Ms. Rhonda Smith's Runaway 2007 Lexus
#31
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Lou
#32
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I heard this argument before but for a different product: guns. By themselves the are just an object. Put a bullet in a gun and it becomes a potentially deadly weapon. Put it in the hands of someone doesn't know how to use it or someone who is careless and you had better run for cover. In this case we can equate improperly positioned floormats as the bullet and the driver as the carrier of the gun. In the right hands there are no worries. No one is going to argue that the loss of life is tragic but let's not put blame where it doesn't belong. Of course Toyota is going to apologize. If they came out and said "Nope, not our fault" that is obviously career suicide.
#33
Lexus Test Driver
I will not argue with you any longer The fellow that had the same loaner before the cop, had the same thing happen to him. He knew exactly what to do, and reported the floor mat problem to the dealer. Had the dealer acted properly, we would not be having this discussion.
Lou
Lou
#34
were still totaling up the scores as we end the 8th rd...but appears either way Leslie is determined to throw last punch even if he has to go up to Ivory Tower....in seriousness hopefully we can all agree that there really is no one sided answer as to what transpired or what exact future chgs need to be made. But I TRULY BELEIVE Toyota will do everything possible to prevent these situations occurring again but they truly are in a No Win situation.
#35
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Lowrideraz, I don't think you are alone in an ivory tower! Because I must be in there with you! --------------------------------------After spending hours of internet research and other venues and listening to the Congressional hearings live, I can say that the San Diego Lexus incident has been attributed to gas pedal floormat entrapment by both the CHP and NHTSA. Conclusions:
1)The Dealer has the root cause blame by putting the wrong mats in the loaner car and not removing them when they jammed the accelerator pedal on the previous loan. 2) The unfortunate CHP officer at the wheel could have stopped the car by: A) putting the transmission into Neutral. or B) By pushing the start/stop button for 3 seconds. or C) By pulling the floormat off of the gas pedal as the previous run away driver had done. But in a likely and very understandable panic he did not do these things and so the car crashed.
A very sad story indeed. Toyota did not handle any of these claims and problems well at all and they will likely pay a high price for that.
1)The Dealer has the root cause blame by putting the wrong mats in the loaner car and not removing them when they jammed the accelerator pedal on the previous loan. 2) The unfortunate CHP officer at the wheel could have stopped the car by: A) putting the transmission into Neutral. or B) By pushing the start/stop button for 3 seconds. or C) By pulling the floormat off of the gas pedal as the previous run away driver had done. But in a likely and very understandable panic he did not do these things and so the car crashed.
A very sad story indeed. Toyota did not handle any of these claims and problems well at all and they will likely pay a high price for that.
#36
Lexus Test Driver
were still totaling up the scores as we end the 8th rd...but appears either way Leslie is determined to throw last punch even if he has to go up to Ivory Tower....in seriousness hopefully we can all agree that there really is no one sided answer as to what transpired or what exact future chgs need to be made. But I TRULY BELEIVE Toyota will do everything possible to prevent these situations occurring again but they truly are in a No Win situation.
#37
Back in the 80's, I was driving my parent's 1984 Pontiac 6000. The floor mat got tangled with the gas pedal, and guess what....the car's accelerator got stuck and I was out of control. However, I quickly put the car in N, pulled over to fix the mat, and then went on my way.
So, this can happen to any car, not just Lexus and Toyota.
So, this can happen to any car, not just Lexus and Toyota.
#38
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es350 brake overide
I had mine done this week at Lexus dealer. I requested to the dealer I would like to test drive it with him when they were done...guess what.they forgot to tell me they did the test drive already. I went home. My husband went out on the road and did exaclty what the Mgr told us to do to test the breakoveride. Guess what..IT DID NOT WORK. The RPM's were higher than before...guys and gals..something is wrong here.....I went back to the dealer today. I said Chris we need to test drive it...I want you to see...He test drove it with us...the RPM did not drop....he said, dont you see its slowing down....My husband shook his head in disbelief who is he kidding...I now have called THREE lexus dealers....all of them said the RPM should drop to a idle speed...well the RPM did not drop and the car did not slow down....dont believe what you hear...I am calling the local news in Charlotte regarding this...I am also calling the local newspaper....I am also calling LEXUS 1800....to report....someone will check this out for me....
#40
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I noticed that a couple of you feel she may have been exaggerating her problem somewhat. If you follow the case, she wasn't the only one with a problem. There were also the deaths of California Highway Patrol officer, Mark Saylor and his family in San Diego whose Lexus accelerated out of control and whose last pleas were recorded in a 911 call.
The NHTSA in their investigation was not able to find anything wrong with that car.
#42
I had mine done this week at Lexus dealer. I requested to the dealer I would like to test drive it with him when they were done...guess what.they forgot to tell me they did the test drive already. I went home. My husband went out on the road and did exaclty what the Mgr told us to do to test the breakoveride. Guess what..IT DID NOT WORK. The RPM's were higher than before...guys and gals..something is wrong here.....I went back to the dealer today. I said Chris we need to test drive it...I want you to see...He test drove it with us...the RPM did not drop....he said, dont you see its slowing down....My husband shook his head in disbelief who is he kidding...I now have called THREE lexus dealers....all of them said the RPM should drop to a idle speed...well the RPM did not drop and the car did not slow down....dont believe what you hear...I am calling the local news in Charlotte regarding this...I am also calling the local newspaper....I am also calling LEXUS 1800....to report....someone will check this out for me....
#43
I had mine done this week at Lexus dealer. I requested to the dealer I would like to test drive it with him when they were done...guess what.they forgot to tell me they did the test drive already. I went home. My husband went out on the road and did exaclty what the Mgr told us to do to test the breakoveride. Guess what..IT DID NOT WORK. The RPM's were higher than before...guys and gals..something is wrong here.....I went back to the dealer today. I said Chris we need to test drive it...I want you to see...He test drove it with us...the RPM did not drop....he said, dont you see its slowing down....My husband shook his head in disbelief who is he kidding...I now have called THREE lexus dealers....all of them said the RPM should drop to a idle speed...well the RPM did not drop and the car did not slow down....dont believe what you hear...I am calling the local news in Charlotte regarding this...I am also calling the local newspaper....I am also calling LEXUS 1800....to report....someone will check this out for me....
#44
Racing....that's just it...99 of 100 or higher are working just fine but we won't hear much from these folks....because it's time to pile on the Media avalance...sure there will be about 10 more Ms Smith's coming soon also. I agree with earlier post said my many this can happen to any other model vehicle,.
Last edited by JRey350hou; 02-27-10 at 08:04 PM.
#45
If you look at who is making the most noise about Toyota's ongoing problems it's the congressmen from states that are heavily invested with domestic auto plants. No congressmen from states where Toyota has a strong presence is making charges and complaints. The federal government is getting their 'licks' in too, because they have given Chrysler and GM billions, so if the domestics can gain market share, then everybody wins, except Toyota of course, one could say they certainly 'stumbled' at the wrong time. They need to quickly address all concerns even if some are of a dubious nature. Dealers will tell you 'off the record' that Toyota tried to grow too fast and placed quantity over quality and used 'low end' suppliers, but I believe they have certainly learned their lesson and will be right back on top soon. Don't forget that Toyota and indeed Lexus have their 'core' customer base that will remain loyal even in the face of the fallout and strong incentives from other auto makers. The task for Toyota is to prevent those Toyota owners who are on the 'fence' and potential new customers from bailing out and looking elsewhere. Strong incentives and 'pampering' would be a good place to start.