Why didn't the driver simply throw the transmission into neutral as officers urged him to do? Why didn't a safety mechanism activate that was supposed to cut power to the engine in such situations? And could he have made the story up in pursuit of fame and money?

"It is not outside the realm of probability that this whole thing could be a hoax"

someone in america lying to get lawsuit money.

say it ain't so!

haha

Mitch reading your google link doesn't sound like he made it up. In fact it sounds like he wished it would just go away. Avoiding reporters, no plans to file a lawsuit, burnt brakes on the ground when the car stopped. Not sounding fake to me. However he admits that he handled it poorly (as a driver) and I think thats why he is avoiding reporters cause he knows that part of the problem is that he was a dumbass. A scared dumbass maybe and in emergency many of us go from intelegent individuals to dumbasses so not sure I blame him.

manual transmission is the way to go.

:)

Manual transmission is cool, you get a jerking sensation that and a thrill you just don't get with auto trans.

"you get a jerking sensation that and a thrill you just don't get with auto trans.

#5 | Posted by mitch "

Nah. Too easy.

AKA- We have invested millions in the US car manufacturers and they have yet to produce a hybrid as successful as the Toyota, so we are going to issue a report questioning the safety of the Toyota and end it with the fact that we "may not be able to solve the mystery of what happened to the hybrid" just to add more doubt to Toyota's great sales. That will show them not to need our money!

Clearly science cannot give us the answer here. Perhpas the Prius was possessed by a demon.

It is the ghost of a WWII vet who hates the "Japs."

manual transmission is the way to go

Amen to that.

Clearly science cannot give us the answer here. Perhpas the Prius was possessed by a demon.

#8 | Posted by LetUsPrey

Must be those Jap Deities are still pissed at us for not laying down and taking it during WWII......

Has any of the cars that accelerated been proven in the science lab, like this car went through, to re-create the event?

I've heard all about this guy's car being tested, yet, I haven't heard about such extensive tests done on all the other cars.

If Congress is holding hearings with Toyota, don't you think they should be able to roll out the tests and say, "See, your car does this"

I'm guessing that the demon was named James Sikes.

The testing described in this and other articles states that every time the brake and gas pedals were pressed to the floor the engine would shut off.
The real life event, the engine accelerated to top speed and then applying the brakes didn't work. Two completely different sets of inputs. Once the sudden acceleration took place it is entirely possible the other inputs were not effective.
The fact that Toyota initially minimized that there were any problems before acknowledging there was a problem hardly points to a hoax.
Modern cars have more computer controlled systems than the moon landing.
Some random set of inputs involving road grade, temperature, humidity, engine/road grime, throttle position, the possibilities are literally endless.
Blame the victim, that's the ticket, the unemployed don't want to work, if sick people took care of themselves we wouldn't need health care, and a minimum wage reduces employment.

HOAX---lived the big life, leveraged himself to the hilt, looking for the easy way out---wasn't thinking clearly on the way up and not thinking clearly on the way down---like many Americans whose ethics are in the toilet.

Can't explain runaway Toyota?

Spud can.

He hired an attorney, enough said. And Kingcuke, go after the deep pockets for the easy way out.

I can explain it. The driver is FOS.

Didn't I say I smell a lawsuit last week? The guy is a slimeball.

Remember back almost 30 years ago when cars were taking themselves out of park and accelerating when the brake was applied?

That was finally attributed to "pedal misapplication."

Same thing here: One part opportunistic hoax hoping to win the lawsuit lottery and one part too stupid to operate a motor vehicle.
Throw in a little batshit crazy media for seasoning.

By what I see around here most people who drive a Prius are bat shit crazy in the first place. They seem to come with an ascot and beret as standard equipment.

Matsop...the judge jury and executioner. Next he will tell us Toyota's problems was a government plot to begin with.

Of course Toyota is going to say they didn't find a problem, and the government is going to play hell trying to find a problem if it was electrical, not mechanical, which I would suspect first. I just recently went through hell with a Chevy V6 that had a faulty connector coming from the crank sensor. Every couple of weeks it would just lose contact again and the van would either start cutting out or just quit running altogether in the middle of nowhere. I finally used a jewelers screw driver to tweak the female pins and then treated the pins with a very expensive electrical contact stabilizer gel to get it working right again. The reason for the problem is these computer systems are using sensors that work on mili-amps of current and have little to no tolerance for any corrosion at all on the connectors. They are so small now, in order to keep the resistance down, that they are no longer reliable in the long run. Now I have a new problem, the courtesy lights all quit and I tracked it down to a faulty and very expensive computer module. There is really no reason for these kind of circuits to be computer controlled except as a sales gimmick.

The Toyota Prius is destined to end up in the scrap heap of history because it is just too complicated and not rugged enough to last beyond it's warranty. Once the batteries go in these cars it is likely going to cost more then the failing piece of junk will be worth to replace them. People who buy them are getting taken big time.

Now is the time for auto companies to start building practical and simplified cars again. This gadgetry craze is ruining the new cars reliability and safety.

Ringmaster, you just don't get it, the Prius is saving the world.

The only way that the Prius will save the world is if they convert it into a pedal car.

Due to it's NiMH batteries and 100,000 mile service life, a Prius is about as polluting overall as a Hummer.

Matsop...the judge jury and executioner. Next he will tell us Toyota's problems was a government plot to begin with.

Of course Toyota is going to say they didn't find a problem, and the government is going to play hell trying to find a problem if it was electrical, not mechanical, which I would suspect first.

#22 | Posted by RingMaster

Ringmaster, read your own statement---you're being contradictory in your statement about the government----now I'll be consistent---no, see no government plot in Toyota's difficulties. Second, when this car was tested, Toyota, along with the government (NHTSA) and other independent examiners tested this car and found absolutely no difficulties with the car---one of the major things they did find was that the consumer driving it was repeatedly lightly applying the brakes---uuuuuummmm. As with most controversial issues I am "fair and balanced" and just go with the facts, just the facts.

I think we all ought to buy him a brand new Cadilac from Gov't Motors, pay the difference in the gas bill, pay for all his medical bills (all that "PTSD" that is sur to follow. Buy him a house, because he will not be able to work, and pay him unemployment for an extended time. It is his right. Oh wait, Obama already is doing this? Dang I'm slow.

Wake up, we are heading into Socialism and you dumb asses on the left want to bury your heads. The right is not always correct, but supporting all this spending and gov't take over is quickly destroying us. The debt is and will pull us down. This loser is just a sign of what we have allowed. Jail time and $ consequences for this moron if it was faked would be kind treatment. But looking for others to pay for your failings (school drop outs, financial mismanagement, crime) losers need to be accoutable, not me.

How come the right never has a problem with
debt when its a Republican president who is
the spendthrift?

RINGMASTER

Thank you for the information about the crank shaft sensor. I have the same problem with my S10 and the mechanics kept telling me my sensor was bad.

It didn't take me long to figure out that it wasn't the sensor at all but rather the electrical connection itself. At my insistance the mechanic finally used the same contact stabelizer gel you mentioned and (so far) I haven't had any more problems.

Your explanation was much more clear than the one I got from my mechanic and I want to thank you for that. I've printed a copy of your post for future reference.

Thanks again.

tig, I guess you never red my posts about Bush. Funny thing, the little o has wracked up as much debt in one year as Bush did in 8. Neither are acceptable.

As with most controversial issues I am "fair and balanced" and just go with the facts, just the facts.

Horse shit. You are consistent alright, always on the right wing, but just like Fox news, never fair and balanced. Stick to something you actually know something about, like pushing papers across your desk.

I say it was an electrical problem, most likely bad software or a buggy chip, and I don't think you or the examiners are being truthful with this issue. Sure the guy panicked and did all the wrong things, but he can't sue unless there were actual damages anyway. Don't act so stupid just to put a political twist on the issue. Just you wait, many more of these claims are being investigated and any day now someone will die again as a result and you and the idiots who design this shit will still say they were faking it.

I have worked on cars and motorcycles for decades and I say the stuff today is crap compared to something as simple as the original Dodge Dart, Chevy Nova, Ford Ranger or the Volkswagen Bug. What the hell, you need a $5,000 engine analyzer and a college degree just to find a loose connector these days. No wonder people just abandon these newer cars on the side of the road when they breakdown. It's planned obsolescence, a total waste of resources and poor economics. Haven't you noticed what a state of collapse all these car companies are in these days from recalls alone, or are you in a state of denial about this too?

You corporate shills really crack me up.

I used to have a Ford Windstar that would just randomly cut off. We finaly figured out it was the fuse on the fuel pump blowing. After trying to get the fuel pump fixed so it would quit blowing the fuse it lasted about 2 weeks and did the same shit. I got pissed and put a bigger fuse in it figuring if it blew something out then at least it could be fixed. Turns out it never blew out again and the car worked fine till the transmision died 2 years later. Stupid designs are on all cars and the new laws that say if the check engine light is on you have to fix whatever is wrong to pass inspection is just crazy. We had a three week wait one time as the dealership tried to figure out what doohicky was broken acording to the damn on board computer. It turned out to be a completley irrelevant part that the car could have never had fixed and still run but no thanks to the state it had to be fixed to stay legal.

Why should we expect to see the Govt to be able to explain this?

Hell, even the company that ACTUALLY CREATED THE THING can't explain why.

OBAMA'S FAULT!!

tig, I guess you never red my posts about Bush. Funny thing, the little o has wracked up as much debt in one year as Bush did in 8. Neither are acceptable.

#30 | Posted by Sniper at 2010-03-16 02:19 PM | Reply | Flag:

FALSE

That was finally attributed to "pedal misapplication."...Same thing here

#20 | Posted by Zatoichi

Oh bullshit. Funny how a person who claims all this scientific intelligence can ignore simple facts!

The new count from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration includes 13 fatalities reported since Jan. 27, the day after Toyota ordered a sales and production halt of eight models in the U.S. to fix gas pedals that it said can stick and cause unintended acceleration.

Check out Car and Driver, they did an expose on the problem in their Feb 2010 issue

"ignore simple facts"

Like I was discussing Audis in 1981?

This thread is about the runaway Prius.

Try reading.

It was a sham, a hoax, an obama retard wanted to set himself up for a law suit against Toyota, and help obama tear down a non union corporation that builds a quality product. GEEEEESSSS! this is a no brainer, I must remember which site I am on, it's hard to communicate with the mentally challenged left.

It was a sham, a hoax, an obama retard wanted to set himself up for a law suit against Toyota, and help obama tear down a non union corporation that builds a quality product. GEEEEESSSS! this is a no brainer, I must remember which site I am on, it's hard to communicate with the mentally challenged left.

#37 | Posted by rightnut at 2010-03-16 06:34 PM | Reply | Flag:

Did he carve a backwards 'T' in his cheek too?

Wait.....what does a backwards 'T' look like?

"Wait.....what does a backwards 'T' look like?"

T

Somewhat analogous to a pair of degenerate states in quantum mechanics.

I must remember which site I am on, it's hard to communicate with the mentally challenged left.

It's even harder to communicate with a bitch in heat.

Due to it's NiMH batteries and 100,000 mile service life, a Prius is about as polluting overall as a Hummer.

#25 | Posted by Zatoichi

Wait.....what does a backwards 'T' look like?

"it's hard to communicate with the mentally challenged left"

That is due to the fact that the state called 'the mentally challenged left' is always unoccupied.

For the mentally challenged right, which is a grossly over-occupied state, that means there ain't nobody there.

"Could Mr T beat up Mr Coffee?"

They just better not fuck with Mr Fusion.

Note to Toyota: When you market a car to a bunch of Twinkie eating, granola crunching, Al Gore lov'in, Liberal children of the earth, this is what you have to expect.

I remember when Ford had a problem with their F150's bursting in fire after an accident because the tanks were on the outside of the frame rails. Bubba would stumble away from the fire, light a cigarette and take a long draw on the Bud in his hand and tell his buddy, " hell of a fire ain't it, guess I'll have to get the next one in blue". Now that's marking the right vehicle to the right demographic.

"I remember when Ford had a problem with their F150's bursting in fire"

That's nice because they were GM trucks.

Well we are both right, as I doubt there would be a web site called Ford Fires if this was a small issue.

I finally used a jewelers screw driver to tweak the female pins . . . .
#22 | Posted by RingMaster

btw, Toyota said brake components didn't show wear'n tear that would be expected from someone jumping on the brakes

MARKH

Electronic connections have 'male' and 'female' connectors. Standard terms.

To put it simply, when you plug into a wall socket, the 3 pronged plug is 'male' and the wall socket 'female'.

"Standard terms."

Plug

Jack

Get over it.

And then some of us remember the Ford Pinto....

I finally used a jewelers screw driver to tweak the female pins . . . .
#22 | Posted by RingMaster

?my confidence in your analysis is shaken til ya further explain "female pins"?

MARKH

Sorry, ZAT. Ir you're talking about a 110V connection, maybe. "Male" and "Female" are how folks who work with electronic connections refer to them. When buying them too:

My name is not zat. My confidence in anything you say was shaken a long time ago, but at any rate you do have a sense of humor, however in today's world male and female are totally interchangeable or haven't you noticed?

RINGMASTER

I was replying to ZAT's post and referencing yours, where the 'male' and 'female' plug subject came up:

"Standard terms."

Plug

Jack

Get over it.

#51 | Posted by Zatoichi

BTW...#54 was for the most observant markh. Cheers!

Murphy's Corollary--

When trying to show the repairman what is wrong with the machine--it won't do it...

Could also be that the guy was faking it..

"Could also be that the guy was faking it..
#57 | Posted by MURPHY

That's Murphy's Husband's Law.

THAT is something I don't ever have to worry about !

lol

THAT is something I don't ever have to worry about !

#59 | Posted by MURPHY