Runaway Prius Story A Hoax? Possible Gov't Cover Up

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Federal Government Cannot Explain Runaway Prius Incident



The federal government said Monday it cannot explain a reported incident of sudden, high-speed acceleration in a Toyota Prius on a California freeway last week, a malfunction the driver's lawyer is describing as "the ghost in the machine."

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a statement that it continues to investigate but "we may never know exactly what happened with this car."

Prius owner James Sikes called 911 last week to report losing control of his Prius as the hybrid reached speeds of 94 mph. A highway patrol officer helped bring the vehicle to a safe stop.

On Monday, Sikes' attorney, John Gomez, said it's "not surprising" that investigators have not been able to replicate the incident.

"This problem is sort of a ghost in the machine that is the Toyota system," Gomez said Sunday. "It doesn't leave a fault code, it doesn't leave a footprint and you can't make it happen upon demand."

"They have never been able to replicate an incident of sudden acceleration. Mr. Sikes never had a problem in the three years he owned this vehicle," he added.

The NHTSA said its engineers are reviewing data from Sikes' Prius but have so far not been able to find anything to explain the reported incident. Inspectors in California tried during a two-hour test drive to duplicate the acceleration, but were unable to do so.

Kurt Bardella, a spokesman for Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., said the failure to duplicate the stuck accelerator, along with a vehicle design to prevent such occurrences, raises questions about the driver's story.

"We're not saying Mr. Sikes is wrong or that he lied, we're saying that questions have arisen in the investigation," Bardella said.

Toyota Motor Corp. planned to announce preliminary findings of its investigation at a news conference Monday in San Diego.

NHTSA is looking into claims from more than 60 Toyota owners that their vehicles continue to accelerate unexpectedly despite having their vehicles repaired.

Technicians with the NHTSA and Toyota could not duplicate what Sikes said he experienced March 8 on a mountainous but lightly traveled stretch of Interstate 8 east of San Diego, according to a congressional staffer's memo prepared for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

"Every time the technician placed the gas pedal to the floor and the brake pedal to the floor the engine shut off and the car immediately started to slow down," the memo read.

According to the memo, a Toyota official who was at the two-day inspection last week in suburban San Diego explained that an electric motor would "completely seize" if a system to shut off the gas when the brake is pressed fails, and there was no evidence to support that happened.

"In this case, knowing that we are able to push the car around the shop, it does not appear to be feasibly possible, both electronically and mechanically that his gas pedal was stuck to the floor and he was slamming on the brake at the same time," according to the memo.

Toyota has recalled millions of cars because of floor mats that can snag gas pedals or accelerators that can sometimes stick. Sikes' car was covered by the floor mat recall but not the one for sticky accelerators. He later told reporters that he tried to pull on the gas pedal during his harrowing ride, but it didn't "move at all."

The Prius is powered by two electric motor-generators and a small gasoline engine, all connected by transmission gears. A computer, which Toyota calls the "hybrid control computer" determines what combination of motors is needed and which would be most efficient.

Craig Hoff, a professor of mechanical engineering at Kettering University in Flint, Mich., said that for the Prius to accelerate out of control, at least two systems would have to fail simultaneously. They are the sensor signal that tracks the brake and gas pedal positions when the driver presses on them and the hybrid control computers.

"The chance of them both going wrong, plus the fact that the signal is bad, it just seems very, very, very remote," Hoff said. "Could it happen? Statistically, yes. But it just doesn't seem very likely."

Several events usually combine to cause problems with cars, and it's difficult to reproduce them, Hoff said.

"It's going to make it really hard to find, because you've got to line up the multiple effects," he said.

The congressional memo said both the front and rear brakes were worn and damaged by heat, consistent with Sikes saying that he stood on the brake pedal with both feet and was unable to stop the car. But if the fail-safe system worked properly, the brakes wouldn't have been damaged because power would have been cut to the wheels.

Gomez said the best evidence that his client was frantically slamming the brakes is that a California Highway Patrol officer who was giving Sikes instructions over a loudspeaker smelled burning brakes and saw the lights on.

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Runaway Prius Driver: Brakes Were "Almost Burned"


Before he called 911, James Sikes says he reached down with his hand to loosen the "stuck" accelerator on his 2008 Toyota Prius, his other hand on the steering wheel. The pedal didn't move.

"My car can't slow down," he began when a California Highway Patrol dispatcher answered his call.

Sikes, 61, rolled to a stop 23 harrowing minutes later, he and his blue Prius emerging unscathed but Toyota Motor Corp. suffering another big dent. Toyota has watched its reputation for quality crumble with recalls tied to risks that cars can accelerate uncontrollably or can't brake properly.

Todd Neibert, the CHP officer who gave instructions to Sikes over a loudspeaker as they went east on mountainous Interstate 8 in San Diego County Monday afternoon, said he smelled burning brakes when he caught up with the Prius.

The officer said he told Sikes to push the brake pedal to the floor and apply the emergency brakes as the Prius neared 85 mph. The car slowed to about 55 mph, at which time Sikes says he turned off the ignition and the car came to a stop.

"The brakes were definitely down to hardly any material," Neibert told reporters Tuesday. "There was a bunch of brake material on the ground and inside the wheels."

The officer found the floor mat properly placed and the accelerator and brake pedals in correct resting position.

The freeway incident happened at the worst possible time for Toyota - just hours after it invited reporters to hear experts insist that electronic flaws could not cause cars to speed out of control under real driving conditions.

Another driver in suburban New York told police Tuesday that her 2005 Toyota Prius accelerated on its own, then lurched down a driveway, across a road and into a stone wall. The driver, a 56-year-old woman, escaped serious injury. Police said the floor mat did not appear to be a factor; Toyota said it's not yet known whether the company will investigate.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has sent two investigators to examine Sikes' car. Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons said the automaker is sending three of its own technicians to investigate.

Another Toyota spokesman, John Hanson, said the company wanted to talk to the driver.

Sikes' car was covered by Toyota's floor mat recall, but the driver said the pedal jammed and was not trapped under the mat.

Sikes, a real estate agent, said he was passing another car when the accelerator stuck and eventually reached 94 mph.

During the two 911 calls, Sikes ignored many of the dispatcher's questions, saying later that he had to put his phone on the seat to keep his hands on the wheel.

Leighann Parks, a 24-year-old dispatcher, repeatedly told him to throw the car into neutral but got no answers.

"He was very emotional, you could tell on the line he was panicked," Parks told reporters outside the CHP's El Cajon office. "I could only imagine being in his shoes and being that stressed."

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.

The driver rolled down the window and Neibert told him to apply both brakes. Sikes said he lifted his buttocks from the seat to press the floor brake, an account backed by the officer.

The cars maneuvered around two trucks going uphill to a "clear, wide-open road," Neibert said. The officer had only about 15 miles to stop the vehicle before a steep downgrade and was considering spike strips to puncture the tires as a last resort.

In the final minutes of the 911 call, Sikes tells the dispatcher, "My brakes are almost burned out."

After the car stops, Sikes sighs with relief.

Neibert, a 14-year CHP veteran, worked with Officer Mark Saylor, who was killed in August along with his wife, her brother and the couple's daughter after their Lexus' accelerator became trapped by a wrong-size floor mat on a freeway in nearby La Mesa. The loaner car hit a sport utility vehicle and burst into flames.

Toyota has since recalled some 8.5 million vehicles worldwide - more than 6 million in the United States - because of acceleration problems in multiple models and braking issues in the Prius. Regulators have linked 52 deaths to crashes allegedly caused by accelerator problems. Still, there have been more than 60 reports of sudden acceleration in cars that have been fixed under the recall.


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Ray Lahood Defends NHTSA Cover Up, Toyota Chief Testifies

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Sorry Won’t Be Enough From Toyota’s Top Boss


Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda came to Washington to publicly apologize to Congress Wednesday for safety lapses that led to widespread recalls for accelerator and breaking failures and for a corporate culture that may have made things worse. A House committee chairman said blame must be shared by both Toyota and U.S. safety regulators.

Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) failed to follow through aggressively on thousands of complaints dating back a decade about sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles.

NHTSA , which is part of the Transportation Department, "failed the taxpayers and Toyota failed their customers," Towns declared ahead of eagerly awaited testimony by the company's chief executive.

"Thousands of complaints, multiple investigations, and serial recalls are bad enough. But we now have 39 deaths attributed to sudden acceleration in Toyotas," Towns said. "To give that horrifying number perspective, there were 27 deaths attributed to the famous (Ford) Pinto exploding gas tank of the 1970s."

Toyoda, the 53-year-old scion of the Toyoto empire, readied testimony apologizing for the problem and acknowledging that the world's largest automaker grew too fast to keep up with safety controls

"We pursued growth over the speed at which we were able to develop our people and our organization," he said. "I regret that this has resulted in the safety issues described in the recalls we face today, and I am deeply sorry for any accidents that Toyota drivers have experienced."

Towns asked Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood a question on behalf all of those Toyota owners and drivers: Are the cars safe to drive?

"We have listed every Toyota that's up for recall" on the Transportation Department Web site, LaHood said. "I want anybody who has one of those cars to take it to the dealer and make sure it gets fixed."

LaHood said those vehicles on the recall list posted on his department's Website, http://www.dot.gov, "are not safe."

David Strickland, the new head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, had been on the list of witnesses but was removed right before the hearing started.

Republicans pressed LaHood about why Strickland was dropped from the hearing witness list, saying they may call him for another hearing. LaHood said Strickland has held his post for only a short time and that LaHood would answer for the safety agency.

"I am not going have our NHTSA administrator, who has been on the job 40 days, appear. I am taking responsibility for this," LaHood said.

Meanwhile, the Senate Commerce Committee requested an investigation by the Transportation Department's inspector general of NHTSA's handling of the Toyota recalls. The committee wants the IG to expand the review to include industry-wide complaints and reports collected by the agency on unintended acceleartion or brake failure, compliance with recent auto safety laws and government ethics at NHTSA.

Rep. Darrell Issa of California, the leading Republican on the House oversight panel, waved a gas pedal before LaHood and complained that Toyota knew about problems of sticking gas pedals and improperly placed floor mats years ago and made some fixes on models sold in Japan but delayed addressing the problems on other cars, including some of its most popular models sold in the U.S., until just recently.

Toyoda was to be the second witness to appear before the panel and was not in the room during opening statements by members and LaHood's testimony.

An apology may not be enough for the feisty panel of lawmakers on the committee in a year in which every one faces re-election. Nor will any culture gap; Japanese CEOs typically serve symbolic roles akin to figureheads without much power to control operations.

Toyoda's appearance comes as Japan opened its own investigation into unintended acceleration with Toyota and other vehicles in that country.

Rep. Paul Kanjorski, a member of the committee, said an apology alone will not suffice. "He's going to have to say more than that," the Pennsylvania Democrat said. "We all have questions for him."

In harmony-loving Japan, company chiefs are usually picked to cheerlead the rank and file. As the grandson of the company's founder, Toyoda was groomed to play that role — and even dubbed "the prince" of the auto empire for a time.

Still, Toyoda is familiar with the United States and its corporate culture. He received his MBA in 1982 at Babson College in Massachusetts and spent time in California as vice president of a joint venture between Toyota and General Motors Corp.

"We do not seek the spotlight," the casual Toyoda was quoted as saying in his first interview. "We try always to be low-key, not to be outspoken."

A dozen years later, the blood from dozens of claims over fatal crashes staining the family dynasty, Toyoda has no choice. A significant chunk of Washington's lobbying industry and some part of the struggling American economy hang on his appearance as it's broadcast around the world.

Japan's national Asahi newspaper said in an editorial that Toyoda's testimony "not only determines Toyota's fate, but may affect all Japanese companies and consumer confidence in their products. President Toyoda has a heavy load on his shoulders."

Toyoda, who speaks halting English, planned to appear with a translator by his side, as well as Yoshimi Inaba, president and CEO of Toyota Motor North America Inc., who is fluent in English.

Also scheduled to appear was the mother of an off-duty California highway patrolmen killed with three family members in a runaway Lexus on a San Diego highway in August.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, in an op-ed editorial in Wednesday's editions of The Washington Post, said, "I hope Congress will resist the temptation to attack Toyota simply to advance the interests of American competitors." The U.S. government owns a majority stake in General Motors and a smaller stake in Chrysler as a result of last year's bailouts.

Toyoda's three-page statement departs somewhat from his native formality. In it, Toyoda emphasizes that he personally test-drives Toyotas. And he makes a personal appeal for credibility.

"My name is on every car," he says.


Sources: MSNBC

Toyota's Swift Fall From Grace; Apology Comes Too Late

Toyota: Apology But No New Recall

Toyota Motor chief executive Akio Toyoda apologized Friday for the problems that led to the company's recall of more than 8 million cars. But he did not announce any solution for brake problems of its popular Prius hybrid.

Toyoda, the grandson of the company's founder, made his first public appearance in the two weeks that the company has faced a growing crisis over the safety and quality of its vehicles.

The recall affected 8.1 million vehicles worldwide and will cost the company an estimated $2 billion in repair costs and lost sales due to a sticking accelerator. Toyota has not said how much the new problems with the braking system in the Prius will cost it, though.

Toyoda said an investigation of the Prius problems is under way, and a decision on whether there will be another recall will be announced as soon as possible.

The company also announced Friday it is looking at the brake systems of the latest Lexus hybrid vehicles as well as a Japanese model called the Sai -- because they use the same system as the one on the 2010 Prius.

But Toyoda denied the company has been trying to hide problems with the brakes from safety officials in the United States and Japan. Still, he admitted Toyota needed to do more to assure customers about the safety of its vehicles.

"I feel we are in stormy weather," he said. "Under this situation, [we] must regain customer trust. Tackle the problem. My role is to carry it out. We lacked customer perspective. It's very unfortunate."

Not going far enough. But one expert said Toyota and its chief made a mistake by not announcing a recall for the Prius, especially since it now is clear there is a problem that will eventually need to be fixed.

"What we heard this morning was more foot dragging," said Michelle Krebs, senior analyst for auto sales Web site Edmunds.com. "They still are not very forthcoming. I think it'd be in their best interest to do a recall, and get it all behind them."

Other experts agreed that Toyota is suffering greater damage by not getting all the bad news out as quickly as possible.

"For reasons we may never learn, Toyota appears to be pulling their bandage very slowly, and therefore keeping their recall situation...firmly in the public eye," said James Bell, executive market analyst for Kelley Blue Book.

Krebs said that while most Toyota customers appear to be staying loyal to the brand for now, the damage being done to its image could hit future sales. She believes Toyota's estimates of a loss of 80,000 sales in North America and another 20,000 in Europe due to the recall are probably too low.

"My impression is they are fairly tone deaf about how significant this is in the U.S.," she said. "I don't think they have a good sense of what it's going to cost them in terms of reputation and sales."

She added that problems with the Prius are a particularly tough blow to Toyota -- even though the number of hybrids affected is insignificant compared to the 8.1 million vehicles recalled due to the gas pedal concerns.

"The Prius is so important to them. It's the pinnacle of their technological knowledge and engineering prowess. Now that image has been tarnished," she said.

Toyoda has faced harsh criticism over the last two weeks about his lack of public appearances during the crisis. Krebs said it was important for him to finally speak to the public.

How did Toyota got here? Timeline

The tone of the news conference, which took place late Friday night in Japan, was very out of character with what is normally seen at corporate press conferences in Japan. Reporters did not show the typical deference to a top executive. Some demanded answers about why there is no leadership and why the company was dodging questions.

Toyoda said the company would set up a committee to examine problems that led to the recall and said the company would cooperate with U.S. authorities who are looking into problems with Toyota vehicles.

"Believe me, Toyota's cars are safe," he said.

No solution yet for brake problem. The company has admitted it had a problem with the software controlling the anti-lock braking system of the 2010 model year Prius. The company said earlier this week that it has changed the software for cars produced since January, and it is looking into what to do with the vehicles already on the road.

Jesse Toprak, analyst with TrueCar.com, said the delay in announcing a recall for the Prius is a sign that fixing vehicles already on the road won't be as simple as fixing ones coming off the assembly line. But he said Toyota would be better off announcing the recall even if a solution is not finalized.

"Normally it would have been better off to wait for a solution. It doesn't help your image to say you don't know how to fix your own cars. But these are not normal times for Toyota," he said.

The 2010 model year Prius went on sale in the middle of last year. There are an estimated 37,000 of the cars on the road in the United States, and more than 200,000 worldwide. It is the best-selling vehicle in Japan and Toyota's fourth-best selling model in the U.S.

There have been 124 reports of problems with the brakes on the Prius in the United States, according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, which Thursday announced it had launched a formal defect investigation into the car. There have been reports of four accidents involving the Prius brakes, two of which had injuries, although there have been no reported fatalities.

Toyota, which achieved steady market share growth in the United States due to its reputation of strong vehicle quality and safety, has been criticized by U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood for being slow to respond to the latest problems. LaHood said Toyota did not move on the accelerator recall until pushed to do so by U.S. safety officials.

The Prius brake problem causes a delay of about a second in the brakes engaging, but during a second a car traveling 60 m.p.h. can travel almost 100 feet.

While Toyota (TM) has far greater financial resources than most of its rivals, especially its U.S. rivals General Motors, Ford Motor (F, Fortune 500) and Chrysler Group, the quality issues do pose a financial challenge for the company. Friday credit rating agency Standard & Poor's placed its debt on credit watch, meaning it faces the risk of a downgrade that could raise its borrowing costs.

"Standard & Poor's believes that these developments may affect the company's reputation for quality, weakening its competitive position," it said in the announcement.


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Ray LaHood Issues Emergency Advisory For Toyota Customers: Stop Driving!

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Transport Chief: Stop Driving Recalled Toyotas



Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is telling owners of recalled Toyotas to stop driving the vehicles and get them fixed.

LaHood's warning came Wednesday in testimony before a House Appropriations subcommittee on transportation. LaHood says his advice to owners is to "stop driving it. Take it to a Toyota dealer because they believe they have a fix for it."

Toyota's most recent recall in the United States affects 2.3 million vehicles with the potential for sticking gas pedals.

LaHood told reporters earlier in the day that Toyota owners should contact their dealer immediately and "exercise caution until repairs can be made."

Lahood also said he plans to speak with Toyota President Akio Toyoda about the automaker's spate of recalls in the United States. LaHood confirms that the government is investigating potential electrical problems in Toyota vehicles.

LaHood said Wednesday he will call Toyoda in the coming days to make sure the Japanese automaker is aware of the government's concerns about safety issues with Toyota vehicles.

The secretary says the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will conduct an investigation into electronic throttle control systems and potential electromagnetic interference in the nation's fleet of vehicles.

LaHood says the government "has the resources" to conduct the investigation.



Sources: MSNBC

Toyota's Media Blitz, Offers Fix To Customers

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Toyota Announces Gas Pedal Fix


Toyota said Monday it has developed a fix for gas pedals in millions of recalled vehicles and is already shipping the new parts to dealers.

The fix involves reinforcing the pedal assembly in a way that eliminates the excess friction that has caused the pedals to stick, the company said in a press release. Toyota recalled 2.3 million vehicles in the United States for this problem.

Toyota said replacement parts are already being shipped and that dealers will work extended hours to fix the recalled vehicles.

"We know what's causing the sticking accelerator pedals, and we know what we have to do to fix it," said Jim Lentz, Toyota's president and chief operating officer, in a statement.

Toyota will begin contacting customers as early as this week to let them know when to bring in their vehicles for the fix. The automaker said it will cover all costs related to the fix, which will take about 30 minutes.

It's not clear how long it will take to fix all 2.3 million cars, Lents told CNNMoney.com

Much will depend on how quickly customers bring their cars into dealer for repairs.

Dealers will be open extended hours, he said.

"Dealers that are open five days will be open seven days," he said. "Dealers that aren't open extended hours will be open extended hours."

The fix involves installing a precision-cut steel reinforcement bar into the accelerator pedal assembly, which will reduce surface tension and prevent the friction that has caused the pedals to stick, Toyota said.

Toyota recall: What to do if your car's on the list

The company said it has confirmed the effectiveness of the newly reinforced pedals through "rigorous testing" on pedal assemblies that had previously shown a tendency to stick.

Toyota announced plans last week to suspend sales of the models, including its best-selling Camry, subject to the recall. It also took the unusual step of halting production of those models.

The recall has taken a severe toll on Toyota's once-stellar reputation, which Lentz acknowledged in a video statement posted on Toyota's Web site.

"I know that we've let you down," Lentz said "Toyota will work hard to fix your vehicle properly and regain your trust."

The recall affects Toyota's 2009-2010 RAV4, Corolla and Matrix; 2005-2010 Avalon; certain 2007-2010 Camrys; 2010 Highlander; 2007-2010 Tundra and the 2008-2010 Sequoia. The Camry Hybrid is not included in the recall.

The Japanese automaker also recalled cars in Europe. That recall involves eight different models, several of which are not sold in the United States. The precise number of vehicles involved in that recall is still being determined, but it could be as many as 1.8 million.

The gas pedal recall is separate from an earlier one, begun in November to fix a problem in which the gas pedal can become caught on the edge of the removable floormat.

The floormat recall was recently expanded so that it now covers a total of 5.3 million vehicles.

In cases where vehicles are subject to both recalls, Toyota (TM) said it intends to remedy both at the same time.

Toyota has been under scrutiny for suspected unintended acceleration for approximately 10 years. A total of 19 deaths have been conceited to unintended acceleration in Toyotas over the decade, according to some analysts, a figure the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration called "plausible," based on its own research.

All major automakers experience some complaints of unintended acceleration. It is unclear how the rate of complaints and crashes in Toyota vehicle compares to that of other major automakers.

Lentz said he is confident that resolving this issue and the floormat entrapment problem will solve the problem for Toyota. The automaker has also said it is making "brake override" -- a system that cuts engine power to the wheels as soon as the brake pedal is pressed -- standard equipment on all of its cars.

The "brake override" software will also be added to the internal computers on some cars as they are brought in for recall repairs, a Toyota spokesman said.


Sources: MSNBC, CNN, Toyota

Toyota's Damage Control Goes Into Overdrive...Public Relations Nightmare!

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Experts See Flaws In Toyota’s Handling Of Crisis


The problem with faulty gas pedals in its cars and trucks is rare, Toyota says, and car owners are unlikely to experience any trouble. Toyota's reputation is another matter.

Crisis management experts say just how far Toyota's image tumbles depends on how quickly it can fix the problems and how well it communicates with hundreds of thousands of loyal customers.

They also say that Toyota's growth has outpaced its management structure. The company didn't have in place the mechanisms to identify and deal with the problems before they exploded into two giant recalls, factory shutdowns and instructions to dealers to stop selling eight models.

Toyota Motor Corp. rode a reputation for reliability to become the world's top car maker. For more than 30 years, it won customers and market share from General Motors Co., Chrysler Group LLC and Ford Motor Co. by building high-quality cars such as the midsize Camry and compact Corolla.

Americans, particularly baby boomers, frustrated with Detroit's poor quality, fell in love with Toyotas because they rarely broke down. Last year, they bought more than 356,000 Camrys, making it the top-selling car in the U.S. The Corolla was second with almost 297,000 sales.

In short, drivers trusted Toyota. Now that trust is in danger.

Toyota said late Tuesday it would halt sales of some of its top-selling models, including Camry and Corolla, to fix gas pedals that could stick and cause unintended acceleration. It recalled more cars on Thursday.

Crisis managers say the issues with the pedals likely surfaced early on at lower levels of the company, but no one wanted to deliver bad news to the boss.

"Nobody wants to go upstairs and say 'Hey, we just made 10,000 cars that have a problem and it's going to cost us millions to fix them,'" says Robert Wiseman, a professor of strategic management at Michigan State University.

In March of 2007, Toyota started getting reports of gas pedals being slow to rise after being depressed for acceleration. Engineers fixed the problem in the Tundra pickup early in 2008.

But troubles persisted in other models, eventually leading to last week's recall and the plans to suspend sales and shut down of six factories while Toyota tries to fix the problems.

Toyota insists that the sudden, uncontrolled acceleration is "rare and infrequent" but offered few specifics. A spokesman at the company's office in Torrance, Calif., didn't return two messages left seeking comment for this story.

The delay in dealing with the problem now leaves Toyota in an untenable public relations situation. It's forced to alarm customers and take vehicles off the market before the repair parts are ready, said Jim Cain, senior vice president of the Quell Group, a Troy, Mich., public relations firm and a former Ford Motor Co. spokesman.

He also said the company likely had the information it could have used to diagnose the problems much faster.

"There are always consumer complaints and warranty information, parts return data and other things that can indicate problems before they become of such colossal magnitude," he said.

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Seeing problems early will become even more important as automakers increasingly sell the same model with common parts across the globe, Cain said. Companies want to act quickly to avoid global recalls that will only become more costly, he said.

Toyota, which is ahead of other automakers in globalization, could see its U.S. problems spread to Europe, where a similar accelerator part is used. The company is studying possible responses there.

Toyota's response at least partially replicates the crisis communications strategy used by Johnson & Johnson in the 1982 Chicago-area Tylenol poisoning case.

J&J recalled more than 20 million bottles of Extra Strength Tylenol and burned every one. It also communicated with the public and came up with new tamper-resistant packaging.

The company placed consumer safety above cost, restoring its reputation quickly, said Brenda Wrigley, chair of the public relations department at Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

"Treating people honestly and openly is the way to go," she said.

With Toyota's mechanical problem, though, the company can't just pull all of the problem products off the shelves, she said.

"They're really in a bind. Short of saying 'park it in the driveway and don't drive it anymore,' how do you prevent everybody from exposure to a safety issue?" Wrigley asked.

Toyota thus far has avoided Ford's mistakes from last decade when hundreds of people died or were injured in accidents involving tread separation on tires, most of which were on popular Explorer sport utility vehicles. Ford blamed tire company Bridgestone/Firestone Inc., while Bridgestone said the Explorer's design was faulty. Both companies' reputations were tarnished.

The latest developments follow a recall of 4.2 million Toyota vehicles in late 2009 over concerns that floor mats could bend across gas pedals, causing sudden acceleration.

The problems, Wrigley said, hit Toyota extra hard because it has touted quality for years to gain advantage over competitors.

"Quality was their differentiator and now it's their Achilles heel," she said.


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Toyota's Loyal Customers Unfazed By Mysterious Recall

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Americans Confused, But Still Driving Their Toyotas


Some Toyota customers are swearing off the brand, while others aren't much worried about sticky gas pedals. For just about everybody, confusion reigns.

Toyota first announced its massive recall last week, which followed one last November. Both involve issues with gas pedals in millions of Toyota's most popular models.

Toyota owners are still waiting for a coherent story about what is actually going on, said Sylvia Marino, executive director at auto sales site Edmunds.com.

"People are feeling a cross between shock, concern and disbelief," she said. "There's a huge amount of confusion. People are saying, 'I think I own a car affected by a recall but I'm not sure,' and it's going to take time for owners to get an official recall notice from their dealer."

Even local dealerships don't have the answers customers are looking for.

Bobby Moore, service director at Atlanta Toyota, said his dealership has received a large volume of phone calls from customers wondering if their particular car is affected by the recall, what Toyota is doing to solve the problem and when the issue will be fixed.

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He said people seem to be feeling a combination of confusion and frustration, and while the dealership has been able to answer most of their questions, there are still a lot of holes.

A Toyota spokesman has said that the carmaker is very close to announcing a solution to the sticking gas pedal issue for cars.

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Still cruising: While the phones may be ringing off the hook at dealerships, many Toyota owners are not all that worried, said James Bell, vice president at Kelley Blue Book.

"Sure you're going to see the reports of people running to Toyota stores and throwing the keys at the dealer," he said. "But I think the general sense is that while this is a problem, we're not going to all of a sudden see speeding Toyotas left and right on the freeway."

Matt Schoder of Sandusky, Ohio said he and his wife are still driving their 2007 and 2010 Camrys -- both of which are covered under the recall -- without concern.
0:00 /1:18Toyota recalls spread

"This could happen to any brand, and it has," he said. "They will come out stronger in the end. Good companies -- and people -- learn from their mistakes."

Matt Fitterer, from Spokane, Wash., said he isn't worried about the recall either and that he will continue to drive his 2009 Toyota Corolla.

"My reaction was that it's not a big deal, the brand itself is very reliable so I know they'll find a fix," said Fitterer. "And if I get pulled over by a cop, I'll just tell them my gas pedal got stuck!"

Slamming the brakes: Other Toyota owners who are more concerned may continue driving their cars because they have no other choice. But when it's time to buy a new vehicle, spending money on another Toyota will be out of the question.

Marino said that of the customers currently in the market for a new car and considering a Toyota, about half of these people may delay purchasing a vehicle until more is learned about the recall.

A third to a quarter of those people considering Toyotas will likely switch to other manufacturers, as indicated by comments such as the post one Toyota owner wrote in an Edmunds.com forum:

"I will NEVER, EVER purchase another Toyota in my life. Toyota has gotten too big, too fast and they're quality has gone down hill."

Taking the GM bait: After Toyota announced its most recent recall, General Motors pounced on the opportunity to take advantage of its competitor's fumble, offering incentives of $1,000 and low financing rates to Toyota customers who have had their vehicles recalled.

Bell said that over the last quarter, Kelley Blue Book has been tracking the number of people visiting its site who identify themselves as Toyota owners but who also view GM vehicles, as well as the number of GM owners who shop around for Toyotas.

The data collected so far shows that GM owners are more likely to also view Toyota vehicles, whereas Toyota customers hardly ever look for GM products.

GM's incentive program could therefore be a great way to attract those Toyota owners who may not have considered GM's lineup before the recall, said Bell.

"It'll make people take pause and say, 'let's go have a sniff and see what they're like,'" he said.

Jeff Morris, a salesman at Jim Crivelli Chevrolet, a GM dealer in Pennsylvania, said that while Thursday was the first day the incentives were offered, the new deals are already attracting customers.

"It seems like a lot of people are in a kind of a state of panic about their Toyota products," he said. "We've already seen interest, so I think [the incentive program] is really going to help business."


Sources: CNN, MSNBC, Toyota

Toyota's Sticky Gas Pedals Conspiracy Or Poor Manufacturing?

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Toyota Extends Recall To China, Europe


Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it's closing in on solutions to a gas pedal system problem, but it still had no details on when drivers would see repairs as an embarrassing recall spread to more than 2.4 million vehicles on three continents.

Toyota dealers in the U.S. have been swamped with calls from concerned owners but had few answers as the recalls snowballed. Elkhart, Ind.-based CTS Corp., which made the parts, is cranking out redesigned gas pedal assemblies that fix the problem, which is caused by condensation around an arm attached to the pedal and springs that send the pedal back to the idle position.

Toyota engineers are developing ways to repair the pedal systems in existing cars and trucks, said spokesman Brian Lyons.

No decision has been made yet on whether to repair the pedals or replace them altogether, he said, and he would not estimate how long it will take for customers to see action. Lyons says the automaker has not decided if the new pedals will go first to factories so production of eight models can resume or to dealers for modification of new cars on their lots and cars being driven by their customers.

Toyota on Thursday extended its recalls to China and Europe, deepening the massive recalls that threatened to undermine the reputation of the world's top automaker as a manufacturer of safe, durable vehicles.

The automaker has informed Chinese authorities it will start a recall in February for 75,500 RAV4 vehicles that were manufactured in China between March 2009 and January 2010, said Toyota spokeswoman Ririko Takeuchi. Toyota is still unsure how many vehicles could have the defect in Europe.

House lawmakers, meanwhile, said they intend to hold a Feb. 25 hearing to review the complaints of sudden unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles. "Like many consumers, I am concerned by the seriousness and scope of Toyota's recent recall announcements," said House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif.

Earlier this week, the company said it was suspending U.S. sales and production of eight models — including the Camry, America's top-selling car — to fix faulty pedal systems that could stick and cause acceleration without warning. A week before the sales suspension, Toyota had issued a U.S. recall for the same eight models, affecting 2.3 million vehicles, even before the recalls in China and Europe.

Also this week, Toyota announced the recall of 1.09 million vehicles in the United States over concerns that floor mats could bend across gas pedals, causing sudden acceleration. That recall covered five models — 2008-2010 Highlander, 2009-2010 Corolla, 2009-2010 Venza, 2009-2010 Matrix, and 2009-2010 Pontiac Vibe, a General Motors Corp. vehicle that shares parts with the Matrix. Those were in addition 4.2 million vehicles recalled in late 2009 over floor mat concerns. Some of the models in both recalls overlap.

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CTS also makes pedals for Honda Motor Co., Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan Motor Co. and Ford Motor Co. in China, but the company said pedals made for those manufacturers don't have the same design. Still, Ford on Thursday halted production of some full-sized commercial vehicles in China because they contain CTS gas pedals.

CTS officials say they have ramped up production at three factories to manufacture redesigned pedals. The pedals are meant to solve problems with condensation that Toyota has said can cause them to react slowly when a driver presses on the gas. In rare cases, the gas pedals can get stuck.

CTS says it is also working with the Japanese automaker to find a potentially quicker repair for vehicles already on the road.

Lyons says the company's No. 1 priority is figuring out how to repair the largest number of vehicles in the shortest amount of time.

Repairs to the pedals still have to go through the normal durability testing to make sure they work properly, Lyons said. He would not estimate how long it will take for Toyota to decide on repairing versus replacement, nor would he say how long it will be until cars and trucks are fixed.

Toyota officials met Thursday with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to discuss a potential fix for the recalled vehicles, according to a person who was briefed on the meeting. The person, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the private meeting, said NHTSA officials discussed the potential remedy with Toyota and the government said they would express any concerns they may have about the proposed fix.

The automaker does not need NHTSA's specific approval but company officials do not want to proceed with a fix if the government has concerns about it. NHTSA has not signed off on any fixes at this point, the person said.

Since the initial recall last October, the company has held discussions with the government over the accelerator problem, and NHTSA was expected to review a possible remedy for the latest recall.

The sales suspension in the U.S. — Toyota's biggest market — could endanger the company's fledgling earnings recovery. Toyota only returned to the black for the July-September quarter with net income of 21.8 billion yen ($241 million) after three straight losing quarters.

"It is still uncertain how this recall problem will affect Toyota's profits. But investors are worried it could really pressure the company's overall earnings," said Masatoshi Sato, market analyst at Mizuho Investors Securities Co. Ltd.

Fitch Ratings warned Thursday the massive recalls and sales suspension could dent Toyota's recovery, especially in the vital U.S. market.

Fitch placed Toyota's credit rating of 'A+' on watch negative, meaning the rating could be downgraded. That could increase the interest rate Toyota pays on any debt.

"The recalls and sales and production suspension cast a negative light on Toyota's reputation for quality, just as the company emerges from an unprecedented downturn in the auto industry," Fitch said in a statement.

In March of 2007, Toyota started getting reports of gas pedals being slow to rise after being depressed for acceleration. Engineers fixed the problem in the Tundra pickup early in 2008.

But troubles persisted in other models, eventually leading to last week's U.S. recall and the plans to suspend sales and shut down of six factories while Toyota tries to fix the problems.


Sources: MSNBC, Toyota