Why the "Out of Control" Prius Driver Is Full of It

Re: Another link for the 911 call - a shorten 4 min version

Concur. Journalist should report the FACTS, not putting someone's inference as a FACTUAL headline.

 

He doesn't follow instructions.
Sounds more staged the the balloon boy 911 call.
If this is real, he is an incompetent driver with mental problems.

 

Apparently he filed an unsubstantiated $59,000 burglary report a number of years back. Video about it is linked on the 10news.com site.

 

I totally agree.

 

Re: Another link for the 911 call - a shorten 4 min version

I just finished a 3500 mile 3 week trip in my uncertain Prius. We drove through all conditions imaginable... in gridlock to crazy 85 mph traffic on the I-95 corridor. I sure am glad that our Prius didn't decide to go coo coo on me.

I agree with previous members that say this chap was not qualified to drive a Prius or any other car. He should be watched carefully.

How many of us have not at least thought through the emergency procedure(s) to shut down a possible runaway Prius, just in case. Apply brake, slap the shifter to neutral and pull over as safely as possible. Of course, pushing the power button for over 3 seconds will also disable the engine.

Can anyone say, "Munchausen by proxy"? This is all getting to be a bit much.

 

Eoin has this right. It's balloon boy meets O.J. Simpson and his Bronco!

 

I found the instructions to shut the car down on a yellow hang tag--forgot where it was attached. It has starting/stopping instructions and also info on locking doors. The last section is "Stopping hybrid systems in an emergency." and says to stop in an emergency press the button (power) for more than 3 seconds. I read that way before I got to the manual. Think maybe it was hooked around the shifter or maybe the rear view mirror.

 

LOL! If nothing else, the Prius (and/or Toyota) has got numerous character witnesses on its side. Maybe Congress should allow PriusChat owners to testify on behalf of the vehicle.

 

2008 Prius Demo

Interesting little video. Might be a Toyota dealer or just a ticked off Prius owner, but it's worth watching.

 

Wow, a 1 year old video correctly predicted what happen exactly 1 year later. Even the location was correct. I have to dig out the "Knowing" DVD and watch it again!

 

So your saying it was electronics failure? ;-)

There were only two things wrong with your statement. It wasn't interesting and it wasn't worth watching. Poor production values too.

 

I am SO sick and tired of seeing Toyota being ripped to pieces by the idiots that run the media outlets in this country. I have a few questions that I know you intelligent members of PC will attempt to answer:

1. Why is it that these incidents are appearing now when the Prius (2G) has been on the road since October 2003

2. Why haven't we heard of other runaway Prius (or other Toyotas) in other parts of the world besides the US?

3. How is it possible for a car (in this case the Prius) to approach triple digit speeds when all the driver has to do is press on the brake?

4. Doesn't anyone know how to shift a Prius or Camry (even easier) into neutral?

5. Does anyone think that its possible that there are people taking advantage of the current situation to obtain fifteen minutes of fame OR fake a lawsuit?

6. Is it possible that people are speeding and then claiming unintended acceleration to avoid a traffic ticket?

7. Are American drivers really that stupid?

I consider myself fairly intelligent with a great deal of common sense. I am baffled by all these incidents. The above questions are not facetious. Please, everyone who wishes, answer these questions so I can make some sense of this madness!!!!!!!!!!

 

Bingo~5. Does anyone think that its possible that there are people taking advantage of the current situation to obtain fifteen minutes of fame OR fake a lawsuit? I smell a rat.

 

It seems to me suspicious why over the last four years that this model of Prius that no one had reported such issues. NOW, all of the sudden that are reports of scarey throttle issues? Software bugs don't crop up overnight. If there are present in 2009 models, they should be there in 2006 models too, and probably 04 and 05 models.

I would be very curious as to the service history of this Prius. Keep in mind that the software in question can not be changed without connecting to the computer physically. I wonder if the software has been changed in anyway?

My conjecture is that if the control software is flawed, problems should be happening a lot more. Keep in mind that are Prius taxi fleets and many Prii outside of the US. Why are all these Toyota problems happening in the US???? Hmm....

 

Scary logic djasonw lol. I don't think it is American drivers. I think it is just people in general who are idiots. The only ones worse than the media are the idiots who actually listen to them. Jim Cramer is another media pundit Who fed high quality bull to many investors. Seems like the report is a gimmick just like balloon boy.

Also a statistical correlation is made after several similar repeated incidents from a single or several causes like smoking and lung cancer. A older model prius with an isolated media incident is not enough to be compelling.

Alot of people cannot rationalize correctly.