[Quietcars] Los Angles Times Article

[michael townsend]

I beg to answer you with the counterclaim of the Audi and VW unintended
acceleration claims for the 1980s and early 1990s. Many people found that
Audi and VW unintended acceleration accidents were caused by driver error,
as mistakenly, drivers hit the gas when they should have hit the brake.
Parenthetically, this is the reason why some or most cars equipped with and
automatic transmission have a disengage feature whereby you have to put your
foot on the brake pedal prior to shifting the trans out of park into either
reverse or forward gears.  And, this happened to elderly as well as young
drivers.  

In the case of the unintended acceleration of Toyotas is the floor mat the
only cause for this?  And, if it is so then shouldn't the driver be held
responsible or accountable at least for the fact that the accident happened?
And, is it asking too much for a driver to check the positioning of the
floor mats every once in a while, let's say every month or so when they
check the inflation of their tires or clean their windscreens, before they
go merrily on their way?  

I think that drivers are complacent and don't take care of their vehicles as
they should and only lift the hood when their cars won't start and they know
nothing about, nor do they care about maintenance.  

Options such as cruise control and assisted parking or lane change warning
devices are safety measures that are terrific, to be sure, but that doesn't
negate a driver's responsibilities to properly pilot the vehicle to try and
avoid mishaps.  And, pertaining to the survey that I sent to the list this
morning, if a suitable noise making device were affixed to a quieter car,
this certainly wouldn't negate the driver or the blind person from their
shared duties to either pilot the car safely or travel with a cane, guide
dog or using a person's wing using common sense.  

Thanks, bob, for your thoughts.  



-----Original Message-----
From: quietcars-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:quietcars-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Robert Wilson
Sent: Monday, November 09, 2009 10:14 AM
To: quietcars at nfbnet.org
Subject: [Quietcars] Los Angles Times Article


Somewhat peripheral to Quietcars, the article "Runaway Toyota cases ignored"
relates to the credibility of the NHTSA. According to this report:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-fi-toyota-recall8-2009nov08,0,6120294.s
tory?page=1

"More than 1,000 Toyota and Lexus owners have reported since 2001 that their
vehicles suddenly accelerated on their own, in many cases slamming into
trees, parked cars and brick walls, among other obstacles, a Times review of
federal records has found.

The crashes resulted in at least 19 deaths and scores of injuries over the
last decade, records show. Federal regulators say that is far more than any
other automaker has experienced.

Owner complaints helped trigger at least eight investigations into sudden
acceleration in Toyota and Lexus vehicles by the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration in the last seven years. Toyota Motor Corp. recalled
fewer than 85,000 vehicles in response to two of those probes, and the
federal agency closed six other cases without finding a defect.

But those investigations systematically excluded or dismissed the majority
of complaints by owners that their Toyota and Lexus vehicles had suddenly
accelerated, which sharply narrowed the scope of the probes, the Times
investigation revealed.

Federal officials eliminated broad categories of sudden-acceleration
complaints, including cases in which drivers said they were unable to stop
runaway cars using their brakes; incidents of unintended acceleration
lasting more than a few seconds; and reports in which owners did not
identify the possible causes of the problem. . . . "

This begs the question, "What was the NHTSA looking at instead of these
known fatal accidents?"

Bob Wilson
 		 	   		  
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