Larry, I don't think it is a linkage problem here as they are all drive by wire, no mechanical linkage to gum up.

 

CNBC Video (audio at 1:22 mark)

 

Oh, I know, that was a long time ago!

..but unintended acceleration is real. Many would try to have you think it's driver error, etc.

 

The couple in the wreck were friends of an acquaintance of mine.

Supposedly the car did not respond to pushing on the power button either..

I tried in my TCH and it would not power off while I was driving (down a lonely road - no stunts).. I'm told that pressing and holding the power button for 3 to 5 seconds will shut a keyless Toyota off - but have not tried that yet...

Are we certain that the shifter in the TCH is totally by wire?

Braking force will overcome the engine but only up to the point where the brakes overheat and fade.

The floor mats in the recall are the ones in my 2007 TCH (new in September 06) - the mats don't have metal hooks but they do have heavy plastic hooks. I've had no problem with the mats shifting.

This is my car below;
IMG_1269.jpg

I wonder what Toyota is going to do with this one - Replace the mats with something else? Or nothing other than telling us to remove it....

 

Not only is it possible, but on the hybrid cars, the RPM's should return to idle once the gear selector is shifted to neutral, regardless of accelerator position.

Panic seems to be the big killer here.

 

There is a local radio guy who was talking about this issue this morning. There was a family in a Toyota SUV with a stuck pedal. They got to 120mph, while applying the brakes. Witnesses reported flames shooting out of the wheels in the moments before impact. Ugly.

 

at the risk of repeating myself...why didn't (or wouldn't) they shift into neutral?
they had enough time to call 911 and have a 20 second conversation, so it's not like there wasn't time. They had control over the vehicle...sorry, but that seems like the first thing I'd think of.
A tragedy!

 

At great risk of sounding too insensitive, too soon, I believe that we as a society have become too domesticated and dependent upon government and public entities to solve all of our issues. It is really really sad that the first thing a person in this situation thinks to do is to call 911.

If you watch any TV or read magazines you will see that suggestions for simple exercise come with dire warnings to "check with your doctor first". For almost everything else, there is either a lawyer or publicly funded government office to help you with your life.

Retail Store employees are not allowed to challenge criminal activity or give assistance to victims for fear of instant termination. They are told to give the criminals whatever they want and then call 911.

People who use technology like personal computers are at a total loss to explain how they work, even on the most basic level. They are taught to take it to geek squad or Staples services... $150 for even the most stupid issue. Folks aren't allowed to work on their own cars anymore either. Even the most basic, stupid work now requires a $115 minimum charge to reset an on-board computer. We TCH owners can't access ANY screen functions without digitally acknowledging a tightly-worded legal disclaimer and universal hold-harmless agreement... EVERY SINGLE TIME we get in the car.

This seems to have started around the time I was born in the late 60's, age of LBJ and his Great Society. We were 20 years past WW2, a full generation away from the greatest generation. Food Stamps, WIC, MediCare, Welfare, Section 8, etc. Now, 40 years later, we as individuals are trained to be dependent on others for our own well-being. Apparently we, as a society don't even have the foggiest clue how an automobile works or what to do in an emergency. We just hop in and start the ignition on a gas-fired, 3,000 pound land-torpedo, and we go without a care in the world. If something goes wrong, we'll make someone else fix it. If someone gets hurt, GREAT! We'll go get lawyered-up and take a spin on the Great American Litigation Lottery, that's all.

I'm going the other direction personally. The only way I could ever afford to buy a house in a nice neighborhood Southern California is if I do all the repairs and upgrades myself. Plumbing, electrical, carpentry, roofing, concrete, landscaping, I have to learn how to do it, or else quit my house and go back to an apartment where someone else can take care of everything, on their time and to their standards. Same with my car. If I had to take my car in to a mechanic for everything, I'd be driving a 99 Corolla.

A dependent society can never be free. In this case a dependent mindset proved fatal, in a most horrifying way.

No Thanks.

<end rant>

 

(from what I understood from listening to the audio) It was a passenger who made the call. I think that's not only prudent, but probably the only thing she could have done, under those circumstances.

 

To be honest, I never learned about anything on the shifter column besides D, R, and P. I only did learn about N, 4, 3, 2, and L on the hypermiling forum and reading various part of the owner's manual.