Toyota Plans Press Conference For Today To Release Findings

Chris Lastrella 911 Call Before Crashing, Chris Lastrella, 911 Calls, Sound Bite

The call is 48 seconds long, I am sure there were a few seconds before they thought to call 911. so a minute goes by with a stuck accelerator and the brakes don't work and he does not check the floor mats? No way.

 

AP story says that Toyota will show that the backup system in Sykes' car works (doubters will say "Sure, now", and it will be discussed ad nauseum at PC) and that brake wear is not consistent with the smoking brakes report.
CQ Politics | News from the AP

 

This is a terrible pr move. They would be better off to lay low on this and let Sikes hang himself. Maybe they are trying to deter future 'copy cats' like tony said.

 

I am not sure. Yes way.

We'll probably never know and your guess is as good as mine. What was found the investigation is what will be fixed. Additional guesses are purely FUD. Your FUDness does not have any affect on me. It may have affected a-prius-fan (or more) in the past but it is really getting repetitive. Hoaxes are found due to the FUDness.

I say smugness can overpower the FUDness.

 

I think this is a great move. This is the case that can be clearly nailed. Toyota can use this pillar and reveal the next cases (hoaxes). Hopefully when all the smokes all clear up, we can get to the truth -- either that be a real root cause or nothing at all.

 

From that article, re: EDRs:

ETA: The article doesn't say that the data came from EDR. Source is unclear.

 

There is no way without an admission they can prove that it was 100% a hoax. all they can do is accuse.....not a good move for toyota right now. The CHP is standing by their claim that it was a real incident. By accusing Sikes they are also accusing every other toyota driver that has experienced SUA, a huge potential problem.

 

I think this is going to be exactly what the headline says, it's going to be a press conference inwhich Toyota reveals it's findings. Nothing more, nothing less. Toyota had no choice. It's not plausible to have Toyota and/or the NHTSA investigate and NOT reveal the findings.

But this will not be an exercise in condeming James Sikes. It will simply be revealing findings.

 

twitter toyota press conference and read the commments.

 

Toyota press conference on now. Toyota tests on Sykes Prius: Sykes' accelerator pedal found to be working normal. Push button starter and shift lever working normally. Front brakes badly worn from overheating. Brakes replaced and retested. Brakes repeatedly stopped the car with deliberate overheating. In the questioning, the Toyota rep said he thought the front brakes overheated from continuous light application.

Toyota doesn't believe the Sykes claims. Neither does Sykes lawyer, who says he will not sue.
Toyota says all subsequent claims on the Prius were as a result of media hysteria.

This is another example of irresponsible American media rushing to judgement.

Oh--some media type from US News is on right now saying we've seen Toyota's first
legal defense. The media defending itself. He is referring to the apologies in Congress from all those Toyota executives.

This is all a bunch of BS. It's frightening what one person with the media behind him can do. Talk about Big Brother.

 

I don't think so. If Mr. Sikes is the poster child for SUA, Toyota's detractors are the ones in trouble.

As for the floor mat with officer Saylor, the SUV size floor mat gave the prior driver problems which he reported to the dealer. The dealer's staff didn't do anything about the mat. Mr. Gomez is going after Toyota (as well as the dealership) because the former has deeper pockets than the dealer.

 

And just as the media has excused themselves for their negligence regarding Iraq, they will excuse themselves of negligence on this issue.

 

"there are strong indications that the driver's account of the event is inconsistent with the findings of the preliminary analysis"

Translation: "Sikes is lying through his teeth".

 

Toyota is in a no-win situation, they should not be having this press conference.

 

That's a stretch. Even if they accuse Sikes, it is his particular situation only (car restarts on its own after powering off, brakes don't work, neutral doesn't work, power off switch doesn't work and car cannot be stopped according to him.)
I think it's possible to have a stuck gas pedal or even cruise control gone berserk, but the story about there not being any possible way to safely stop for 30 miles is not true.
If he lies about that, then the rest is probably a lie also.

 

We are well aware that there is no way Toyota can win with you, malorn.

 

Toyota sales are up in Feb. Everybody knows what to expect from the media. And a few nuts out there.There were lots of public doubts--even before this press conference.

Kudos to Car ad Driver mag, by the way, for finding no braking problem with the Camry on hard acceleration--in rigorous tests vs several other make cars as controls. There is responsible media out there.

 

I agree completely.

One big problem I had with toyota was not investigating reports. IMHO the sikes story seemed like it would leave finger prints if he was lying, and that is exactly what the preliminary investigation shows. I'm not sure how numerous acceleration events would be logged or there would not be damage to a mg or other mechanical systems than the brakes if sikes was really trying hard to stop the car.

I am not really satisfied with toyota's explanation of how the brake override works (which is why I initially believed the sikes report). I hope my gen 3 has an override that is less susceptible to gremlins.

 

It's very good to have Toyota's point of view regarding this incident.

Here's my question: if the brake pedal was lightly applied, how does this invoke friction braking? Shouldn't light brake pedal pressure result in regen braking?