Toyota cover-up worse than GM coverup

could charlene be th's alter ego?

 

Well, this is partially accurate....
Last fall I saw a Toyota SUV drive into the front office of a doctors office in the medical park where my dentist is.
It was 1:30PM on a Thursday afternoon... the woman driver was arrested on the spot for DWI after being pulled from the wreck. Her "unintended acceleration accident" in a Toyota occurred because she was drunk off her nice person and hit the gas instead of the brakes... and she was arrested!

 

maybe she was late for her AA meeting.

 

She had just pulled in off a major highway !! and was trying to make a U turn in that parking lot when she lost it and drove over the sidewalk into the building (she also sideswiped a couple of cars while trying to make the U turn in the lot).
She was a 40 something yo white trash d-bag from what I read in the papers...

 

probably found a 'good' lawyer.

 

Unfortunately, many scumbags do and get off lightly.

 

Perhaps, but it still behooves you to know what you talking about because these companies, while not the angels your or I are, are nonetheless *different*.

 

Toyota Sudden Unintended Acceleration
February 5, 2010
http://www.safetyresearch.net/Library/ToyotaSUA020510FINAL.pdf
(see graphs on pages 11 and 12 of 180 using cursor)
(note jump in complaints after introduction of ETCS-i)
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Video: Michael Barr Speaks of Software That Kills

Junko Yoshida, Chief International
Correspondent
5/7/2014 12:21 PM EDT
Video: Michael Barr Speaks of Software That Kills | EE Times
(with 6:08 min video)
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Toyota's killer firmware: Bad design and its consequences
Michael Dunn - October 28, 2013
Toyota's killer firmware: Bad design and its consequences | EDN
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Electrical Failure of an Accelerator Pedal Position Sensor Caused by a Tin Whisker
and Discussion of Investigative Techniques Used for Whisker Detection
Henning Leidecker NASA Goddard
Lyudmyla Panashchenko NASA Goddard
Jay Brusse Dell Federal Government Services
http://nepp.nasa.gov/WHISKER/reference/tech_papers/2011-NASA-GSFC-whisker-failure-app-sensor.pdf
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No easy answer for the Toyota problem

By Jeremy Anwyl Tuesday, March 16, 2010Jeremy Anwyl - No easy answer for the Toyota problem
(see chart): Discrepancy in complaints
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Dr. Ronald A. Belt’s Sudden Acceleration Papers
Dr. Ronald A. Belt’s Sudden Acceleration Papers | The Center for Auto Safety
Further Details on an Electronic Mechanism for Sudden Unintended Acceleration – 2014
A More Detailed Electronic Mechanism for Sudden Unintended Acceleration - 2013
Sudden Acceleration Without an Accelerator Input
An Electronic Cause for Sudden Unintended Acceleration
A Detailed Electronic Mechanism for Sudden Unintended Acceleration
A Layman’s Account of Dr. Belt’s Theory (see page 3 of 4)
Who is Dr. Belt?

 

Toyota's electronic throttle control system software was found to have glitches that could cause such an event. Worse, such an electronic glitch could render the fail-safe (way to stop the SUA) INEFFECTIVE. Result? The Toyota could be a runaway stoppable only by impact. Even then, the engine will continue revving forward until something stops it's forward (or backward as the case may be) momentum.

What has Toyota admitted to regarding ELECTRONIC sudden unintended acceleration? Absolutely nothing, of course! It has washed its corporate hands clean of all things SUA-related since that huge $1.2 BILLION DOJ settlement. In the meantime, the NHTSA and Toyota have received countless complaints about Toyota and Lexus vehicles "taking off," "having a mind of its own," "going airborne," etc. Storefront crashes and crashes-into-buildings/homes continue with a disproportionate number attributed to Toyota and Lexus vehicles.

There's a HUGE push to show driver "pedal misapplication" and much reference to this being a problem with "elderly" drivers. Drivers own complaints (showing remarkable similarity if one compares notes among these types of accidents) are discounted. Worse, drivers are discredited...some say even targeted...by those who wish to keep the truth from surfacing.

Let's see...have we seen an automaker hide key safety-related information before? Have we seen any cases where the NHTSA has even covered for an automaker in such unconscionable actions? OK...you get the idea. THINK...why would an automaker wish to keep ELECTRONIC sudden unintended acceleration a secret? After all, isn't SUA history and just about pesky floor mats, sticky accelerator pedals, or better-yet driver error? NO! That's just what the automaker would like you to believe...and there's a HUGE economic reason for that, isn't there?

Unfortunately, what you do not know about ELECTRONICALLY-induced SUA can be an issue as many of the current SUA victims are learning the hard way. An electronic sudden unintended acceleration event can result (and has!) in jail time for the driver. Why? Speculation of "pedal misapplication" is all that is left when the historically-unreliable EDR (black box) shows no braking even when the driver has two feet on the brake and incurs foot damage (see Tanya Spotts Lexus case). The Toyota electronic throttle control system software glitch has been found not to leave a fault code. The vehicle brakes which did NOT function at the time of the ETCS-i software glitch show no signs of a failure mode. The DRIVER is assumed GUILTY and the vehicle is found fault-free. It continues to happen DAILY.

Absence of proof is NOT proof of absence. This electronic SUA problem is one that every driver should be concerned about. Drivers should be asking some tough questions of the automaker, Toyota specifically.


Let's not forget that these engines are complex and computer-driven. Electronics will have glitches. The important factor is how these glitches are handled within and what safety standards have been applied. An electronic software glitch which renders a fail-safe ineffective is totally unacceptable. Don't make assumptions that strict safety standards have been applied when they have not!

 

Exclusive: Driver of SUV that crashed into
library in Spring Valley speaks out
By Exclusive: Driver of SUV that crashed into library in Spring Valley speaks out | 7online.com
(with 2:52 min video and 2:28 min video – where
driver states: “my feet was on the brake” at 1:28 min mark)
(Toyota RAV4)
===========================================
Brockton crash leaves city man shaken
Allen Gilman was pulling into his garage at a crawl with his foot still on the brakes,
when his 2003 Toyota Camry shot forward crashing into his Thurber Avenue home.
By Morgan True
Brockton crash leaves city man shaken - News - The Enterprise, Brockton, MA - Brockton, MA
(2003 Toyota Camry)
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Family believes Toyota is at fault for accident after car accelerates on its own
by Russell Kinsaul / News 4 KMOV.com
Posted on May 1, 2013 at 6:01 PM

Family believes Toyota is at fault for accident after car accelerates on its own |
KMOV.com St. Louis
(with 2:39 min video segment – and additional mechanic / body shop observation of problem)
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Lexus investigates acceleration complaint from Gwinnett woman
Posted: 6:10 p.m. Friday, Dec. 28, 2012
Lexus investigates acceleration complaint from Gwinnett woman | www.wsbtv.com
(Lexus IS 250 - with 2:07 min video segment)
CMGd Video Player
CMGd Video Player
(Driver’s husband is an ASE Master Mechanic)
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Toyota technicians investigate car in restaurant crash
Published: Jul 12, 2012 at 5:53 PM PDT
Last Updated: Jul 12, 2012 at 6:32 PM PDT
Toyota technicians investigate car in restaurant crash | Local & Regional | Seattle News, Weather, Sports, Breaking News | KOMO News
(Lexus RX350 - with 3:11 min video segment)
=========================================
Toyota whistleblower tells it all
Apr. 9, 2014 | 11:58 AM
 Advertisement
(60:11 min audio interview. Toyota-related portion starts at 16:45 min mark)
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EN Morning News Edition 04/03/14
And later on the show- an exclusive interview
with the Toyota Whistleblower, Betsy Benjaminson
Morning News Edition 19/03/14 | Replay : review news and other shows : morning | i24news - See beyond
(video interview: 46:06 – 1:01:45 min marks in english)
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A Look Back at the Audi 5000 and Unintended Acceleration « Barr Code
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Video: Consumer Reports demonstrates how "brake override" stops runaway cars
Mar 23, 2010 8:28 PM
Video: Consumer Reports demonstrates how "brake override" stops runaway cars
(5:56 min video – note stopping distances and pedal pressure required)
(140 feet to 513 feet – 3.66 times larger)
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GM tests Pontiac Vibe brakes against unintended acceleration in wake of Matrix recall
By Michael Harley

Posted Feb 2nd 2010 12:58PM

GM tests Pontiac Vibe brakes against unintended acceleration in wake of Matrix recall - Autoblog

(127 feet to 507 feet – 3.99 times larger)

=========================================

 

:yawnnnn:

 

"my feet was on the brake" said the 71 year old.

 

But does it render the BRAKES ineffective? That is what I've asked after some of these links were previously posted. Numerous SUA victims have specifically reported this. But a runaway engine, per se, shouldn't disable the brakes.

 

Toyota and Lexus vehicles...especially the Toyota Camry...have taken the lead in terms of sudden unintended acceleration-related crashes, particularly storefront crashes. Toyota vehicles have been found to have electronic glitches in the throttle system software (see Michael Barr's finding at embedded gurus dot com) which can result in a full-throttle condition with an ineffective fail-safe. This is a serious state which can lead to fatality or significant injury. A Toyota owner recently won a big court case (Bookout V. Toyota) against Toyota which involved death and injury to the Toyota Camry occupants.

In addition, Dr. Antony Anderson has analyzed the crash of a 2012 Toyota Highlander into a house. He has compared the recordings of the EDR (black box) with the video footage caught in the home security system. Dr. Anderson found discrepancies between the two. He found inaccurate recording of the EDR. This is significant because often the driver of the vehicle which has crashed into a building or storefront is INCRIMINATED based on the EDR alone. The driver is often braking at the time of the SUA initiation, but Toyota claims he/she is not doing so based in the EDR. In some cases prison time has resulted because the EDR results are accepted over the vehicle driver's sworn statement. Toyota owners BEWARE of Toyota's lack of support after an SUA event!

Sudden unintended acceleration is NOT a problem related only to the elderly or women; it is not a driver error problem; it is not a simple stuck accelerator pedal or drifting floor mat issue. This is a DEADLY issue which the automakers, NHTSA, or the Department of Justice (I.e. Toyota's criminal investigation) have not properly addressed. In fact, there is strong DENIAL that the problem exists at all. Yet...the crashes continue at an alarming rate now.

Barriers placed in front of storefronts is a noble gesture. However, this is just a treat-the-symptom maneuver. The CAUSE must be recognized and fully addressed instead of being ignored.

 

The case in which the defense had Michael Barr(I think was him) investigate Toyota's software involved a fatality in a Camry. The specifics, from memory, was that the SUA happened on an off ramp with a stop at the end. One of the articles on the the SUA subject pointed out that stopping distance from 60mph, while fighting the engine, can be four times longer than braking from that speed with everything working. So, while the brakes may not be effected by the bugs causing the SUA, the when and where of the incident play a major role in safely stopping. In the aforementioned case, there wasn't enough pavement to stop in time.

 

been driving camry's for 15 years. we're on our fourth one. i know, it's always someone else's problem. guess we didn't win the lottery.

 

The electronic throttle control state machine and the brake power assist state machine are separate machines, in separate housings.

The brake power assist system in these cars is paralleled with or layered on top of a mechanical, manually-operable system. In the event of nearly any single failure, including any state machine lockup, the driver should be able to press through the failed power assist layer to the underlying mechanical layer and still get functioning brakes, albeit with far more pedal force producing much less braking effectiveness. Federal braking regulations (CFR 49, Sec 571.135, Standard No. 135; Light vehicle brake systems. - Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration) allow up to 551 feet from highway speed (62 mph) when 112 pounds is applied to the brake pedal.

A state machine lockup that completely disables the brakes would be prima facie evidence of failing to meet this regulation, and force a recall. Many SUA victims have reported complete brake failure. Has Barr or anyone else demonstrated or identified a failure mechanism where the rotten throttle control firmware can cascade over into the brake system and cause such brake failure?

Here is one of my earlier posts on this subject: near complete brake failure on my way home from Coachella | Page 3 | PriusChat