Sticking Gas Pedals (to buy, lawsuit, safe)

[starlite9]

Originally Posted by blueflames50

Starlite you may have something here...today this was posted in the news....Toyota Prius software blamed for brake problem!! makes you wonder if this "shimming the gas pedal" is a crock!!!

Toyota: Software to blame for Prius brake problems - CNN.com

Like I said, the "Shim" fix makes no sense, and the family of four that got killed, more than likely tried to put the car in Neutral or Turn the key off and a computer issue would be the cause of it not shutting off.

Pretty sad, lots of bombs waiting to go off and you don't know if you are the lottery winner...

Sometimes being right isn't a very good deal...

[richelles]

Originally Posted by starlite9

Turn the key off and a computer issue would be the cause of it not shutting off. ... Pretty sad, lots of bombs waiting to go off and you don't know if you are the lottery winner......

One of Toyota's former lawyers who was sent packing seemingly because he was unhappy with Toyota's policy of containment,who is suing the company for wrongful termination, claims Toyota deliberately conceals problems by withholding documentation, as an internal policy, to hold down costs. The reason Toyota can't admit the problem is in the electronic system stems from the fact they'd have millions of cars to repair with a totally new system for the gas pedal. Now ask how many cars are affected by this problem that can't be solved by slipping in a small sliver of metal?

[richelles]

Today I watched the Toyota hearings before a Committee of the House of Representatives and it appeared, to me "to be de ja vu all over again". As someone trained in accident analysis and failure investigation I've interviewed people who tried to be devious by answering the question they wanted to answer rather than the question they were asked. Toyota couldn't answer how many cars might have the fault nor the cause of the fault and that Toyota hadn't taken the cars, with the fault, from the owners with the intention to find what caused the problem in that particular car. The original answer Toyota gave for the problem was floor mats the owners had bought and failed to install properly and there was an admission Toyota hadn't done any testing to determine if the problems were the result of faulty electronic design. In plain words they wanted the world to think dumb customers had caused the problem; not the faulty design of the electronic components. Perhaps the silliest answer was “There is a difference in sudden acceleration and unintended acceleration.”

[RayinAK]

According to the news today, Toyota hasn't found a problem with the electronics. Also, the automobiles under the recall having the accelerator replaced, will be set so the brake overrides any sudden acceleration. In other words, if the automobile accelerates without the driver pressing on the pedal, pressing the brake pedal will override the electronics.

As for me, I find it the best time to buy a Toyota automobile. I heard on the news that Toyota will offer a discount around $2,000, plus extended warranty with free maintenance. My wife and I don't like automobiles with automatic transmissions, which should make it a lot easier to stop if the car accelerates by itself.

[AADAD]

When my former wife turned against me my gas pedal was stuck all the way New York.

[starlite9]

Well I have a 2010 Rav4 that came from Japan to Alaska, it isn't part of the current recall issues. But I am going to install a relay system so that when the key is shut off, the entire fuel system dies and the car will stop, may never need to use it, but it will be a part of the system.

Currently if there is a computer issue in the effected cars, there are computer controlled relays that won't shut off and the car will continue to run and won't shift, in some cases at full throttle, by installing a relay controlled by the key switch that does bypass the computer when needed to shut the fuel off is not a bad deal to be on the safe side...

[richelles]

Originally Posted by starlite9

installing a relay controlled by the key switch that does bypass the computer when needed to shut the fuel off is not a bad deal to be on the safe side...

I listened to the entire hearing today and the Toyota Exec said they weren't sure at this time what the cause was. He agreed it could be an electronic component and said that hadn't yet been investigated but when they did finish the report would be available. What bothered me the most was he said it was a rare for the acceleration to happen. The problem is when it happens to you it isn't rare to you in any manner and at 100 MPH in neutral or reverse with no brakes it is definitely more than a rare problem. I think Toyota needed to have believed the first people who reported the problem years ago instead of saying they made a mistake. The mistake is all on Toyota. Tomorrow Toyoda himself will be there to testify and I wonder what he will have to say? The guy today said all the big decisions were made by Japan.

[JohnPF]

I said it before and I'll say it again: it is a case of a giant corporation caring only about their own profits. And it may just be that they will die by their own doing.
They knew of the problems for years and chose not to address it openly. The dealersa knew of it first hand and did nothing to help their customers. All the Toyota remedial commercials on TV make me sick.
How caring they are, how dependable they are. If they aim at anything, it is the prospective jurors unconciousness :P

I had a neighbor, working for one of the certifying laboratories, like Underwriters Laboratories that certify safety of stuff put into electrical appliances or vehicles.
He told me how computer boards from Bom.ar.ier were tested. Again, and again and than again, untill a whole batch passed the testing.
Nothing was done to change the product, they paid for testing untill the results were desirable. The problem was that multilayered computer boards had holes punched in them for soldering on different components and in many of them the conductive layers were not punched out cleanly, some of it stuck in the hole shorting out the circuits. Voila! Computer problems, most likely blamed on "irresponsible use" of the marine equipment by owner...

That's how it works and that's how blame is passed around.

[RayinAK]

Well, this is the way I see it:

1. The problem is already known, and therefore official. It means that Toyota has already assumed liability.

2. Hopefully the Federal Government will only make sure that Toyota assumes full responsibility, and nothing more, since the affected drivers going to court as they should, should be sufficient punishment .
---
Relating to electronics: One of the founders of Apple computers said that his Toyota (a hybrid) accelerated a great deal more past the speed set by himself on the cruse control. Also, I remember years ago when several people were complaining about Audi automobiles and unintended acceleration. Some people drove their cars through their garage doors

[JohnPF]

Yes Spock, this is logical.
However 30+ people who bought into their claims of reliability and quality are dead now. How much money does make it up to their families?