To my surprise, a thread posted earlier this month by datrays, "Brake Override System," was promptly closed. Yet poster made an important point since it is not widely appreciated that the Prius and other Toyota hybrids already have the smart brake cutoff in the event of sudden acceleration Toyota now says it is now applying a software fix to install "the hybrid brake safety feature that shuts off fuel in the event of simultaneous accelerator and brake action" on all non-hybrid accelerator recalls. Yet we also read, “Of course, this only works for new vehicles,†grumbles Motor Authority. “Existing vehicles subject to the recall have only the accelerator pedal replacement as a solution.†Then again, we hear endless media comment on Toyota's embarrassment over the Prius brake recall, while overlooking the report that Ford, when recalling the Fusion hybrid, explained that "while the vehicles maintain full braking capability, customers may initially perceive the condition as loss of brakes" -- which sound very very similar to the Prius issue. So what we seem to have is huge PR failure: 1. Toyota has not publicized the existing "smart brake' feature on its hybrids. 2. It has not publicized that the "smart brake' is being installed as part of the non-hybrid recall. 3. It has allowed reports of identical regenerative brake issues experienced by other hybrid manufacturers to go unnoticed. How about we work to correct all this?
Why in the world should we get into this? Much as I think this is much ado about nothing, this is not my job and I am busy enough with what I am responsible for. Good luck on this project.
I have mentioned this before, but was told that Ford was allowed to fix them without a public recall because they are such saints.
