Toyota recalls and related issues: BusinessWeek-Media owes Toyota an apology
03-16-10, 09:24 AM
#1216
LA Times poll shows that 80% of their readers think it was hoax... and this was LA times too!
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/comm...way-prius.html
Only 12% people thought he was honest...
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/comm...way-prius.html
Only 12% people thought he was honest...
03-16-10, 09:29 AM
#1217
Having recently had a hybrid (HS250h) as a loaner, can a car that can't accelerate well enough to get out of its own way even have unintended acceleration? Wouldn't that be, like, slow motion UA? No wonder these people have time for cell phone calls: "Yes officer, it's at 15.... 16.... uuuuhhhhh... 17 miles per hour! Arrrrgh, I can't take it anymore."
(sorry, couldn't resist)
(sorry, couldn't resist)
03-16-10, 11:10 AM
#1218
Lead Lap
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 693
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I'm having a hard time posting this with a straight face, but...
Cosmic rays offered as acceleration cause
BY JUSTIN HYDE - DETROIT FREE PRESS WASHINGTON STAFF
Electronics makers have known for decades about "single event upsets," computer errors from radiation created when cosmic rays strike the atmosphere.
With more than 3,000 complaints to U.S. regulators of random sudden acceleration problems in Toyota models, several researchers say single event upsets deserve a close look.
The phenomenon can trigger software crashes that come and go without a trace. Unlike interference from radio waves, there's no way to physically block particles; such errors typically have to be prevented by a combination of software and hardware design.
And an anonymous tipster told NHTSA last month that "the automotive industry has yet to truly anticipate SEUs."
Such radiation "occurs virtually anywhere," said William Price, who spent 20 years at the Jet Propulsion Lab testing for radiation effects on electronics. "It doesn't happen in a certain locale like you would expect in an electromagnetic problem from a radio tower or something else."
Toyota staunchly defends its electronics, saying they were designed for "absolute reliability." Responding to the Free Press, Toyota said its systems "are not the same as typical consumer electronics. The durability, size, susceptibility and specifications of the automotive electronics make them robust against this type of interference."
Testing for the problem would involve putting vehicles in front of a particle accelerator and showering them with radiation, a step that experts said would help resolve the question.
"Nobody wants to come out and say we have issues and we need to test," said Sung Chung, president of the testing firm Eigenix.
The phenomenon was first noted in the 1950s affecting electronics at high altitudes; unlike electromagnetic waves, there are no ways to physically shield circuits from such particles. Airplane and spacecraft makers have long designed their electronics with such radiation in mind, through safeguards such as systems that triple-check data.
Only in the late 1970s did researchers discover that a minuscule portion of such radiation falls to earth. It's not enough to harm humans, but as circuits in computers and cell phones on the ground have shrunk to the width of several dozen atoms, the risk of errors has grown. "Five years ago, it was a problem in very few applications," said Olivier Lauzeral, general manager of IRoC Technologies, which tests chips and software for SEU resistance. "In the past couple of years, we've seen a rise in demand and interest."
In an anonymous e-mail last month to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a tipster said such an error "may be one reasonable explanation for incidents of sudden acceleration," adding that the automotive industry had yet to adapt the techniques used by aircraft firms to prevent problems from SEUs.
NHTSA added the tipster's information to its electronic investigative file on Toyota recalls. The agency declined several requests from the Free Press for comment.
Electronic throttle controls like the ones under scrutiny in Toyotas are widespread in the industry. They're more reliable than mechanical links, they save weight and space, and make other technology, like stability control, possible.
http://www.freep.com/article/2010031...360/1014/rss13
BY JUSTIN HYDE - DETROIT FREE PRESS WASHINGTON STAFF
Electronics makers have known for decades about "single event upsets," computer errors from radiation created when cosmic rays strike the atmosphere.
With more than 3,000 complaints to U.S. regulators of random sudden acceleration problems in Toyota models, several researchers say single event upsets deserve a close look.
The phenomenon can trigger software crashes that come and go without a trace. Unlike interference from radio waves, there's no way to physically block particles; such errors typically have to be prevented by a combination of software and hardware design.
And an anonymous tipster told NHTSA last month that "the automotive industry has yet to truly anticipate SEUs."
Such radiation "occurs virtually anywhere," said William Price, who spent 20 years at the Jet Propulsion Lab testing for radiation effects on electronics. "It doesn't happen in a certain locale like you would expect in an electromagnetic problem from a radio tower or something else."
Toyota staunchly defends its electronics, saying they were designed for "absolute reliability." Responding to the Free Press, Toyota said its systems "are not the same as typical consumer electronics. The durability, size, susceptibility and specifications of the automotive electronics make them robust against this type of interference."
Testing for the problem would involve putting vehicles in front of a particle accelerator and showering them with radiation, a step that experts said would help resolve the question.
"Nobody wants to come out and say we have issues and we need to test," said Sung Chung, president of the testing firm Eigenix.
The phenomenon was first noted in the 1950s affecting electronics at high altitudes; unlike electromagnetic waves, there are no ways to physically shield circuits from such particles. Airplane and spacecraft makers have long designed their electronics with such radiation in mind, through safeguards such as systems that triple-check data.
Only in the late 1970s did researchers discover that a minuscule portion of such radiation falls to earth. It's not enough to harm humans, but as circuits in computers and cell phones on the ground have shrunk to the width of several dozen atoms, the risk of errors has grown. "Five years ago, it was a problem in very few applications," said Olivier Lauzeral, general manager of IRoC Technologies, which tests chips and software for SEU resistance. "In the past couple of years, we've seen a rise in demand and interest."
In an anonymous e-mail last month to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a tipster said such an error "may be one reasonable explanation for incidents of sudden acceleration," adding that the automotive industry had yet to adapt the techniques used by aircraft firms to prevent problems from SEUs.
NHTSA added the tipster's information to its electronic investigative file on Toyota recalls. The agency declined several requests from the Free Press for comment.
Electronic throttle controls like the ones under scrutiny in Toyotas are widespread in the industry. They're more reliable than mechanical links, they save weight and space, and make other technology, like stability control, possible.
http://www.freep.com/article/2010031...360/1014/rss13
03-16-10, 01:29 PM
#1221
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (20)
03-16-10, 04:19 PM
#1223
Lexus Champion
Having recently had a hybrid (HS250h) as a loaner, can a car that can't accelerate well enough to get out of its own way even have unintended acceleration? Wouldn't that be, like, slow motion UA? No wonder these people have time for cell phone calls: "Yes officer, it's at 15.... 16.... uuuuhhhhh... 17 miles per hour! Arrrrgh, I can't take it anymore."
(sorry, couldn't resist)
(sorry, couldn't resist)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLlUg...eature=related
03-17-10, 11:02 AM
#1224
Lexus Fanatic
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: A better place
Posts: 7,285
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
?
03-18-10, 07:34 AM
#1225
Lead Lap
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 693
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
New Toyota Troubles: Copycat Complaints?
by Benjamin Radford - LiveScience.com
In the latest chapter of the runaway Toyota mystery, a man named James Sikes claimed that the accelerator on his 2008 Prius got stuck on March 8, at times reaching nearly 100 mph before he managed to stop the car using both the emergency and regular brakes. Sikes's account made national news, though questions about his story have recently surfaced.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigated the matter and concluded that its engineers had "not been able to find anything to explain the incident that Mr. Sikes reported." The investigation into his complaint is ongoing, but often when engineers can't recreate a claimed incident of mechanical malfunction, it means someone's not telling the truth. If Mr. Sikes did indeed fake or hoax his vehicle problems, he would not be the first.
Copycat Complaints
Copycat complaints often occur in the wake of widely publicized events, especially of defective or tampered products. Typically one or two high-profile "index cases" appear in the public's eye, leading a few other people who bought the same product to think, "Hey, that could have happened to me, too!" and pretend that it did.
This situation causes headaches for investigators trying to figure out what happened and how - every false, mistaken, or hoax case only muddies the water and delays finding the real cause of the problem. Hoaxes are also difficult for the product's manufacturer, whose public image is damaged by every new claim that makes the news - whether valid or fraudulent. Often it's only the headline "body count" numbers that the public pays attention to: People remember hearing that 50 deaths were attributed to runaway Toyotas, but if some (or even most) of the 50 are eventually revealed to have been caused by other factors, the public will still remember the original number.
The 1993 Pepsi scare
One of the most famous cases of hoax copycat complaints occurred in 1993 when a Tacoma, Wash., couple found a syringe inside a Diet Pepsi that had been opened and left out overnight. When they discovered it, the couple called their lawyer, who alerted the press. From there the story snowballed. As Time magazine writer Anastasia Toufexis wrote, "Jangling deep in the psyche of some souls, it appears, is an irresistible urge to be certified on the 5 o'clock news as a victim, a stoic survivor of sinister forces... Within days, similar reports poured in from around the country: more than 50 complaints in 23 states. In New York City, a man claimed that he accidentally swallowed two pins that were in a Pepsi bottle. In Beach City, Ohio, a woman said she found a sewing needle in a can of the soft drink."
The Washington couple's Diet Pepsi was only a harbinger of many contaminated soft drinks - or was it? "Even as cases mounted, many were being exposed as hoaxes," Toufexis noted. "By week's end more than a dozen people had been arrested for making false reports. Among them were a Colorado woman and South Carolina man who were captured on video by store security cameras putting objects in cans; others were admitting they lied."
Why we play victim
There are many reasons why a person might pretend to have been the victim of a scary or dangerous product. Money is of course a big motivation: Pepsi and Toyota have deep pockets, and potential "victims" assume that multinational companies will happily pay a few hundred thousand dollars to avoid bad publicity.
For many, however, the real motivation is simply attention. Some people want to be part of a story they see unfolding in the national news. Others just like pulling a prank to see how far they can take it, assuming either that they won't get caught, or that little will happen if they are caught.
Often, they are right. In cases of copycat complaints, there's little a company can do unless the hoaxer demands money, in which case, he or she can be charged with extortion. Otherwise, it's merely a minor offense of filing a false report. Whether Sikes's incident is a real incident or copycat report remains to be determined, but investigators are watching for hoaxes.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/...mplaints/print
by Benjamin Radford - LiveScience.com
In the latest chapter of the runaway Toyota mystery, a man named James Sikes claimed that the accelerator on his 2008 Prius got stuck on March 8, at times reaching nearly 100 mph before he managed to stop the car using both the emergency and regular brakes. Sikes's account made national news, though questions about his story have recently surfaced.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigated the matter and concluded that its engineers had "not been able to find anything to explain the incident that Mr. Sikes reported." The investigation into his complaint is ongoing, but often when engineers can't recreate a claimed incident of mechanical malfunction, it means someone's not telling the truth. If Mr. Sikes did indeed fake or hoax his vehicle problems, he would not be the first.
Copycat Complaints
Copycat complaints often occur in the wake of widely publicized events, especially of defective or tampered products. Typically one or two high-profile "index cases" appear in the public's eye, leading a few other people who bought the same product to think, "Hey, that could have happened to me, too!" and pretend that it did.
This situation causes headaches for investigators trying to figure out what happened and how - every false, mistaken, or hoax case only muddies the water and delays finding the real cause of the problem. Hoaxes are also difficult for the product's manufacturer, whose public image is damaged by every new claim that makes the news - whether valid or fraudulent. Often it's only the headline "body count" numbers that the public pays attention to: People remember hearing that 50 deaths were attributed to runaway Toyotas, but if some (or even most) of the 50 are eventually revealed to have been caused by other factors, the public will still remember the original number.
The 1993 Pepsi scare
One of the most famous cases of hoax copycat complaints occurred in 1993 when a Tacoma, Wash., couple found a syringe inside a Diet Pepsi that had been opened and left out overnight. When they discovered it, the couple called their lawyer, who alerted the press. From there the story snowballed. As Time magazine writer Anastasia Toufexis wrote, "Jangling deep in the psyche of some souls, it appears, is an irresistible urge to be certified on the 5 o'clock news as a victim, a stoic survivor of sinister forces... Within days, similar reports poured in from around the country: more than 50 complaints in 23 states. In New York City, a man claimed that he accidentally swallowed two pins that were in a Pepsi bottle. In Beach City, Ohio, a woman said she found a sewing needle in a can of the soft drink."
The Washington couple's Diet Pepsi was only a harbinger of many contaminated soft drinks - or was it? "Even as cases mounted, many were being exposed as hoaxes," Toufexis noted. "By week's end more than a dozen people had been arrested for making false reports. Among them were a Colorado woman and South Carolina man who were captured on video by store security cameras putting objects in cans; others were admitting they lied."
Why we play victim
There are many reasons why a person might pretend to have been the victim of a scary or dangerous product. Money is of course a big motivation: Pepsi and Toyota have deep pockets, and potential "victims" assume that multinational companies will happily pay a few hundred thousand dollars to avoid bad publicity.
For many, however, the real motivation is simply attention. Some people want to be part of a story they see unfolding in the national news. Others just like pulling a prank to see how far they can take it, assuming either that they won't get caught, or that little will happen if they are caught.
Often, they are right. In cases of copycat complaints, there's little a company can do unless the hoaxer demands money, in which case, he or she can be charged with extortion. Otherwise, it's merely a minor offense of filing a false report. Whether Sikes's incident is a real incident or copycat report remains to be determined, but investigators are watching for hoaxes.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/...mplaints/print
03-18-10, 01:25 PM
#1226
Lexus Connoisseur
Toyota Demands Retraction and Apology From ABC News Over Manufactured Death Ride
Toyota's general counsel is calling on ABC News president David Westin to retract and apologize for a cocked-up story by America's Wrongest Reporter, Brian Ross.
Last month, Ross filed a report featuring a test conducted by David Gilbert, an Illinois professor who claimed to have found a way to induce unintended acceleration in Toyotas without triggering an error code that would allow mechanics to diagnose the problem. The exercise was supposed to prove that it's theoretically possible for Toyotas to accelerate without command and then show no sign of having done so later on.
Ross himself took a little on-camera death ride. And to make it seem even scarier, he took a staged shot of a surging tachometer taken while the car was parked and stitched it in to the piece to make it look like it was happening while he was driving. ABC News later changed the online version of the story after we asked them about the fakery.
The story had other problems, according to Toyota: As the company demonstrated in a lengthy online rebuttal, Gilbert's test almost certainly can't be replicated under real-world conditions. He essentially rewired a Toyota to do what he wanted it to do—accelerate without command and without generating an error code—which is kind of like leaving the gas on a stove on for a few hours and lighting a match to prove that America's kitchens are littered with millions of ticking timebombs. Engineers from Stanford working on Toyota's behalf were able to rewire a Subarus, Honda, Chevrolet, and Ford in the same manner.
And Ross didn't disclose in his report that Gilbert had previously been paid as a consultant by Sean Kane, an investigator working for plaintiff's lawyers in lawsuits against Toyota, and has an agreement with Kane paying him $150 an hour for work "going forward." In the March 11 letter, a copy of which was provided to Gawker by a source close to Toyota, the company says Ross "singularly failed in his basic duty as a journalist to disclose material information about Professor Gilbert that would have directly influenced his credibility with the audience." It also accuses him of "rush[ing] out his report on the eve of important congressional hearings concerning Toyota" and failing to offer the company an opportunity to examine Gilbert's test before responding. Indeed, on February 23, the day after Ross' story aired, Gilbert testified before the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and the death-ride came up.
Read the full letter, which ends with the veiled boilerplate threat that "Toyota reserves the right to take any and every appropriate step to protect and defend the reputation of our company and its products from irresponsible and inaccurate claims," below. A good reporter knows when he gets letters like this that he's doing his job. Unfortunately, Brian Ross is not a good reporter. And he's been off the radar at a particularly sensitive time—Ross hasn't covered Toyota since the furor over his report erupted. An ABC News spokesman says he's in the midst of a "long-planned vacation," and that ABC is "in receipt of Toyota's letter. Our lawyers are looking at it, and we will respond."
Source: Gawker.com
http://gawker.com/5496549/toyota-dem...yline=true&s=i
Toyota's general counsel is calling on ABC News president David Westin to retract and apologize for a cocked-up story by America's Wrongest Reporter, Brian Ross.
Last month, Ross filed a report featuring a test conducted by David Gilbert, an Illinois professor who claimed to have found a way to induce unintended acceleration in Toyotas without triggering an error code that would allow mechanics to diagnose the problem. The exercise was supposed to prove that it's theoretically possible for Toyotas to accelerate without command and then show no sign of having done so later on.
Ross himself took a little on-camera death ride. And to make it seem even scarier, he took a staged shot of a surging tachometer taken while the car was parked and stitched it in to the piece to make it look like it was happening while he was driving. ABC News later changed the online version of the story after we asked them about the fakery.
The story had other problems, according to Toyota: As the company demonstrated in a lengthy online rebuttal, Gilbert's test almost certainly can't be replicated under real-world conditions. He essentially rewired a Toyota to do what he wanted it to do—accelerate without command and without generating an error code—which is kind of like leaving the gas on a stove on for a few hours and lighting a match to prove that America's kitchens are littered with millions of ticking timebombs. Engineers from Stanford working on Toyota's behalf were able to rewire a Subarus, Honda, Chevrolet, and Ford in the same manner.
And Ross didn't disclose in his report that Gilbert had previously been paid as a consultant by Sean Kane, an investigator working for plaintiff's lawyers in lawsuits against Toyota, and has an agreement with Kane paying him $150 an hour for work "going forward." In the March 11 letter, a copy of which was provided to Gawker by a source close to Toyota, the company says Ross "singularly failed in his basic duty as a journalist to disclose material information about Professor Gilbert that would have directly influenced his credibility with the audience." It also accuses him of "rush[ing] out his report on the eve of important congressional hearings concerning Toyota" and failing to offer the company an opportunity to examine Gilbert's test before responding. Indeed, on February 23, the day after Ross' story aired, Gilbert testified before the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and the death-ride came up.
Read the full letter, which ends with the veiled boilerplate threat that "Toyota reserves the right to take any and every appropriate step to protect and defend the reputation of our company and its products from irresponsible and inaccurate claims," below. A good reporter knows when he gets letters like this that he's doing his job. Unfortunately, Brian Ross is not a good reporter. And he's been off the radar at a particularly sensitive time—Ross hasn't covered Toyota since the furor over his report erupted. An ABC News spokesman says he's in the midst of a "long-planned vacation," and that ABC is "in receipt of Toyota's letter. Our lawyers are looking at it, and we will respond."
Source: Gawker.com
http://gawker.com/5496549/toyota-dem...yline=true&s=i
03-18-10, 02:54 PM
#1229
Looks like both Prius cases from the past weeks were driver error-related:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...439136766.html
Like the Sikes Prius hoax, the local police is still not sure, but in both cases the Prius' more detailed computer records apparently absolve it of any defect.
Moreover, a pattern is emerging similar to the Audi cases. My current interpretation:
Hallmarks of Likely Driver Error SUA:
1) Occurs from a standstill or slow speed:
--e.g. in a parking lot
--e.g. near garage/driveway
--e.g. entering highway on-ramp
2) Has an elderly or unskilled driver
3) Claims that the car 'suddenly shot forward'
4) Underlying health conditions
--e.g. epilepsy and medication
--e.g. blood alcohol levels (BAC)
--e.g. circulation/sensation issues
Of course there is a possibility of some sort of malfunction, but pedal misapplication is a real problem. The figures cited in the news of 'linked to Toyota acceleration problems' have been analyzed of late, finding the highest proportion in the 70's-80's age group, and a number of the cases have other indications, including high BAC, medication for seizures, and other issues.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...439136766.html
Prius Probe in Harrison, N.Y., Suggests Driver Error
By KATE LINEBAUGH
The investigation of a Toyota Prius accident in Harrison, N.Y., suggests driver error may have been to blame, after federal safety regulators said the brakes hadn't been applied and the throttle was "wide open."
[Toyota calls on ABC to retract and apologize for what it says was a fabricated news report by the network. WSJ's Neal Boudette joins the News Hub from Detroit to discuss.]
The driver, a 56-year-old housekeeper, told police the car accelerated as she drove down her employer's driveway March 9 and hit a stone wall across the street. The driver said she believed she had applied full force to the brakes, according to the police.
Based on information retrieved from the vehicle's onboard computer systems, a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration spokeswoman said: "There was no application of the brakes and the throttle was fully open."
By KATE LINEBAUGH
The investigation of a Toyota Prius accident in Harrison, N.Y., suggests driver error may have been to blame, after federal safety regulators said the brakes hadn't been applied and the throttle was "wide open."
[Toyota calls on ABC to retract and apologize for what it says was a fabricated news report by the network. WSJ's Neal Boudette joins the News Hub from Detroit to discuss.]
The driver, a 56-year-old housekeeper, told police the car accelerated as she drove down her employer's driveway March 9 and hit a stone wall across the street. The driver said she believed she had applied full force to the brakes, according to the police.
Based on information retrieved from the vehicle's onboard computer systems, a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration spokeswoman said: "There was no application of the brakes and the throttle was fully open."
Moreover, a pattern is emerging similar to the Audi cases. My current interpretation:
Hallmarks of Likely Driver Error SUA:
1) Occurs from a standstill or slow speed:
--e.g. in a parking lot
--e.g. near garage/driveway
--e.g. entering highway on-ramp
2) Has an elderly or unskilled driver
3) Claims that the car 'suddenly shot forward'
4) Underlying health conditions
--e.g. epilepsy and medication
--e.g. blood alcohol levels (BAC)
--e.g. circulation/sensation issues
Of course there is a possibility of some sort of malfunction, but pedal misapplication is a real problem. The figures cited in the news of 'linked to Toyota acceleration problems' have been analyzed of late, finding the highest proportion in the 70's-80's age group, and a number of the cases have other indications, including high BAC, medication for seizures, and other issues.
03-18-10, 03:08 PM
#1230
Lead Lap
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 693
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Added the last bit, based on what John McElroy of Autoline Detroit and Autoblog theorized (see Page 78, Post #1169 of this thread)