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Toyota Recall: Commercial Admits Toyota Not Living Up To Standards

Brett Emison — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 08:18:58 GMT

In the wake of recalling more than 9 million vehicles worldwide across more than half of its model lines, Toyota has undertaken an advertising blitz designed to calm customers' fears. In its latest commercial, Toyota admits that it "hasn't been living up to the standards you've come to expect from [it]". But what about Toyota's other claims? Is Toyota being truthful with you?

In it's print advertising campaign, Toyota promised to "put you first." But Toyota's actions speak much louder than its words. Unfortunately, Toyota's latest commercial appears to be more double speak from a car company that ignored a deadly problem for far too long. Let's fact check Toyota's commercial.

"We have a fix for our recalls."

Toyota claims in its ad that it has a fix for its recalls. That may be partially true. Unfortunately, its recalls do not fix all of the causes of sudden acceleration. Toyota vehicles will continue to accelerate out of control despite the recalls. Toyota has continued to ignore the possibility that the sudden acceleration problem is caused by an electronic malfunction or electro-magnetic interference.

Independent safety experts at Safety Research & Strategies have identified at least five potential causes for the Toyota sudden acceleration problem. Toyota's multiple recalls do not address all of the problems:

Pedal Entrapment

Pedal Misapplication

Electomagnetic Interference

Electronic Problems

Cracked Throttle Body Shafts

We know that replacing a "sticky" gas pedal or the floor mat will not resolve all of these problems, because:

Sudden acceleration has happened when the vehicle is in idle (neutral)
Sudden acceleration has happened when the brake pedal is engaged
Sudden acceleration has happened when no floor mats are in the vehicle
Sudden acceleration has happened in vehicles while at constant highway speed

An essential fix -- that has not yet been rolled out -- is installation of "smart brake" technology that would override the throttle input when the brake pedal is engaged. These systems would have prevented nearly every injury and death from sudden acceleration; have been available for more than a decade; and would have cost less than $1 per vehicle to install in the factory.

"We stopped production so we could focus on our customers' cars. . . first."

Umm... not really. Toyota stopped production, but not voluntarily. Toyota halted production only under pressure from safety experts at the US Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ("NHTSA").

"The truth is, the reason Toyota decided to do the recall and to stop manufacturing is because we asked them to," [Transportation Secretary Ray] LaHood told WGN Radio

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"NHTSA informed Toyota of their obligations and they complied with the law," David Strickland, administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said via e-mail. "Their decision to halt sales was legally and morally the right thing to do."

You see, Toyota issued a recall of production line vehicles before it had come up with a remedy. Toyota could not legally keep selling vehicles it knew to be defective to unsuspecting buyers (although Toyota tried to do so).

Even worse, when Toyota did come up with a "fix" for the "sticky" pedal problem, Toyota kept the replacement parts for itself rather than sending the fix to its dealers. Toyota fixed its own cars first and only later fixed yours.

Toyota also fixed the "sticky" pedal problem in Europe before Toyota fixed it here in the United States. Toyota had already fixed the "sticky" gas pedal problem in Europe while it was still denying the problem existed in the United States. Why? Why fix European cars while Americans are being injured and killed by the exact same defect? Are European lives more valuable than American lives?

Toyota's History

Toyota has a well-documented history of attempted cover-ups of safety problems. The Detroit Free Press has documented how Toyota has stonewalled the investigation of these problems since at least 2003.

A Free Press review of documents from nine U.S. investigations since 2003 into sudden acceleration complaints show Toyota repeatedly ruled out many owner complaints, dismissed several concerns as posing no danger and modified models in production without offering similar changes to vehicles already on the road. Not until the 2007 floor mat investigation did any of the complaints lead to a recall.

Safety advocates and attorneys for owners suing over sudden acceleration say Toyota has simply stonewalled.

Instead of doing the right thing and fixing these problems on its own, Toyota had to be pressured into finally fixing these problems. While Toyota waited, innocent people died.

Toyota's president was on the Today show being interviewed by Matt Lauer and spouted many of these same lies.

After dragging its feet and being called "safety deaf" on the sudden acceleration recall, Toyota did it again when Toyota knew of the problems with its Prius brakes long before warning its drivers, customers and innocent motorists.

As I have documented here for the last several months, Toyota has known about -- and ignored -- its sudden acceleration problem for more than five years. Instead of acknowledging and repairing this widespread defect, Toyota waited years to acknowledge the defect and instead blamed its own customers. It appears Toyota's conduct is just more of the same for a company with a documented history of safety-problem cover-ups.

So, you be the judge: Is Toyota being honest with you? Is Toyota putting you first? Do you expect more from the company that builds your vehicle?

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Liberty, Missouri Man Killed In Snowy Collision

Brett Emison — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:41:26 GMT

The Kansas City Star reported this afternoon that a Liberty, Missouri man was killed when his vehicle slid across the median of Missouri 152 Highway and struck an oncoming vehicle.

A 45-year-old Liberty man was killed today when his vehicle was struck in a head-on collision along Missouri 152 near Green Hills Road in Kansas City, North, authorities said.

The name of the victim has not been released. A 5-month-old child who was in the vehicle was rushed to Children’s Mercy Hospital. The child’s condition was not available.

Traffic along Missouri 152 was shut down.

The accident occurred at 2 p.m. when snow and icy conditions caused a Kansas City resident to lose control of his vehicle while traveling east on Missouri 152, said Officer Darin Snapp, police spokesman.

The vehicle crossed the median and collided with the vehicle driven by the 45-year-old man. The driver of the first vehicle was taken to a hospital; his condition was not available.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the individual killed and the child that was injured in this accident. This crash is a tragic reminder of the perils of winter driving.

It is also a reminder that vehicle safety systems need to protect a driver, because threatening weather can sneak up on anyone. For example, most drivers think simply strapping on a seat belt will be be safe enough, but proper seat belt design is critical.

Some seat belts are not designed properly and simply cannot be worn safely. For example, many vehicles on the road still have two-point (or lap belt only) seat belts. This type of restraint system leaves your torso and head -- the heaviest and most vital portion of your body -- completely unrestrained in an accident or collision.

Car makers have known of the dangers of lap belt only restraints for decades, but only recently began providing three-point (lap/shoulder belt) restraints in every seat. Avoid sitting in a location that provides a lap belt only restraint if at all possible.

Defective seat belts -- those with bad geometry, poor fit or other bad designs -- will make injuries worse in an accident.

Air bags are another prime example. Air bags must be designed and calibrated correctly in order to be effective. In some cases, air bags do fire when they are supposed to fire. In other cases, air bags may fire when they are not supposed to fire. Sometimes, the air bag fires at the correct time, but with such force that it harms the occupant more than the collision.

Many air bag related injuries could be avoided using technology that has been around for years.

Unfortunately, it may be impossible to tell if your seat belt or air bag have hidden defects until it is too late.

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Toyota Recall: Company To Recall More Than 300,000 Toyota Prius Hybrid Vehicles

Brett Emison — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 12:29:44 GMT

A growing number of sources, including USA Today and WHIO TV, are reporting that Toyota will call at least 300,000 Toyota Prius models for a defect in the vehicle's braking system.

Like the multiple Toyota sudden acceleration recalls, it appears that Toyota sat on knowledge of its Prius brake system problem while the defect was affecting customers.

Toyota will likely announce this week that it plans to recall at least 311,000 of its 2010 Prius hybrids around the world to fix the brakes, reports Japanese media and the New York Times.

It will become Toyota's third major recall at present, following two for unintended acceleration. But at least on this one, at least the numbers are fairly paltry compared to the eight million cars under recall around the world, more than five million of them in the U.S.

A Prius recall hurts, however, because the car has been emblematic of how Toyota differs from other automakers:

It's a high-volume hybrid that sells at a relatively affordable price, often cited as the kind of vehicle that Detroit should have been building.

Specifically, the complaint is that Prius brakes can momentarily stop working after the car hits a bump. The problem has been blamed for several accidents, but no deaths. Interestingly, Toyota ran a Prius ad during the Super Bowl halftime, at least the feed that runs in Southern California. Edmunds.com says it saw an spurt in increase in people researching the Prius on its site last week, possibly indicating they were getting ready to pounce if the Prius' price drops as a result of the publicity around its troubles.

Toyota just launched an ad campaign claiming it puts you first. Does it really?

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Toyota Recall: Toyota's Friends In High Places

Brett Emison — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 11:46:26 GMT

As Congress prepares to hold a committee hearing on the Toyota sudden acceleration recalls this week, some news outlets openly question whether Toyota's influence peddling and lobbying may offer some protection. Will Toyota's friends in high places pull some punches?

Toyota's lobbying spending in Washington has risen as its U.S. sales have. Toyota spent $5 million last year lobbying on such issues as industry regulation, energy, labor laws, patents, trade, taxes and government contracting. That's more than five times what it spent a decade earlier, when one of its lobbying reports acknowledged that its mission included "reducing unnecessary regulations." It is active in several trade associations that lobby, including the National Association of Manufacturers.

Its Washington team is well connected.

CBS News affiliate, KCTV-5, notes that the Senate's lead Toyota investigator, Jay Rockefeller, credits himself with lobbying Toyota to build a factory in his state. David Strickland, the head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration worked for eight years on Rockefeller's committee as a lawyer and senior staffer.

Toyota's US headquarters are located in California Representative Jane Harmon's district. Rep. Harman and her husband held at least $115,000 in Toyota stock as of her most recent financial disclosure statement. Harman's company - Harman International Industries - sells vehicle audio and entertainment systems to Toyota.

Several other lawmakers on investigating committees have ties to Toyota, including Senators and Representatives from Missouri, Texas, Mississippi, Michigan, Indiana and Kentucky.

Congressional ties to Toyota are bipartisan - several Republicans have also spoken of Toyota's importance to their states.

"Kentucky is still reaping the rewards of its 20-year partnership with Toyota, and we hope to continue to do so for years to come," Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said in marking the 2006 anniversary of a Toyota plant there.

***

"Words cannot express the generosity that Toyota has shown Kentucky through industry job opportunities and community service," Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., said in a 2006 Senate speech.

Let's hope our representatives continue to put the safety and lives of their constituents ahead of Toyota's massive lobbying efforts. This deadly safety problem should be taken seriously by those who swore an oath to represent the American people, not foreign corporations.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Toyota Recall: Safety Research & Strategies Releases Full Report On Sudden Acceleration Problem

Brett Emison — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:38:58 GMT

Sean Kane and the excellent staff members at Safety Research & Strategies have been documenting the sudden acceleration (aka sudden unintended acceleration or "SUA") problems that have plagued Toyota and led to the recall of more than 9 million vehicles. Sean and his team have compiled an in-depth 180 page report documenting a full account of Toyota's sudden acceleration problem. You can view the entire report by clicking on the title page below.

Some highlights:

2.262 Toyota and Lexus owners have reported an SUA event to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ("NHTSA") since 1999
Of the 2,262 complaints, about half are from drivers of vehicles that have not yet been recalled
There have been 815 SUA crashs; 341 injuries and 19 deaths
The SUA problem spans many years, makes and models and the scenarios in which they occur show different patterns of problems
There are likely to be several causes of the SUA problem
Neither Toyota nor NHTSA has identified all of the causes of SUA in Toyota and Lexus vehicles
Toyota has been slow to accept its responsibility in creating this safety hazard
NHTSA's investigations have been too brief and cursory to identify potential causes for Toyota SUA
Replacing a sticking gas pedal or the floor mat will not resolve the problem, because (1) SUA has occurred when the vehicle is in idle mode; (2) SUA has occurred when the brake pedal is engaged; (3) SUA has occurred when no floor mats are present; and (4) SUA has occurred in vehicles while at constant highway speed
Regardless of the cause, Toyota's first step should be to ensure that the public is protected by installing a "smart brake" system across all model lines and years.

The Report finds the following potential causes for Toyota's sudden acceleration problem:

Pedal Entrapment
Pedal Misapplication
Electromagnetic Interference
Electronic Problems
Cracked Throttle Body Shafts

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Pilot Error; Poor Training Blamed In Colgan Air Flight 3407 Crash

Brett Emison — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:43:23 GMT

The NTSB has issued its findings about what caused Colgan Air Flight 3407 to crash a year ago outside Buffalo, New York. Several sources, including this one, have reported on the NTSB's findings, which blamed pilot error and poor training for the crash that killed all on board.

The crash has raised eyebrows about how well (or how poorly) pilots are trained at smaller regional airlines and passenger confusion about who is really operating their flights.

The NTSB has blamed pilot error and poor training for the crash, noting that the plane's captain, Marvin Renslow, "had not established a good foundation of attitude instrument flying skills early in his career, and his continued weaknesses in basic aircraft control and instrument flying were not identified and adequately addressed." Renslow's career spanned two decades and had failed five performance checks during that time. Colgan Air was only aware of three. Colgan said had they known about the other two, they would not have hired Renslow in 2005.

***

[T]he report also criticized Colgan saying that the airline, "did not pro-actively address the pilot fatigue hazards associated with operations at a predominantly commuter base." Adding that, "Operators have a responsibility to identify risks associated with commuting, implement strategies to mitigate these risks, and ensure that their commuting pilots are fit for duty."

Another factor brought up the by the NTSB was the violation of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) sterile cockpit rule. It was noted that first officer Shaw had sent two text messages before take-off at Newark. The second message was sent two minutes before take-off.

Prior to landing, the cockpit voice recorder recorded that the pilots were holding a conservation that potentially distracted the captain from operating the plane. Robert Sumwalt, a member of the NTSB board said, "It was continuous and one-sided, with the captain doing most of the talking." He added, "It was as if the flight was just a means for the captain to conduct a conversation with this young first officer."

According to The Huffington Post, the Airline Pilots Association is furious about the probable cause issued by the NTSB.

In a statement later, ALPA president John Prater pointed out what should be obvious to the board because its a basic truth in accident investigations; there is no one cause.

"The Board has missed a valuable opportunity to highlight the many factors that combined to cause this tragedy," Mr. Prater said.

The full NTSB probable cause statement follows below, but in summary, the board cites four actions, lapses actually: 1) the crew's failure to monitor airspeed, 2) its failure to observe discipline in the cockpit, 3) the captain's failure to monitor the flight and 4) the airline's operating procedures for flights in icing conditions.

As The Huffington Post asks: How was this pilot in the cockpit in the first place?

John Gadzinski, an airline pilot and fellow member of the International Society of Air Safety Investigators told me once - and I'm going to paraphrase here because truth be told, we were drinking at the time - that an airline's commitment to safety can be easily determined by answering this simple question. Is there a gap between its policies and its practices?

Colgan repeatedly states that safety is a top concern and yet, here's the gap. Colgan claimed to have a policy prohibiting pilots from overnighting in crew lounges, yet it was a well known fact that commuting pilots did just that. Colgan claimed use of personal electronic devices was prohibited, and yet, the 24-year-old first officer on the flight not only felt free to send text messages, but when she did so, the captain failed to say anything to her about it.

Sterile cockpit? We'll that's not just a Colgan "policy"; its an F.A.A. requirement. On the night of the crash, Flight 3407 had an hour-long taxi out at Newark Liberty Airport while waiting takeoff. Virtually the entire time was spent in conversation, but only sixteen minutes of talk was about the flight.

Its just not believable that this kind of cockpit behavior was unknown to Colgan. Getting to the heart of why that was the case is entirely relevant to determining why this plane crashed. Its bigger than Mr. Renslow and Ms. Shaw. Its bigger than Colgan too. There's a crisis here, but you'd never know it by reading the probable cause statement.

I have previously highlighted the need for better training and more experienced pilots at these small regional airlines. The Buffalo News did an in-depth investigation that found small regional airlines were twice as likely as major airlines to have crashes caused by pilot error. Part of the reason is gross underpayment of regional airline pilots. When you pay your pilots only $20,000 per year, you tend to get what you pay for.

Airlines need to do more to ensure their pilots are properly trained and properly compensated. I don't know about you, but I want to make sure the man or woman in charge of taking me safely from 30,000 feet down to the ground has the very best training and actually makes more money than the very nice flight attendant serving me a Coke in the back.

All airlines -- regional, national, international -- need to make sure that those charged with delivering hundreds of passengers from city to city receive the highest and best training possible. One little mistake can have disastrous consequences.

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Toyota Recall: New Study Blames Electronic Throttle Control For Sudden Acceleration

Brett Emison — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:41:23 GMT

Sean Kane and Safety Research & Strategies have reported a study showing that Toyota's electronic throttle controls as the likely culprit for the sudden acceleration problem.

A new scientific report from Quality Control Systems Corp. finds that the proportion of consumer complaints related to vehicle speed control in some Toyota Camry, Tacoma, and Lexus ES vehicles is substantially higher in those models with electronic throttle control systems (Toyota’s “ETCS-i”) than it is for the same models without electronic throttle control. The report also finds the proportion of reported speed control failures among complaints in the non-recalled Toyota Camrys with electronic throttle control compared to the recalled Camrys with electronic throttle control particularly troubling.

The report, written by Randy and Alice Whitfield, tested Toyota’s conclusion that there is ‘no indication’ of a throttle or electronic control system malfunction in the recalled vehicles as an hypothesis using data taken from consumer complaints made to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Mr. Whitfield stated: “On the basis of the consumer complaint data, we believe there is evidence both to question and to reject this hypothesis for the recalled vehicles in our study.”

The study was limited to the period beginning in 1999 until just before the well-known Santee, California crash so that the publicity surrounding the crash would not affect the study’s results.

The report adds new information about the actual differences seen in complaint patterns for specific models with ETCS-i in their engines compared to the same models without ETCS-i. Even among vehicles that were not recalled, speed control related complaints were reported at a higher rate for all three models with ETCS-i.

Differences in the reporting of speed control related complaints are also shown in the report for the recalled vehicles with ETCS-i compared with the non-recalled vehicles with ETCS-i. The Whitfields found that proportion of complaints related to speed control for the unrecalled Camrys with ETCS-i was 29%, compared with 25% for the recalled Camrys with ETCS-i.

Important questions have been recently raised asking whether accelerator pedal entrapment or stuck accelerator pedals fully explains many incidents of sudden, unintended acceleration. The report adds new data about the role played by electronic throttle control systems in the complaints to NHTSA by consumers.

You can download a copy of the report here.

As I have documented for months, many experts believe Toyota's sudden acceleration problem stems primarily from a defect in the vehicles' electronics - the electronic throttle controls and the on-board computer. Now, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (who drives a Toyota Prius) and US safety officials are publicly investigating Toyota's electronics. New reports show that electromagnetic interference may be a culprit.

With new, high-profile investigations into Toyota's electronics, the mainstream media is finally starting to take notice. USA Today featured an article explaining how radio wave interference could cause electronic throttles to go haywire.

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Same Song, Different Verse: Toyota Knew About Prius Brake Problems, But Didn't Tell You

Brett Emison — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:22:08 GMT

After dragging its feet and being called "safety deaf" on the sudden acceleration recall, Toyota has done it again. CNN has reported that Toyota knew of the problems with its Prius brakes long before warning its drivers, customers and innocent motorists.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Toyota has known about brake problems in its popular Prius cars for some time, going so far as to fix it in new production vehicles, but has kept Prius drivers in the dark about the problem until the Japanese government called for an investigation.

Prius hybrid cars coming off Toyota's assembly line in Japan have had an improved version of the software used to control the cars' brakes since January.

***

Prior to the revelation on Tuesday that the Japanese government was pushing Toyota to do something about mounting complaints about Prius brakes, Toyota had said nothing publicly about the problems.

Toyota just launched an ad campaign claiming it puts you first. Does it really?

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Toyota Posts $1.7 Billion Quarterly Profit Despite Recall

Brett Emison — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 11:04:35 GMT

Several news outlets, including CNN (see video above) and the Associated Press have reported that Toyota made $1.7 billion during the months of October, November and December 2009 despite recall woes stemming from Toyota's sudden acceleration problem.

The world's No. 1 automaker Thursday reported a quarterly net profit of 153.2 billion yen ($1.7 billion) and cited stronger sales of the Prius and other "green" models, as well as a recovery in the U.S. and Japan. It reported a 164.7 billion yen loss in the same quarter a year earlier.

Toyota was raking in the dough during the final months of 2009, even as it dragged it heals on the sudden acceleration problem. From October through December Toyota earned profits (not just revenue) of more than $18.4 million each day.

It appears that Toyota was more focused on gaining market share and profits than it was in making sure its vehicles were safe. In fact, the top auto safety official in the United States called Toyota "safety deaf" and detailed how Toyota had dragged its feet in finally recognizing the seriousness of the sudden acceleration problem.

After ignoring the sudden acceleration problem for more than five years, Toyota has expanded its multiple gas pedal recalls of more than 9 million vehicles for a fifth time to include Toyota vehicles sold in Israel.

Just in the last week, we have learned that Toyota fixed the "sticky" pedal problem in Europe last year while it was still denying the problem in the US. Why did Toyota fix its European cars while Americans were getting injured and killed by the exact same defect?

We saw that the president of Toyota appears to have lied on the Today Show in an interview with Matt Lauer.

We also learned that a "smart brake" system would have prevented nearly all of the sudden acceleration crashes, has been around for 15 years and would have cost less than $1 per vehicle. Now, Toyota has developed a fix for the "sticky" pedal problem, but is keeping the parts for itself rather than sending them out dealers and Toyota's customers to fix these deadly vehicles that are already on American roads.

I have been documenting the Toyota sudden acceleration and "sticky throttle" problems for months and you can learn more at our auto safety blog.

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison

Toyota Recall Woes Extend To Prius

Brett Emison — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 10:05:14 GMT

Toyota's recall and auto defect woes extended yesterday to include a newly discovered defect with Toyota Prius brakes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration told the Associated Press that it has received 124 reports from Toyota owners and drivers, including reports of four crashes. Customers allege momentary loss of braking capacity while traveling over uneven roads, potholes or bumps.

Toyota acknowledge the Prius brake problem while reporting a $1.7 billion profit for its October through December quarter.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

TOKYO (AP) -- Toyota acknowledged that is has begun fixing problems with the brakes in its prized Prius, but remains undecided about a recall, adding to the catalog of safety woes - and muddled responses - at the Japanese automaker.

Toyota Motor Corp., already reeling from massive global recalls involving faulty gas pedals in other cars and trucks, said Thursday that Prius models sold since late last month, including those shipped overseas, had the problem with the antilock brake system corrected.

But that still leaves the potential flaw in Priuses sold in Japan and overseas before late January. And while Japan's transport minister urged Toyota to consider a recall of the Prius and said he is ordering an investigation into the brake problem, Toyota executive Hiroyuki Yokoyama said the company hasn't yet decided if a recall is necessary.

The U.S. Transportation Department said Thursday it has opened an investigation into brake problems in the 2010 model year Prius.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration told The Associated Press it has received 124 reports from consumers, including four reports of crashes. The investigation will look into allegations of momentary loss of braking capability while traveling over uneven road surfaces, potholes or bumps.

Toyota acknowledged the brake problem while reporting a $1.7 billion profit for its October-December quarter.

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The flaw, which requires a software programming change to fix, makes the brakes momentarily unresponsive. Toyota was checking if there were reports of similar problems with other hybrid models though they use a different braking system from the Prius.

It is becoming more and more apparent that Toyota sacrificed quality and safety in its quest for market share and the almighty dollar. Toyota needs to be held accountable for putting profits over safety and market share over the lives of its customers.

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Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Brett Emison