Comments on: On the Toyota accelerator fiasco http://majid.info/blog/on-the-toyota-accelerator-fiasco/ Sporadic pontification Sun, 13 May 2012 10:26:54 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: atanok http://majid.info/blog/on-the-toyota-accelerator-fiasco/comment-page-1/#comment-1152 atanok Sun, 14 Mar 2010 05:18:45 +0000 http://majid.info/blog/?p=141242009#comment-1152 Toyota implements a pseudo-brake override system in the drivetrain control system, where brake commands are more heavily weighted than accelerator commands. Touch the brake, and it'll stop accelerating. It's been this way since 1997, iirc. You can see it doing this in this hilariously unprofessional video by some dealer: http://sharing.theflip.com/session/9773c358173490d9e5bda837e1c08184/video/11407344 Not that I'd ever buy a Jap car. Toyota implements a pseudo-brake override system in the drivetrain control system, where brake commands are more heavily weighted than accelerator commands. Touch the brake, and it’ll stop accelerating. It’s been this way since 1997, iirc.

You can see it doing this in this hilariously unprofessional video by some dealer: http://sharing.theflip.com/session/9773c358173490d9e5bda837e1c08184/video/11407344

Not that I’d ever buy a Jap car.

]]> By: majid http://majid.info/blog/on-the-toyota-accelerator-fiasco/comment-page-1/#comment-733 majid Mon, 01 Feb 2010 16:06:22 +0000 http://majid.info/blog/?p=141242009#comment-733 <ol> <li>The accelerator pedal is very close to the floor board, which makes it more vulnerable to floor mats than other cars</li> <li>There are two unrelated problems, one with the floor mats, one with defective accelerator pedals made by CTS</li> <li>Floor mats should not be unsecured in the first place</li> <li>Toyota also refused to install a brake override, which is a simple software fix with no costs involved other than the usual strenuous QA cycle </li> <li>The exact same problem had happened to another user of the loaner Lexus just three days before, he reported it to the dealership, who did nothing</li> <li>The brake pads on the car were completely molten and ineffective</li> <li>The investigators don't know yet if he tried to shift to neutral (as the previous driver did) or if he was unable to do so</li> <li>Toyota did not instigate the recall of their own will, they were ordered to do so by the NHTSB, part of a pattern of ignoring or minimizing the problem. Toyotas have accounted for 40% of the sudden acceleration complaints in recent years, even though they only hold 15% of the market</li> </ol>
  • The accelerator pedal is very close to the floor board, which makes it more vulnerable to floor mats than other cars
  • There are two unrelated problems, one with the floor mats, one with defective accelerator pedals made by CTS
  • Floor mats should not be unsecured in the first place
  • Toyota also refused to install a brake override, which is a simple software fix with no costs involved other than the usual strenuous QA cycle
  • The exact same problem had happened to another user of the loaner Lexus just three days before, he reported it to the dealership, who did nothing
  • The brake pads on the car were completely molten and ineffective
  • The investigators don’t know yet if he tried to shift to neutral (as the previous driver did) or if he was unable to do so
  • Toyota did not instigate the recall of their own will, they were ordered to do so by the NHTSB, part of a pattern of ignoring or minimizing the problem. Toyotas have accounted for 40% of the sudden acceleration complaints in recent years, even though they only hold 15% of the market
    • ]]>         By: Jernej http://majid.info/blog/on-the-toyota-accelerator-fiasco/comment-page-1/#comment-731 Jernej Mon, 01 Feb 2010 10:45:59 +0000 http://majid.info/blog/?p=141242009#comment-731 Assuming this is a floor mat, not electronics problem it seems to me the whole recall issue is a ridiculous legal game rather than a serious issue. Floor mats, aftermarket or manufacturer supplied have been "free floating" for decades in all sorts of cars not just Toyotas and a pedal could (and probably did) get stuck in any number of them. From the first time I read about the Saylor family incident I realized this could happen in any car but at the same time that the problem of a stuck floor mat (or electronics failure for that matter) also has a very common sense, simple and incredibly obvious solution - shift to neutral and brake. Floor mats certainly do not require a recall, just a little brain power from the driver. I can certainly see how a driver might find himself rear ending someone in bumper to bumper traffic, at the traffic light or in a parking lot where a stuck accelerator would require a fast response but when you have time to call 911 you also have plenty of it to solve the problem without a major incident. Somehow Toyota got caught up in this mess, orchestrated or not, but once the legal machine and public opinion got going they were left with no other option, no matter how pointless the recall might be. And yes, I drive a 92 Toyota, with floor mats that could potentially get stuck and hardly any electronics at all. But I also drive a 2008 Citroen with properly fixed floor mats and plenty of helpful computer power however in neither case do I feel like I'm about to race down the motorway out of control no matter what happens. Assuming this is a floor mat, not electronics problem it seems to me the whole recall issue is a ridiculous legal game rather than a serious issue. Floor mats, aftermarket or manufacturer supplied have been “free floating” for decades in all sorts of cars not just Toyotas and a pedal could (and probably did) get stuck in any number of them.

    From the first time I read about the Saylor family incident I realized this could happen in any car but at the same time that the problem of a stuck floor mat (or electronics failure for that matter) also has a very common sense, simple and incredibly obvious solution – shift to neutral and brake. Floor mats certainly do not require a recall, just a little brain power from the driver.

    I can certainly see how a driver might find himself rear ending someone in bumper to bumper traffic, at the traffic light or in a parking lot where a stuck accelerator would require a fast response but when you have time to call 911 you also have plenty of it to solve the problem without a major incident.

    Somehow Toyota got caught up in this mess, orchestrated or not, but once the legal machine and public opinion got going they were left with no other option, no matter how pointless the recall might be. And yes, I drive a 92 Toyota, with floor mats that could potentially get stuck and hardly any electronics at all. But I also drive a 2008 Citroen with properly fixed floor mats and plenty of helpful computer power however in neither case do I feel like I’m about to race down the motorway out of control no matter what happens.

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