Toyota/Lexus Recall

TSX69 · 09-29-2009, 07:43 PM

Toyota & Lexus Owners Warned to Pull Floor Mats Immediately

We've all likely dealt with a floor mat that doesn't want to stay put at one time or another, but few pose a serious danger to occupants. That's apparently not the case with a range of Toyota and Lexus floor mats, however, as the Department of Transportation (DOT) has issued a warning to owners of affected vehicles to immediately remove their driver's-side floor mats and not replace them due to a possible interference with the accelerator pedal. Toyota is expected to issue a large-scale recall later today.

The Lexus vehicles affected include the 2007-2010 Lexus ES 350 and the 2006-2010 Lexus IS 250 and 350. Other Toyota vehicles within the scope of the warning include: the 2007-2010 Camry, 2005-2010 Avalon, 2004-2009 Prius, 2005-2010 Tacoma, and the 2007-2010 Tundra, according to an AP report. As many as 3.8 million vehicles may be affected.

Toyota's diagram showing how to properly install floor mats

Click above link for more details.

TSX69 · 10-09-2009, 09:25 AM

Your Lexus Floor Mats will Look Like Crap

We told you about Toyota's zip tie quick-fix they're forcing upon dealers to solve that pesky little deadly killer floor mat problem. Now here's exactly how crappy your brand new Lexus or Toyota will look. Below, how it's done.

Here's the story, straight from a Lexus dealership employee and poster on the CamaroZ28 forum — along with the step-by-step instruction manual. Just click next:

dmassott · 10-09-2009, 10:42 AM

What was the deal here? are the clips that are there from the factory breaking off?

wierdazndude · 10-09-2009, 12:04 PM

no the floor matts sliding up caused the gas pedal to get stuck. In an incedent right before the recall a family of four were driving in their lexus when their gas pedal got stuck, unknowingly because of the floor matt. They called 911 saying that the gas pedal was stuck and the were going faster and faster. Next thing you know the highway ran out and the family all died from the crash.

tekneek · 10-09-2009, 02:21 PM

^ couldn't they have put it into neutral and let the motor eat it? pretty crazy how floor mats can do so much damage to such a reputable company.

ians · 10-09-2009, 03:42 PM

^ also, there is something call brake!

scratchieepants · 10-09-2009, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ians

^ also, there is something call brake!

Fatal Santee Crash Prompts Largest Vehicle Recall in Toyota History - San Diego 6

The brakes were on fire.

Adule · 10-10-2009, 04:00 AM

Sad to see a whole family perish due to something really miniscule!

wierdazndude · 10-10-2009, 12:06 PM

very very sad.... i was kinda scared of the recall because my car was on the list... good thing i dont use the lexus floor matts though.

TSX69 · 11-02-2009, 08:37 PM

Toyota/Lexus Say No Defect in Floor Mats; Recall Voluntary

Between the tragedy of a California Highway Patrol officer and his family losing their lives in a borrowed dealership Lexus ES 350 and the farcical zip tie solution issued shortly thereafter, the Toyota/Lexus floor mat recall is a unique event in recent automotive safety history. Except it's not unique--it's happened before, in 2007--and now Toyota says it's not even its fault.

An announcement by Toyota today that it has begun mailing letters to owners of the affected Lexus and Toyota vehicles reveals that after National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) testing, the company has confirmed that there is no defect in the mats or the vehicles, provided the right mat is properly installed.

The problem, then, lies with installation and mat selection. The dealer loaner car that was driven to a fiery end in Southern California earlier this year was just such a case: the wrong mat was installed improperly.

Click above link for rest of story.

TSX69 · 11-05-2009, 01:29 PM

NHTSA: Toyota Floor Mat Statement Inaccurate & Misleading

This past Monday Toyota released a statement denying any finding of fault on Toyota's part or any defect in its cars in relation to the deadly floor mat safety advisory issued in late September. Today, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is saying that Toyota's information is "inaccurate and misleading" and that there is in fact a defect in the 3.8 million cars affected.

The Toyota statement included reference to a letter being sent out to customers which Toyota stated, "confirms that no defect exists in vehicles in which the driver’s floor mat is compatible with the vehicle and properly secured."

The NHTSA minces no words in contradicting Toyota's claims, calling the removal of the offending floor mats an interim measure only, and saying that "This remedy does not correct the underlying defect in the vehicles involving the potential for entrapment of the accelerator by floor mats, which is related to accelerator and floor pan design." That leaves no doubt that the NHTSA considers the design of the vehicles and the accelerator pedal both to be defective in this regard.

TSX69 · 11-09-2009, 01:26 PM

Toyota is Sued Over Concerns Sudden Accelartion

Two Los Angeles County residents have sued Toyota Motor Corp., alleging that the majority of Toyota and Lexus vehicles made since 2001 contain defective components that can cause unintended acceleration.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Riverside County Superior Court, is the latest in a growing string of suits against the automaker over concerns of runaway acceleration.

The plaintiffs, Seong Bae Choi and Chris Chan Park, seek statewide and national class-action status, arguing that "hundreds of thousands" of individuals could be affected by sudden acceleration caused by defective electronic throttle systems.

"There is a problem here, obviously," said David Wright, the Redlands-based attorney for the plaintiffs. "We're asking Toyota to get it taken care of now."

Toyota spokesman John Hanson declined to comment on the suit, saying it was company policy not to comment on litigation.

The automaker is recalling 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles following an August crash of a Lexus sedan that accelerated out of control outside of San Diego. An off-duty California Highway Patrolman and three members of his family were killed.

The Japanese automaker has said that it believes improperly installed floor mats caused that accident and others like it by entrapping the accelerator pedal. It has asked drivers to remove their driver-side floor mats until a fix can be determined.

Toyota has repeatedly denied the possibility that any other systems could cause such a problem and reiterated that position in a blog item posted on its website Friday.

Nonetheless, the accident and subsequent recall have drawn national attention and, this week, prompted federal highway safety regulators to issue a statement indicating that the seven recalled Toyota models do indeed have an "underlying defect."

At least five other lawsuits filed against Toyota in the last few years have alleged a defect causing unintended acceleration. One, involving a runaway 2007 Toyota Camry that crashed and killed a man near San Jose, was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum.

The latest suit alleges that the two men experienced repeated incidents of unintended acceleration in their vehicles, a 2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser and a 2004 Toyota Camry. No allegations of crashes or injury were made. Neither vehicle is included in the current recall.

According to Wright, their lawyer, Toyota began installing fully electronic throttle systems in its cars in 2001. He said the vast majority of its vehicles use them today. He said that a software fix that automatically puts the engine into idle while braking could potentially resolve the issue.

Some automakers, such as BMW, use the software safety feature.

Wright said that the class-action status, if approved, would exclude cases in which individuals were injured or killed by alleged unintended acceleration because those cases are typically handled on an individual basis.

Last week, Toyota began sending recall letters to owners of 2007 to 2010 Camrys, 2004 to 2009 Priuses, 2005 to 2010 Avalons, 2005 to 2010 Tacomas, 2007 to 2010 Tundras, 2007 to 2010 Lexus ES 350s, and 2006 to 2010 Lexus IS 250s and IS 350s.

ken.bensinger@latimes.com

ralph.vartabedian@

latimes.com

TSX69 · 01-15-2010, 08:19 PM

Toyota Avalon Displays Unintended Acceleration w/out FloorMats

In a rather bizarre instance, a driver reportedly began to experience unintended acceleration from his Toyota Avalon and was able to drive the car to a nearby dealer with the vehicle still displaying wide open throttle, despite having the floormat removed. Dealer techs witnessed the problem and have reportedly offered to repair the vehicle free of charge.

According to a report from The Safety Record, on December 29, 2009, the driver of a 2007 Toyota Avalon experienced a bizarre case of sudden and unintended acceleration while driving on the highway, just miles from a local Toyota dealer. The driver managed to switch the vehicle between Neutral and Drive multiple times, while en route to the dealer in order to show the dealer the problem as it was still occurring.

The driver was able to reach the dealer, place the vehicle into neutral, and allow it to continue operating at wide open throttle. The dealer sent out a tech who verified that the floor mat was removed, and pushing the gas pedal had no effect on the acceleration. The dealer was unable to stop the wide open throttle and was forced to shut the vehicle off.

This incident was apparently not the first for the driver, either, who had been to the dealer before about the problem. The first time the unintended acceleration occurred, the driver was able to slow the vehicle with the brakes and switch the vehicle into neutral – where the engine continued to hit maximum rpms. At the time of the first incident, dealer diagnostics revealed no problems in the computer.

The dealer eventually offered to replace the throttle body, accelerator pedal and associated sensors free of charge for the driver after the second incident.

This incident may prove to be a crucial step in finding the true cause of the many reported cases of unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles. Toyota began its largest-ever recall in 2009 to replace the floor mats and accelerator pedals in over 3.8 million vehicles that could experience unintended acceleration. Critics and survivors of unintended acceleration cases argued that the problem was not a result of the floor mats or accelerator pedals, but instead insist that the computer controlling the acceleration of the vehicle is at fault.

The Safety Record also reported on a one-car crash that occurred in Dallas, Texas the day after Christmas involving a Toyota Avalon. According to the accident report, the vehicle inexplicably left the road and ended up crashing through a fence, and landing upside down in a pond – killing all four occupants. The floor mats were found in the trunk of the car – ruling out the possibility of the floor mat causing the accident.

The official cause of the Dallas crash has not yet been determined.

HoRRo · 01-17-2010, 10:12 PM

Wow, that's crazy. Instead of drive-by-wire, it could end up death-by-wire.

TSX69 · 01-21-2010, 06:45 PM

Toyota will Recall 2.3 Million More

WASHINGTON -- Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. said today that it would recall 2.3 million vehicles for sticking accelerator pedals, in addition to the 4.2 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles already being recalled.

"There is a possibility that certain accelerator-pedal mechanisms may, in rare instances, mechanically stick in a partially depressed position or return slowly to the idle position," spokesman Irv Miller said in a statement.

The stuck pedals can occur when the pedal mechanism becomes worn, said Toyota Motor Sales, based in Torrance, Calif.

The latest recall involves 2007-10 Camrys, 2009-10 Corollas, 2009-10 RAV4s, 2009-10 Matrixes, 2005-10 Avalons, 2010 Highlanders, 2007-10 Tundras and 2008-10 Sequoias.

About 1.7 million vehicles are subject to both the new recall and the ongoing one, Toyota said.

The company said drivers with stuck pedals should make "firm and steady application of the brakes" while not pumping repeatedly. The vehicle should be driven to a safe location and parked. A Toyota dealer then should be contacted for assistance.

"Toyota will continue to investigate incidents of unwanted acceleration and take appropriate measures to address any trends that are identified," the company said in a statement.

'No evidence'

As recently as November, Bob Carter, Toyota's U.S. brand chief, had 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.

Toyota's earlier recall covers the Camry and Avalon sedans, the Prius hybrid, the Tacoma and Tundra pickup trucks, and the luxury Lexus models IS250, IS350 and ES350.

NHTSA had conducted a similar investigation of floor mats in Toyota vehicles that began in 2007 and resulted in a recall of more than 50,000 cars.

That probe focused on the Lexus ES350 and concluded that grooves in the floor mat could trap the accelerator if the mat was not secured with retaining hooks.

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...#ixzz0dIGVAkcP