SCARY; gas pedal stuck, dropped into "b" gear

[spinjunkie53]

Scary experience today.. .had to pass someone and hit the gas pedal, after I passed and let my foot off the gas, the car was still speeding. wasnt sure what was going on, so i stepped on the brake but the engine was still revving. finally reached down and saw that the gas pedal was stuck and had to pull it up. also noticed that it was in 'b' gear.. I have never used 'b' gear before so I am assuming it must have automatically switched into that gear when the gas pedal was stuck while I was trying to brake? I was very lucky in that there was no one in front of me nor behind me at the time.

I thought I had read some posts a while back about prius and stuck gas pedals, but couldnt find anything in my search on the forum. Now I am afraid to step on the gas with any amount of pressure for fear of it getting stuck again. Anyone else ever have this problem?

[brandon]

nope, but here's what I suppose happened. The floormat came unhooked, moved and got stuck on the gas pedal. In the scramble to get the gas pedal "unstuck," you inadvertantly bumped the gearshift downward, putting the Prius into "B" operation.

Just my guess.

[angeleno]

Bad guess Brandon. Prius gas pedal can stick upon hard acceleration. It has nothing to do with floor mats. It's a potentially fatal situation, so shouldn't be so quickly dismissed. Better advice is to not panic and then apply the brakes.

[usbseawolf2000]

BTW, this is over 3 years old thread.

2004 - 2009 Prius was not affected from the gas pedal recall but only the floor mat recall.

[PriusRoadWarrior]

To stop the engine you need to hold the START/OFF button down for a minimum of three (3) seconds.

[patsparks]

Why not just select neutral? Engine drops to near idle once neutral is selected even at full throttle. Takes half of one second.

[larycham]

As a new member to the forum, forgive me if this has already been covered but I am unable to find it.

In December we Prius owners received a notice about the gas pedal sticking with an explanation that the cause was the floor mat. The suggestion was that we simply remove the mat and drive on safely. Now with the latest news about Toyota accelerator problems, I am confused even though I understand that production of the Prius is not being halted. Am I to believe that Toyota cars have two problems with accelerators sticking--one involving the floor mat and another more basic to the accelerator device itself?

Thanks for the answer. Or, just refer me to a previous post that answers my question if you can.

[ronhowell]

Originally Posted by larycham

As a new member to the forum, forgive me if this has already been covered but I am unable to find it.

In December we Prius owners received a notice about the gas pedal sticking with an explanation that the cause was the floor mat. The suggestion was that we simply remove the mat and drive on safely. Now with the latest news about Toyota accelerator problems, I am confused even though I understand that production of the Prius is not being halted. Am I to believe that Toyota cars have two problems with accelerators sticking--one involving the floor mat and another more basic to the accelerator device itself?

Thanks for the answer. Or, just refer me to a previous post that answers my question if you can.

Forget previous posts. Just stick your head down into the foot-well and work the accelerator pedal with your hand. You won't break anything! But you will be able to tell if there is any tendency for the accelerator to stick in an any open position rather than return the closed stop.

If all seems well, there is nothing to worry about. After all, you have had the car for 6 years without problems.

[Flying White Dutchman]

Originally Posted by larycham

As a new member to the forum, forgive me if this has already been covered but I am unable to find it.

In December we Prius owners received a notice about the gas pedal sticking with an explanation that the cause was the floor mat. The suggestion was that we simply remove the mat and drive on safely. Now with the latest news about Toyota accelerator problems, I am confused even though I understand that production of the Prius is not being halted. Am I to believe that Toyota cars have two problems with accelerators sticking--one involving the floor mat and another more basic to the accelerator device itself?

Thanks for the answer. Or, just refer me to a previous post that answers my question if you can.

the prius is only involved in the floor mat problem not the gas pedal problem.. as of today.. maybe it can change.. keep a eye on the news.

but nothing to wurry
just shift in to N neutral and apply the brakes

[richard schumacher]

The Prius pedal uses an electronic position sensor, the other models use a mechanical linkage. Different mechanisms, different problems, though both can be affected by out-of-position floor mats.