention the imperial system itself…
Maybe cars should have black boxes in them now? I, too suspect a scam but am trying not to judge the guy yet. If I ran Toyota, I’d consider the boxes for all new cars after this is all over, just to combat the scammers.
#48 I meant that there had been no incidents that anyone paid any attention to since this recent scam began in the middle of last year. I should have been clearer, but I mistakenly gave readers like yourself too much credit.
There was an antilock issue in japan, but NOT the same uncontrolled acceleration thing as has been seen in the US. That problem appears limited the US and I can’t find anything about prius owners in other countries experiencing the problem.
“Toyota’s handling of the quality lapses, which emerged in the U.S. last year, has received widespread media attention in its home market but loyalty to Toyota remains relatively strong because the other defects behind the recalls – sticky gas pedals and faulty floor mats – have not affected any models sold in Japan.”
– http://tinyurl.com/nydaily
Again, I gave readers like yourself too much credit.
#53 The prius does have a black box. Apparently they’ve been going through them for a while now and kneejerk twits in the US are complaining because they aren’t doing it fast enough. I’d kind of want them to take as long as needed to do a proper job rather than the american way of doing it quickly in slipshod fashion and miss important data.
Convenient;
Massive Toyota PR nightmare less than a year after the govt acquisition of GM.
Very Convenient;
Acceleration problems in a previously unaffected vehicle model with no apparent attempt to cut power to the engine or go into neutral during class action lawsuits during tough economic times when anyone would want to ca$h in.
Inconvenient;
Being a Toyota exec right now given the above.
it’s so great to hear opinions from so many amateur experts here… Where’s the Kool-Aid?
Zybch: “The prius has been around for many years now and yet its only in the past 6-9 months that any of this has been occurring, and ONLY in the US.”
Skeptic: “The acceleration problems have been around since 2000 US when they were first imported. Problems are worldwide…. Japan just won’t reveal how many complaints they have gotten at head office.”
Zybch: “I meant that there had been no incidents that anyone paid any attention to since this recent scam began in the middle of last year.”
Skeptic: What is clear, is that you changed your answer completely as to try and not look stupid.
A total of 1.25 million Prius have been sold world wide. Over 1 million of those were sold in North America. Almost all the rest were sold in Japan. So how many out of control Priuses do you expect to find in other countries? Hmmm?
petee, and others who suggested to put the car in neutral…
You are going 95 MPH, your Prius is stuck at full throttle due to an electronic malfunction… floored…. and you put that sucker in neutral….
What do you think is going to happen?