I'm having real problems buying this guy's story.

[markw]

"EL CAJON, Calif. — Before he called 911, James Sikes says he reached down with his hand to loosen the "stuck" accelerator on his 2008 Toyota Prius, his other hand on the steering wheel. The pedal didn't move.

"My car can't slow down," he began when a California Highway Patrol dispatcher answered his call."

Here's a link to the story

Here's but a few questions I have:

1) 23 minutes? ...at full throttle? ...on a crowded cali highway?

Yeah, right. Either he's an amazing driver, the car goes about as fast as a snail (well, it IS a prius), or he's selling us a super-sized load of fertilizer.

2) He didn't think to pop it out of gear? ...even when the dispatcher repeatedly told him to?

I smell a lawsuit.

 

[lsiberian]

"EL CAJON, Calif. — Before he called 911, James Sikes says he reached down with his hand to loosen the "stuck" accelerator on his 2008 Toyota Prius, his other hand on the steering wheel. The pedal didn't move.

"My car can't slow down," he began when a California Highway Patrol dispatcher answered his call."

Here's a link to the story

Here's but a few questions I have:

1) 23 minutes? ...at full throttle? ...on a crowded cali highway?

Yeah, right. Either he's an amazing driver, the car goes about as fast as a snail (well, it IS a prius), or he's selling us a super-sized load of fertilizer.

2) He didn't think to pop it out of gear? ...even when the dispatcher repeatedly told him to?

I smell a lawsuit.

I doubt it was stuck in full throttle, but a prius isn't tuned for performance and he was applying his brakes. The situation seems plausible given the current situation. I suppose it could have been staged though.

 

[markw]

I doubt it was stuck in full throttle, but a prius isn't tuned for performance and he was applying his brakes. The situation seems plausible given the current situation. I suppose it could have been staged though.

To me, the dead giveaway is when he admitted he blew off the dispatcher's instructions to pop it out of gear.

 

[lsiberian]

To me, the dead giveaway is when he admitted he blew off the dispatcher's instructions to pop it out of gear.

It says he was worried about flipping it. I think turning it off was a better move than flipping it to neutral. Not sure why he took so long to turn it off though.

 

[lsiberian]

btw where have you been. I hadn't seen a post from you in ages.

 

[Rickster71]

From article:
"after the CHP caught up and told him to shift to neutral, but the driver shook his head no. Sikes told reporters he didn't go into neutral because he worried the car would flip"

Do they expect any logical person to believe that a guy with at least 40 years of driving experience, thinks his car will flip over if he puts it in neutral?

This is starting to remind me of the Witch Hunt that they did with Silicone breast implants.

 

[markw]

btw where have you been. I hadn't seen a post from you in ages.

It's my busy season. Thanks for asking.

 

[Rickster71]

It's a shame the ECM (control modules) don't have a 'Black Box' type of flight recorder in them.
That would put this whole thing to rest, one way or the other.

 

[rnatalli]

2) He didn't think to pop it out of gear? ...even when the dispatcher repeatedly told him to?

This is what gives me doubt, but I suppose some people don't react well in a panic situation.

 

[markw]

This is what gives me doubt, but I suppose some people don't react well in a panic situation.

It makes me wonder if he really wanted help or simply needed documentation/witnesses.

 

[highfigh]

It says he was worried about flipping it. I think turning it off was a better move than flipping it to neutral. Not sure why he took so long to turn it off though.

Shutting it off is fine of the steering wheel won't lock in one position. Why he needed to use his hand to try lifting the pedal is beyond me- why not use his foot? If he didn't use the advice to shift to neutral, he should get nothing.

People panic. Many are stupid. Some think they know it all. This guy seems like a combination of these. The standard recommendation for a stuck throttle has been to put it in neutral, for decades. If the motor scatters, it shouldn't be too much of a hazard to the driver or others, unless large chunks shoot through the hood or fenders. It's not a perfect solution but it beats careening down the road at high speed. This guy doesn't seem to know about this and didn't have any other way of getting a different car.

I also don't see how Toyota can come out and say that the problem isn't electrical. If their cars use throttle by wire, a physically sticking pedal could cause it but any feedback from the pedal is electrical. The other end has a servo to open and close the throttle, which is the only other part that could be considered 'mechanical'. The rest is all electronic.

 

[TomTx]

He said he was afraid to take his hands off of the wheel to put it in neutral, BUT he tried to pull the pedal up with his hand? This guy is an idiot.

 

[majorloser]

It's a shame the ECM (control modules) don't have a 'Black Box' type of flight recorder in them.
That would put this whole thing to rest, one way or the other.

There's actually been talk about doing just that. Problem is that insurance companies plan on using the information obtained for a basis of paying claims.

 

[Rickster71]

Looking to the past to make sense of the present:
Unintentional acceleration cases became more prevalent after 60 Minutes presented their one-sided coverage of Audi.
The accusations nearly drove Audi out of business in the 1980s, helped along by fabricated TV coverage courtesy of the CBS news show 60 Minutes.

Through manipulating the transmission, CBS managed to get the Audi 5000 to move on its own, but the 60 Minutes feature never brought to light that the car in question had been manipulated. “We were appalled that 60 Minutes put this thing on the air,” stated John Pollard, a principal investigator hired by NHTSA for its study. “It was a stunt…. It does not represent a real-life situation.”
http://www.automobile.com/audi-investigated-for-unintended-acceleration.html

 

[Rickster71]

I also don't see how Toyota can come out and say that the problem isn't electrical. If their cars use throttle by wire, a physically sticking pedal could cause it but any feedback from the pedal is electrical. The other end has a servo to open and close the throttle, which is the only other part that could be considered 'mechanical'. The rest is all electronic.

The pedal feel or feed back is provided by the use of two springs inside the pedal, in conjunction with the pedal's pivot point.
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/toyota-gas-pedal-fix-explained-with-exclusive-photos/

 

[j_garcia]

It's a shame the ECM (control modules) don't have a 'Black Box' type of flight recorder in them.
That would put this whole thing to rest, one way or the other.

There was a big article on this...they DO record information from 5 seconds before to 5 seconds after an impact. The information can only be obtained by a court order though because this is Toyota's policy. They said that there is currently only ONE laptop in the entire US that has the software to read the information as well (though they are shipping a number of additional ones to the US in light of the current situation). GM and a few others do this already and the information can be retrieved by any dealership.

 

[Stereodude]

There was a big article on this...they DO record information from 5 seconds before to 5 seconds after an impact.

It's not impact, it's airbag deployment.

 

[j_garcia]

It's not impact, it's airbag deployment.

In most cases, those are going to be one and the same. You won't have deployment without an impact (hopefully).

 

[Stereodude]

In most cases, those are going to be one and the same. You won't have deployment without an impact (hopefully).

That's what the box is there for. To cover their butt with regards to airbag deployment. However, my point was that you can have an impact without airbag deployment.

 

[Chu Gai]

I find the person's story entirely reasonable. In a panic situation, such as this, depending upon an individual's heartrate, adrenaline levels, and respiratory rates, the ability to look at a situation normally, starts to break down. For sure there are optimum zones for these things in people and their ability to function optimally. You'll see it in competition like when a player who just scores an inordinate amount of points is interviewed and tells everyone that the basket just looked really big. That's why people who can be exposed to high stress situations - Secret Service, athletes, law personnel - practice in real life situations. Because once your heart rate goes above a certain level, your cognitive, reasoning, vision, auditory, and motor skills break down.

This man was in a high stress environment. He knew about Toyota's problems. He knew about the fatalities. Now he was in that same scenario on a freeway with his car taking off and what might appear to be reasonable alternatives to you and me here sitting typing with our heart beating at 70 or so, his was probably pounding with elevated adrenaline levels. He was in panic mode and one that he never expected to be in nor had ever practiced for.

If he decides to sue, there will be plenty of medical data to support the decisions he made or didn't make. He's lucky.