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

The "did not know the button had to be pushed for 3 seconds" is not really a valid excuse. Have you ever waited for an elevator ? Watch people, who know 1 push will call the elevator. The push it again. They hold it down. They know full well that it won't make the elevator come any more quickly, but it is human nature. So, in the course of a 20 minute ride, do you think the gentleman thought, "Oh, I am in a dangerous spot here. That brief push on the button to save my life didn't work, I won't try that again !!". No, people will push and and push and push so hard they might break it. Yes, people panic and do dumb things. But this guy had more time to try stuff than is believable.

Also, he was 61. Me thinks most people of that generation learned to drive a manual. He should know what neutral is.

Though no one has mentioned it, Does panic breaking (stand on the pedal suddenly, not just press it) cause the ICE to stall out ? In conventional cars, it can. If the guy "rode" the brakes, he would overheat them, but the parking brake is basicly a "stand on the brakes" type of operation. That did really slow the car down. It is not some magical other system, but merely a different way of applying the same brakes. So, I can't believe he really tried to brake hard. I wonder if ABS came on ? I have seen no mention of that.

 

Anyone else see this?

Neibert told Sikes after the CHP caught up with 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.

I LAUGHED!

 

I guess he is a numby

 

Why is it... that all of this is happening to the over 50 crowd? Is it just that the Prius demographic is made up of mostly older drivers? It just seems like, of the media sensations that have happened (including the lady in the creek from several years back), all of them are happening to our over 50 friends. How weird is that?

 

If it were to happen to me here, with snow still on the road, I could just hit a patch of snow, the traction control would kick in, and the car would shut down!!! Problem solved.

 

Edmunds apparently feels the same way.
Was This Prius Really "Out of Control?"

 

Yes. Look at the PriusChat membership.

 

Okay, I think I understand now. I get on an interstate, run
it up to speed, and call someone on the phone. Then, if I'm
careful to only say "sh*t!" every 23.4 seconds into the phone,
the cell-tower modulation will mix with the gamma rays from the
planet Mongo in just the right way to issue a request over the
CANbus for 75 kilowatts from the engine. So there ya go. But
how the guy knew exactly how to trigger the problem is beyond me.
.
_H*

 

Sorry, but you're jumping to conclusions and being paranoid to boot.

There is nothing to indicate that the brake design is inadequate. Note that all vehicles sold in the United States have to pass a rigorous brake test that covers all modes of operation. There are 23 braking scenarios that must be tested, covering all ranges of speed, vehicle weight, brake temperature, gear selection, failure modes, etc..

I am not saying this car didn't suddenly accelerate, though I admit I am quite dubious of the claims as presented by the media. But just as we cannot dismiss the incident yet, we also cannot just accept it as a fact and conclude that the Prius brakes are inadequate. Additional investigation is required.

 

Actually the 3 second hold is not intuitive, so I can understand not knowing it. I didn't know it, but I'm sure I would have thought of it after short presses failed to work since I do that to turn off a stuck computer. It might not ever occur to some other people.
However, almost everything else about it sounds like this is a scam.

 

I'm waiting - hopefully today - the "driver" Sikes breaks down and admits the hoax.

My opinions of this story waivered back<>forth yesterday. But after seeing all the evidence so far I just cannot buy his story.

So many things too convenient - the timing of it-right at the height of the acceleration investigations, the area of highway in which it occurred (relatively open and straight), able to call 911-but not able to speak/answer coherently or follow directions-but able to "reach down and pull up the pedal", call lasting 20+minutes, not shift into neutral (unbelievable!), not continually brake, able to navigate "in traffic at 90+mph, amazingly was able to slow the car by himself with "directions from CHP" only when they arrived.

If this guy is a Hoaxer - let's hope it's revealed quickly, the full wrath of the law is levied - and that the media covers this as deeply as the initial pile-on. There are just too many holes in this guy's story - I hope the CHP investigates this (along with Toyota) very diligently.

 

Can someone confirm that hitting the park button while moving will put the Prius into neutral? Is there a delay or is it immediate? In an emergency situation that is probably easier than fiddling with the shifter to get into neutral. I'm still of the "old school" mindset that you never put a car into park while it is moving, but of course the Prius with its electronics is different.

 

Hello, everyone. Noob, here, but I've worked for Toyota and Lexus for the past 26 years. I want to clear up this misunderstanding regarding this so called "emergency" brake.
It is not an "emergency" brake, and never has been. I has never been called an emergency brake. It is a "parking" brake. It's only job is to secure the vehicle while parked. You will never, ever, hear any manufacturer refer to it as an emergency brake. It was never designed, engineered, built, or manufactured to be used in an emergency.

With that said, I want to make it very clear that I stand behind Toyota 110% I truly believe that there are no issues with these "run-a-way" Toyota's. We're talking driver issues, here, not mechanical/electronic ones. I, personally, would drive any Toyota that's had a run-a-way claim against it down any mountain pass with my entire family on board. That's how confident I am in Toyota. That's how confident I am that these claims are fruitless. It is my contention that most of these claims are from owners that can't fess up to a mistake that caused a crash. It's so easy to blame the car. Another large part of this nonsense are owners that simply don't want the car anymore and expect Toyota to buy it back, so they make false claims. I had to laugh at most of the complaints on NHTSA's web site.

"OMG, I couldn't stop!! I was standing on the brake but the car kept accelerating."

Really? I laughed out loud then realized, this is exactly why Toyota is in trouble right now. (except for the very real floor mat issue)
It's idiots like this that get my blood boiling. Don't even get me started on Rhonda Smith.

Since this all started, I've looked at the facts. Some of them, a lot of people may not realize.

1. After almost ten years of exhaustive investigations by the NHTSA and Toyota, there has never been a sticking or stuck gas pedal found in any Toyota or Lexus vehicle. (floor mat issue, notwithstanding). The CTS pedal is a non issue because they've never found a defective CTS pedal, either, only the slight mention of a "possibility".

2. It has been proven again, and again, that a Lexus ES350/V6 Camry can be brought safely to a stop quite quickly, even while at full throttle.

3. The Saylor crash in San Diego involving a CHP officer was the fault of a improper and improperly installed all weather floor mat. Toyota has already been cleared of any wrong doing in the case. The car was not at fault.

4. Mrs. Rhonda Smith's run-a-way Lexus ES350 had just under 3,000 miles on it when she traded it in. The new owner, in covering 27,000 miles reports absolutely nothing wrong with the vehicle. The NHTSA now owns the car.

Sorry, I just had to vent. I'm getting so pissed off that people are now intentionally trying to hurt Toyota.

Listen up!
THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THE CARS.

 

It's been confirmed. Many of us have tested it, as posted many, many times on other threads. It is immediate.

Your "old school" comment is interesting. When someone buys a new car, they should be ready to learn new things.

Tom

 

Another YES. As qbee noted it's been done by many of us herein.

Do it yourself.

You will be more firmly convinced how well this vehicle is engineered and how many failsafes there are in it. You won't regret making yourself smarter. You should also try all the other options as well.

Shift to N at 70 mph on the Jersey Tpke while in traffic while keeping your foot planted on the GO pedal. Hold it in Neutral for half a sec, you'll slow down very very very very gradually under complete control.

Shift to R at any speed or in any condition...it goes directly to Neutral ( see above ).

Get on an open stretch of Interstate and jam the GO pedal to the floor and keep it there, then hit the brakes and jam that pedal to the floor and hold it there!!! ( do NOT let up !! ). You'll come to a screeching stop. Wear your seatbelt or you'll eat the steering wheel.

Post results, drive happily and confidently for as long as you wish.

 

... or buy a Buick or Lincoln Town Car.

 

Speaking of old school.. I once drove an 88 Cutlass Ciera and accidentally shifted into reverse while going about 35. There was no stop between neutral and reverse, or it had been worn down. But even that old school car knew that I didn't really want to do that, and it just stalled out.

 

Or you could just watch this video: 2008 Prius Demo

 

I know many people have responded. Just wanted to chime in. Yes it is immediate. And I have done this at highway speed (65 MPH). Then I simply moved the shifter back into drive.

 

I don't know if my friends or acquaintances/etc would know how to shut down a Prius if it started to accelerate. But it seems like we do know that evidently a police officer in a totally seperate vehicle was able to talk this driver through stopping the Prius. This guy was in a totally different vehicle and he seemed to be able to do it.

I've debated in other threads, and I respect that panic, or sudden fear can be a mind killer. But when you are talking about a 10-20 minute experience, a person makes a phone call, a police car catches up with the vehicle and the driver never tries "Neutral" "Shut Off" or "The Emergency/Parking Brake"? Excuse me if I have a little doubt about either the drivers competency and/or his agenda and motivation.