nhtsa

Report: U.S. finds driver error in some Toyota cases

Early findings by the U.S. Department of Transportation indicate that drivers were to blame in some sudden-acceleration accidents, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing people familiar with the results.

Preliminary results show some cases of driver error, the Journal reported Wednesday. "The early results suggest that some drivers who said their Toyotas and Lexuses surged out of control were mistakenly flooring the accelerator when they intended to jam on the brakes," the Journal said.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has yet to release the findings and it declined to comment about them, the Journal … Read more

General Motors recalls 1.5 million vehicles

General Motors today announced its recalling 1.5 million 2007-2009 model cars, trucks, and crossovers to disable a heated washer fluid system module that could pose a fire risk. Because the feature will be disabled, GM will make a voluntary payment of $100 to the owner or lessee of each vehicle.

There are no known injuries or crashes related to the condition, according to a GM news release.

"While our analysis shows the number of incidents is very small compared with the number of vehicles on the road, we want our customers to have complete peace of mind," … Read more

Toyota challenges 'runaway' Prius driver's account

Toyota on Monday released information that calls into question a driver's account of uncontrollable acceleration affecting his Toyota Prius in San Diego.

In a video released Monday by Toyota titled "Toyota preliminary findings of alleged runaway Prius," Toyota Motor Sales Vice President Mike Michels questioned Jim Sikes' account of uncontrolled acceleration in his Prius last week in San Diego.

On March 7, James Sikes called 911, saying the accelerator in his Prius was stuck and he couldn't slow down. The event was thought to be related to glitches that, in rare cases, may cause uncontrolled acceleration … Read more

Report: Test can't re-create 'runaway' Prius

A U.S. government agency and Toyota could not replicate an alleged runaway Prius incident in San Diego, according to an Associated Press report.

On March 7, James Sikes called 911, saying the accelerator in his Prius was stuck and he couldn't slow down. The event was thought to be related to mechanical or electronic glitches that, in rare cases, may cause uncontrolled acceleration in the Toyota Prius.

But in a memo drafted for a congressional panel, technicians with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Toyota were unable to replicate the problem on Sikes' car, according to the AP report.

"Every time the technician placed the gas pedal to the floor and the brake pedal to the floor, the engine shut off and the car immediately started to slow down," the report said. The memo went on to say that it would not be likely that Sikes's gas pedal would be stuck while he was slamming on the brakes at the same time.

A similar conclusion was reached by Edmunds.com on Friday, which CNET reported based on an interview with Dan Edmunds, director of vehicle testing at Edmunds. The car Web site conducted a test on a Prius in an attempt to replicate the problem that Sikes… Read more

Toyota recalls vehicles over loose floor mats

An alert issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about the potential for floor mats in various late-model Toyota and Lexus vehicles to jam the accelerator open prompted Toyota to place a recall for 3.8 million vehicles. The NHTSA issued the alert following an investigation into the crash of a 2009 Lexus ES350 in San Diego last month, which might have been caused by the floor mat sticking the gas pedal in the open position.

The cars affected by the recall are the 2007-to-2010 Camry, 2005-to-2010 Avalon, 2004-to-2009 Prius, 2005-to-2010 Tacoma, 2007-to-2010 Tundra, 2007-to-2010 Lexus ES350, and 2006-to-2010 … Read more