This isn't usually the kind of stuff I'd write about, but I figured this was too big to ignore.
Take a look at the following articles:
-NHTSA: Toyota legally obligated to halt sales
-GM Woos Fearful Toyota Owners With New Round of Incentives
For those of you who aren't aware of the situation, Toyota has been in the spotlight in automotive news because of the recent-ish discovery of an issue with regards to stuck accelerator pedals/throttles. Naturally, such an issue is very dangerous. In fact, there have been more than a few reported cases of deaths because of the problem.
Consider this:
You're driving on the interstate and suddenly your Toyota Camry's accelerator pedal gets stuck and the next thing you know, you're going over 100. What do you do? You can't hit the brakes because with the car going so fast and the engine still getting gas from the stuck accelerator, you'll only roast your brakes. Maybe turn the key and shut off the engine? Unlikely, because some newer Toyotas have push-button start systems. You can turn off the engine though by holding down the button for three seconds or so. The problem there is that if you're going 100 MPH, you'll also travel approximately 440 feet in the 3 seconds it takes for the engine to shut off. That's an awfully long distance to be traveling that speed. Let's also not forget the distance required to stop the car if you're going that fast.
I believe putting the car in neutral and hitting the brakes may be a solution, but I've heard that some newer Toyotas do NOT have physical linkage between the gear selector and transmission. This means that the transmission is told what to do via electronic signals based on the selected setting via the gear selector. This doesn't sound too bad, however as a safety feature to prevent people from grenading their engines, it was also programmed such that if the gear shift lever were moved to neutral while the car was accelerating, the command would be ignored so that the engine would not rev freely (to say, redline) for extended periods of time which would of course, destroy the engine. If you ask me, I'd rather have the engine be toast than crash into something at ridiculous speeds. Better to lose the engine than the entire car and potentially some lives. And anyway, isn't that what fuel cuts/rev limiters are for? To stop the engine from over-revving? Granted, damage will still be done, but fuel cuts/rev limiters definitely stop the damage from being done too quickly.
So, as you can imagine, this is a pretty big problem for Toyota drivers, other cars on the road with the faulty Toyotas, and of course, Toyota.
Anyway, with this in the spotlight, Toyota initially blamed the problem on faulty floormats that would somehow accidentally be moved over the gas pedals and hold them down. The NHTSA called Toyota on their bluff as the floormats were basically a quick excuse for a big problem that seriously needed fixing. If anything though, it did work to stall things as Toyota was likely working on a real solution at the time. That recall for the floormats involved around 3.8 million vehicles. Definitely a HUGE recall.
Fast forward a bit, and the true problem has been found. It was indeed the design of the gas pedals that was the problem. Apparently gas pedals produced from supplier CTS Corp. in Elkhart, Indiana were faulty in design whereas the interchangeable part from Japan-based Densco is just fine. CTS Corp. is only in the picture because it is cheaper to get the parts from them for U.S.-produced Toyotas. This means that JDM-produced (Japanese Domestic Market) Toyotas and Lexuses (Lexii?) are not going to have the stuck accelerator pedal issue. With the problem found and the solution at hand though, Toyota is having problems finding a way to procure enough gas pedals to fix all of the cars from Densco and CTS Corp. alone. They'll no doubt have find other suppliers to help meet the extra demand for parts to fix the problem.
That said, Toyota has had to issue a stop-sale on all affected vehicles as well as suspend production in their factories so that they can fix/replace the required parts. This now brings the total number of affected vehicles to a staggering 6.6 million (approx.).
Toyota now finds itself in a PR shitstorm as well as in a deep hole trying to find a way to get enough fixed pedals to remedy the issue in their cars that are on the road, on dealer lots, in storage, and yet-to-be-produced in their factories. Even car rental companies find themselves with some problems as they've removed their Toyota rental vehicles from their fleets for the time being.
Is this perhaps because Toyota grew too big too fast? Maybe. Can you blame them though for wanting to be so big and to sell so many cars? Not really. It's business after all, right? I just hope Toyota and other automakers have learned something from this. Cars will always have their problems, but it's best to own up to those issues right away and not try to excuse the issue initially as something smaller than it really is because now Toyota's reputation for reliability is not only hurt, but also their trustworthiness. By initially blaming the problem on floor mats and now suddenly saying the issue is something else, they've basically lied. At least they don't seem to be lying this time when they say the issue is with the gas pedal itself. To lie about something that has actually resulted in death for some people will usually be perceived negatively by the public. Just a hunch, you know.
At least one other car company is taking advantage of the situation though. GM is going to offer special rebates and finance rates for people looking to buy a GM vehicle as long as those potential buyers can prove that they own or are leasing a Toyota. Interesting, to say the least. I've yet to read or hear anything about other car makers offering similar incentives. I'd bet money though that they are thinking about it.
Toyota has been the poster child for reliable, safe vehicles for a while now, but they have now fallen far from where they were even just half a year ago. This will no doubt deal a huge blow to their reputation and of course, sales. I wish them the best and good luck in fixing the problem as well as recovering from this fiasco.
EDIT:
Toyota's woes have grown as they've added more vehicles to the recall:
In all, effected vehicles are:
2008-2010 Highlander
2009-2010 Corolla
2009-2010 Venza
2009-2010 Matrix
2009-2010 Pontiac Vibe.
"General Motors' Pontiac car is included in the recall because the Vibe and Toyota's Matrix are similar vehicles that were produced under a partnership between the two companies." (From the article)
Vehicles from the original recall:
2007-2010 Toyota Camry
2005-2010 Avalon
2004-2009 Prius
2010 Tacoma
2007-2010 Tundra
2007-2010 Lexus ES350
2006-2010 IS250 and IS350.
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