Some of us who know cars said the Toyota unintended acceleration problem was not due to floor mats

[DainBramaged]

and we were right. Toyota has FINALLY admitted they have a problem.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34981335/ns/business-autos/

Toyota issued a recall covering 2.3 million late model cars, SUVs and pickup trucks Thursday, broadening its largest such action ever and acknowledging that potential accelerator pedal problems were deeper than previously acknowledged.

The automaker previously recalled about 4.2 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles to reduce the risk of pedal "entrapment" caused by floor mats, according to a news release issued by Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. About 1.7 million Toyota vehicles are subject to both recalls, the company said.

“In recent months, Toyota has investigated isolated reports of sticking accelerator pedal mechanisms in certain vehicles without the presence of floor mats,” Toyota group Vice President Irv Miller said in the statement.

In "rare instances" the accelerator pedal may stick in a partially depressed position or return slowly to the idle position, he said.

Toyota previously had maintained there was no evidence of a mechanical fault linked to reported bursts of unintended acceleration that prompted the original recall last year.

As recently as November, Bob Carter, Toyota's U.S. brand chief, said there was "no evidence" to support claims that the reported safety problems could be caused by anything other than loose floor mats interfering with the accelerator pedal.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had received reports of 100 incidents at the time of Toyota's first recall. Those reports included 17 crashes and five fatalities possibly linked to floor mats and accelerator pedals in Toyota cars and trucks.



I am diasppointed that Toyota didn't face up to the reality or severity of the situation sooner. they OWE their loyal customers better.



Vehicles affected by the latest recall are:

• 2009-2010 RAV4
• 2009-2010 Corolla
• 2009-2010 Matrix
• 2005-2010 Avalon
• 2007-2010 Camry
• 2010 Highlander
• 2007-2010 Tundra
• 2008-2010 Sequoia

[alstephenson]

1. I agree whole heartedly.

I'm driving my 5th Camry - I replaced my 2001 with a 2010 late last year... It's very disappointing that they took so long. I heard that the sudden change of heart is because ABC World News/Nightline is running a segment tonight about this.

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

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[DainBramaged]

3. Bump bump de bump

[flvegan]

4. We knew it was the case when they issued the "fix" of a failsafe

that when both the brake and the juice pedal were depressed the engine lost power. When one is creating a workaround like that, you know they have a big problem on their hands.

What's odd is that the recall is for damn near everything Toyota builds except the Venza, Yaris and Prius. Also, no Lexus. It would seem to me that they've either omitted Lexus to save face of their luxo-brand or they should adopt the acceleration technology used in their Lexus lines. Especially considering the marques already share so much.

[DainBramaged]

5. Yup but it is still 6.8 million vehicles at risk

and if you own one of them, you NEED to go to your Toyota dealer asap.

[DainBramaged]

6. TOYOTA RECALL: Reports of Runaway Cars

Four Dead in Dallas Crash Where Problem Floor Mats Found in Trunk

Toyota, which launched the largest auto recall in U.S. history last fall after incidents of random acceleration resulting in fatalities, has just announced an additional recall of 2.3 million vehicles to correct sticking accelerator pedals. The recall was announced late Thursday afternoon, after ABC News informed the company that the latest in a long series of ABC News investigative reports into sudden unexplained acceleration in Toyotas was about to air.

Safety expert Sean Kane tells ABC News that since last fall, when Toyota said it had solved the acceleration problem with proposed changes to gas pedals and a recall of 4.2 million cars with suspect floor mats, more than 60 new cases of runaway Toyotas have been reported. He believes this latest recall may still not be a complete fix of a problem that continues to be linked with serious accidents and deaths.

In the most tragic incident, on the day after Christmas, four people died in Southlake, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, when a 2008 Toyota sped off the road, through a fence and landed upside down in a pond. The car's floor mats were found in the trunk of the car, where owners had been advised to put them as part of the recall.

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/RunawayToyotas/runaway-toyotas-problem-persists-recall/story?id=9618735

[DainBramaged]

7. Owners of Toyota Cars in Rebellion Over Series of Accidents Caused by Sudden Acceleration

Refusing to accept the explanation of Toyota and the federal government, hundreds Toyota owners are in rebellion after a series of accidents caused by what they call "runaway cars."

Safety analysts found an estimated 2000 cases in which owners of Toyota cars including Camry, Prius and Lexus, reported that their cars surged without warning up to speeds of 100 miles per hour.

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/RunawayToyotas/sudden-acceleration-toyota-cars-owners-rebel-accidents/story?id=8980479

[TexasObserver]

8. Yes, we were. I remember that brawl lasting days.

It's always the manufacturer's fault if the accelerator can be jammed by a common, after acquired, floor mat. No one knows better than the manufacturer that the problem is the design of the accelerator, which must anticipate the various problems that floor mats present.

Toyota has known about this defect for years. They've put out their cover story for all those years, too, while they KNEW their defective cars were killing people.

[Owl]

9. What's the corrective action to fix the problem?

I read only mention of worn linkages... but these cars are nearly new?

[Brickbat]

10. I hope one of those cars doesn't come accelerating at me one of these days.

Nice of Toyota to finally get around to admitting what's been obvious for months.

[ET Racer]

11. Some of us that know cars lament

the fact that most drivers today know almost nothing of what to do in an emergency. They've never been taught, or experienced the cars of old.
Young drivers can tell you what car has the best GPS, Multi-disk CD, or bluetooth attachment but have a hard time with undertanding the dynamics involved with blowouts, panic stops, skids, snowy roads, safe passing, etc.
Having had an accelerator pedal stick, (after passing a car on I-80) I can say it's truly a terifying experience.

Since there are certainly Toyota owners out there, or anybody else for that matter, let me say it here.
If this happens to you,
1. Don't Panic.
2. Put the car in NEUTRAL and do not move it from Neutral.
3. While coasting, pull over to a safe spot.
4. Now you can turn the car off.
At worst, the engine will rev way up, to a computer controlled limit. Better an over-revved engine than a crash anyday.
If you turn it off first you will loose the power steering and power brakes and if you've never driven without them this is not the time to learn.
Be safe, but be prepared. Try it in a parking lot somewhere.

[DainBramaged]

13. They don't even know how to check their oil

:hi:

[MadHound]

12. Why are you ripping on one of the most American of car models?

<http://www.cars.com/go/advice/Story.jsp?section=top&subject=ami&story=amMade0707>

More American than Chrysler, which has just one model in that list. More American than GM even. Only the Ford F-150 beats it out:shrug:

That's part of the problem with a global marketplace, even so called "American" brand names are either owned in part by foreign corporations, or they own foreign corporations, or their parts are manufactured overseas, to simply be assembled here.

In many ways there is no true American brand anymore when it comes to cars.