Toyota fights fire with facts in runaway Prius case

Toyotas running away from their owners are occuring at a frequent rate these days, but are all cases genuine or is there something sinister behind the allegations? Could it be like the scandals facing celebrities, where the first few bonafide revelations open the gates for many “victims” trying to “cash in” on the situation?

One James Sikes called 911 earlier this month, saying that his 2008 Prius was traveling at a high rate of speed, the accelerator pedal was stuck, and that the vehicle was out of control and could not be stopped. The operator repeatedly instructed the driver to shift the car into N and turn off the power button. A California Highway Patrol officer intercepted the vehicle and instructed the driver to press firmly on the brakes, apply the emergency brake and turn off the car, at which time the Prius came to a safe stop.

Toyota engineers employed data analysis, static and dynamic testing and inspected all related components of the “problem car”. A final report is not due yet, but there are “strong indications that the driver’s account of the event is inconsistent with the findings of the preliminary analysis”. Toyota believes that Sikes’ assertion that the vehicle could not be stopped with the brakes is fundamentally inconsistent with basic vehicle design and investigation findings. A congressional staff member and NHTSA officers were present during Toyota’s examination, and the latter are conducting their own investigations.

Among the points raised by the embattled carmaker were that Sikes’ car’s accelerator pedal was tested and found to be working normally (the Prius is not subject to the sticky accelerator pedal recall) and the floor mat wasn’t even touching the gas pedal. During testing, Toyota abused the brakes on purpose by continuous light application in order to overheat them. The vehicle could be safely stopped by means of the brake pedal, even when overheated, and there were also no diagnostic trouble codes found in the power management computer.

Read Toyota’s full press release on its findings after the jump.