Toyota: Democrats 'not industry friendly'

[pBills]

You have no idea what makes a recall necessary.

 

 

Point is that I believe this is NOT a witch hunt.

[Fezmid]

I did read the articles, difference is that toyota has been dominating this market for a looooong time.

 

How does that prove this a real issue...?

 

Or is it typical envy of wanting the big guy to fail?

[pBills]

How does that prove this a real issue...?

 

Or is it typical envy of wanting the big guy to fail?

 

 

One would think that whether it's one or 5,000 gas pedals being stuck the company should look into and verify the problem. I am sure that they did their research prior to the recall.

 

And really wanting the big guy to fail wouldn't that mean ALL automakers would want that

[DC Tom]

One would think that whether it's one or 5,000 gas pedals being stuck the company should look into and verify the problem.

 

That's retarded. Why would you have a corporate-wide investigation into manufacturing quality concerns triggered by a single instance of a fault?

[pBills]

That's retarded. Why would you have a corporate-wide investigation into manufacturing quality concerns triggered by a single instance of a fault?

 

 

Just saying that there is no witch hunt here, no governmental conspiracy against toyota. Their product was flawed, they are fixing it. And I am not upset at all about the bad press they have received.

[Chef Jim]

Just saying that there is no witch hunt here, no governmental conspiracy against toyota. Their product was flawed, they are fixing it. And I am not upset at all about the bad press they have received.

 

So if that's the case why are they being dragged in front of Congress?

[DC Tom]

So if that's the case why are they being dragged in front of Congress?

 

More to the point: "their product is flawed, they are fixing it" is why the Congressional hearings are a witch hunt.

[pBills]

So if that's the case why are they being dragged in front of Congress?

 

 

So believe witch hunt, I believe it to be nothing more than an easy way for the politicians to get some face time with the voters. Election year move.

[Chef Jim]

So believe witch hunt, I believe it to be nothing more than an easy way for the politicians to get some face time with the voters. Election year move.

 

Oh you're 100% right with that. But that doesn't mean it can't also be a witch hunt. They're getting a twofer out of this one.

[pBills]

Oh you're 100% right with that. But that doesn't mean it can't also be a witch hunt. They're getting a twofer out of this one.

 

 

The way they think I think they are only gearing up for the elections.

[ExiledInIllinois]

Wow... Get the slimy lawyers innvolved. Read this story:

 

Fatal Crash: "Toyota Defense

 

Is this just "piling on" or has ther been real issues for a long time. Notice the guy in the article had a 1996 Camry, not sure if that is a typo. Stuff like this opens up a whole can of worms. I am not sure what to think. Again, "piling on?" Going for the "deep pocket?"

 

LINO LAKES, Minn. — Ever since his 1996 Toyota Camry shot up an interstate ramp, plowing into the back of an Oldsmobile in a horrific crash that killed three people, Koua Fong Lee insisted he had done everything he could to stop the car.

 

A jury didn't believe him, and a judge sentenced him to eight years in prison. But now, new revelations of safety problems with Toyotas have Lee pressing to get his case reopened and his freedom restored. Relatives of the victims — who condemned Lee at his sentencing three years ago — now believe he is innocent and are planning to sue Toyota. The prosecutor who sent Lee to prison said he thinks the case merits another look.

 

"I know 100 percent in my heart that I took my foot off the gas and that I was stepping on the brakes as hard as possible," Lee said in an interview Wednesday at the state prison in Lino Lakes. "When the brakes were looked at and we were told that nothing was wrong with the brakes, I was shocked."

 

Lee's accident is among a growing number of cases, some long resolved, that are getting new attention since Toyota admitted its problems with sudden acceleration were more extensive than originally believed. Numerous lawsuits involving Toyota accidents have been filed over the recent revelations, and attorneys expect the numbers will climb..."

[ExiledInIllinois]

Oh you're 100% right with that. But that doesn't mean it can't also be a witch hunt. They're getting a twofer out of this one.

 

It very may be a witch hunt. Yet, the way Toyota has done business and soome very real technical problems make this situation very plausible that Toyota has and was not acting in the best interest of the consumers. The term "witch hunt" implies something totally outlandish. IMO, I do believe there is some real fault here. I think a better term is "piling on."

[ExiledInIllinois]

I guess I was wrong. It wasn't just engine sludging back in the mid to late 1990s:

 

Lee's Camry wasn't among those subject to Toyota's recent safety recalls, but Toyota did recall some 1996 Camrys for defective cruise controls that could cause sudden acceleration.

 

Lee's current attorney, Brent Schafer, said several '96 Camry owners whose cars were not in the recall have filed sudden-acceleration complaints with federal regulators.

 

WTF? That is like 14 years ago!

[Nanker]

Question: What would you do if your car's accelerator "stuck" and you found yourself speeding down the highway?

 

1.) Put it in neutral and coast to the shoulder and turn off the ignition, call a tow truck and have the thing repaired

2.) Call 911 so your last moments are taped for posterity

3.) Continue texting your plight to all your Tweets

4.) Aim the front wheels at a bridge abutment and prepare to make an abrupt stop

5.) Try to make it to your Congress member's office to "show" them the problem in real time

6.) Roll down the window and throw out all the empty beer cans so the cops won't find them at the crash site

7.) Open both doors wide in the (perhaps vain) hope that the increased drag will offset the sticky accelerator issue

8.) Turn up the radio and take another toke - hey all good things must pass

9.) Begin wildly careening across both lanes bouncing off the sides of other cars to try to get the damn petal unstuck

10.) Hastily scribble a note to your heirs telling them that they're going to OWN Toyota one day soon

11.)* If my car's accellerator is "stuck" and "I know 100 percent in my heart that I took my foot off the gas and that I was stepping on the brakes as hard as possible", I just might consider the possibility that my heart has no !@#$ing idea what my foot is doing, and ease up on the brakes to see if the car slows down. I'm funny that way - and practical too.

 

*Thanks and a hat tip to DC Tom.

[DC Tom]

Question: What would you do if your car's accelerator "stuck" and you found yourself speeding down the highway?

 

1.) Put it in neutral and coast to the shoulder and turn off the ignition, call a tow truck and have the thing repaired

2.) Call 911 so your last moments are taped for posterity

3.) Continue texting your plight to all your Tweets

4.) Aim the front wheels at a bridge abutment and prepare to make an abrupt stop

5.) Try to make it to your Congress member's office to "show" them the problem in real time

6.) Roll down the window and throw out all the empty beer cans so the cops won't find them at the crash site

7.) Open both doors wide in the (perhaps vain) hope that the increased drag will offset the sticky accelerator issue

8.) Turn up the radio and take another toke - hey all good things must pass

9.) Begin wildly careening across both lanes bouncing off the sides of other cars to try to get the damn petal unstuck

10.) Hastily scribble a note to your heirs telling them that they're going to OWN Toyota one day soon

 

I can tell you that if my car's accellerator is "stuck" and "I know 100 percent in my heart that I took my foot off the gas and that I was stepping on the brakes as hard as possible", I just might consider the possibility that my heart has no !@#$ing idea what my foot is doing, and ease up on the brakes to see if the car slows down.

 

But I'm funny that way.

[Fezmid]

I can tell you that if my car's accellerator is "stuck" and "I know 100 percent in my heart that I took my foot off the gas and that I was stepping on the brakes as hard as possible", I just might consider the possibility that my heart has no !@#$ing idea what my foot is doing, and ease up on the brakes to see if the car slows down.

 

But I'm funny that way.

 

[ExiledInIllinois]

I know the whole neutral thing... But some people panic or do not have enough time shift into neutral (that is the accident occurs within seconds... Like hitting something).

 

Honestly... What would somebody do if they were pulling into their driveway and the thing accelerated... You would have about a second to react... Now what happens if it crashed through a wall or something... Or ran over somebody... Jumped the curb.

 

ABC just did a thing on how Audi had this problem back in the 1980's (1988)... They had to really change their image because of all the problems with the 500 (I think that was the model). The whole saftey feature about stepping on the brakes to get the car out of park thing came from those Audi cases. I take the same thing with foot on the clutch to start too.

 

What do you do if you are at a light? Sure you may slow down... What about oncoming traffic... Or say into a train at a grade crossing??

 

Sure... I tend to chuckle at the PICNIC (Problem In Chair Not In Computer) angle... But come on... Are we really that cold-hearted?

 

Hopefully with this coming to light, more people can react better. Just to make a comparrison on people react... I mean really, training was give after Columbine... This most recent shooter incident may have been a lot worse. The teacher that jumped the dude before he could chamber another round directly attributes how he reacted to his training that he received. We would all like to think that we would just put the shifter in N and coast to a stop or jump a deranged perp that is looking to hurt people. Most people really have never really thought about these things. They should now.

 

Cars are turning into moving computers... Heck they all ready are. We have to expect they behave better than you run of the mill piece of Dell crap. It is not big issue when your PC behaves badly... It is with a car.

[ExiledInIllinois]

I can tell you that if my car's accellerator is "stuck" and "I know 100 percent in my heart that I took my foot off the gas and that I was stepping on the brakes as hard as possible", I just might consider the possibility that my heart has no !@#$ing idea what my foot is doing, and ease up on the brakes to see if the car slows down.

 

But I'm funny that way.

 

I agree. Yet, what happens if there is no time to react. This story in Minny, I would like to know exactly how close he was to the other automobile. Did he have time to react? Or was it just: Boom!"

[meazza]

I know the whole neutral thing... But some people panic or do not have enough time shift into neutral (that is the accident occurs within seconds... Like hitting something).

 

Honestly... What would somebody do if they were pulling into their driveway and the thing accelerated... You would have about a second to react... Now what happens if it crashed through a wall or something... Or ran over somebody... Jumped the curb.

 

ABC just did a thing on how Audi had this problem back in the 1980's (1988)... They had to really change their image because of all the problems with the 500 (I think that was the model). The whole saftey feature about stepping on the brakes to get the car out of park thing came from those Audi cases. I take the same thing with foot on the clutch to start too.

 

What do you do if you are at a light? Sure you may slow down... What about oncoming traffic... Or say into a train at a grade crossing??

 

Sure... I tend to chuckle at the PICNIC (Problem In Chair Not In Computer) angle... But come on... Are we really that cold-hearted?

 

Hopefully with this coming to light, more people can react better. Just to make a comparrison on people react... I mean really, training was give after Columbine... This most recent shooter incident may have been a lot worse. The teacher that jumped the dude before he could chamber another round directly attributes how he reacted to his training that he received. We would all like to think that we would just put the shifter in N and coast to a stop or jump a deranged perp that is looking to hurt people. Most people really have never really thought about these things. They should now.

 

Cars are turning into moving computers... Heck they all ready are. We have to expect they behave better than you run of the mill piece of Dell crap. It is not big issue when your PC behaves badly... It is with a car.

 

Fezmid posted two links about how the whole Audi stuff was fabricated...

 

I suggest you read it

[Fezmid]

ABC just did a thing on how Audi had this problem back in the 1980's (1988)... They had to really change their image because of all the problems with the 500 (I think that was the model). The whole saftey feature about stepping on the brakes to get the car out of park thing came from those Audi cases. I take the same thing with foot on the clutch to start too.

The "sudden acceleration" was due to the fact that people were putting their foot on the gas instead of the brakes... 60 Minutes fabricated a lot of crap and that's what caused Audi to decline in sales over 60%... Sorta what the government is trying to do to Toyota right now... To improve sales of GM? (that's the cynic in me talking, anyway).

 

Wall Street Journal article from 1989:

http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/cjm_18.htm

 

"Government agencies in Japan and Canada, as well as in the U.S., conducted painstaking studies. The Canadians who are franker about such things, called it "driver error." In America, where we can't attach blame to anyone whose name doesn't end with Inc., it was called "pedal misapplication." And unsurprisingly, it's not just Audi drivers who commit it."

 

"The "60 Minutes" story starred a mother who had run over her sixyearold son. On the air, she insisted that she had had her foot on the brake the whole time. When her $48 million claim came to court in Akron, Ohio, in June 1988 the investigating police officer and witnesses at the scene testified that after the accident the distraught mother had admitted that her foot had slipped off the brake. The jury found no defect in the car."

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/60_Minutes#Un...ed_acceleration

 

Another good article:

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/in-defens...-the-audi-5000/

"Parnelli fired up the Caddy's big V8, dropped it in gear and floored it- with his other foot on the brake. The left rear wheel lit up in a screeching howl; the car was soon engulfed in a cloud of acrid smoke. The Caddy didn't move an inch- obviously. And neither did Parnelli, glancing at the wincing producer with his wicked grin. I had assumed (wrongly) that race-car drivers grew up eventually.

 

The experience seared in a lesson in basic automobile physics: brakes are always more powerful than engines, even when they have 500 cubic inches (8.2 liters). Too bad we didn't have our cameras running. We could have made a graphic rebuttal to 60 Minutes' fraudulent destruction of Audi."