Toyota Rebuked for ‘No Defect’ Claim

 

A U.S. auto safety agency has rebuked an assertion by Toyota Motor Corp. that it found nothing wrong in vehicles involved in a massive recall over incidents of unintended acceleration. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a statement that the recalled Toyota and Lexus vehicles do have an “underlying defect” that involves the design of the accelerator pedal and the driver's foot well.

A September advisory by the NHTSA alerting Lexus and Toyota owners about conditions that could cause the accelerator to get stuck open under certain conditions was precipitated by continued reports of vehicles accelerating rapidly after release of the accelerator pedal. 

In a video statement posted online, Toyota Senior Vice President Bob Daly addressed recent suggestions "that there may be other causes of unintended acceleration," including problems with engine control systems, brake systems or electromagnetic interference.”

"There is no evidence to support those theories," Daly said. "The question of unintended acceleration involving Toyota and Lexus vehicles has been repeatedly and thoroughly investigated by NHTSA, without any finding of defect other than the risk from an unsecured or incompatible driver’s floor mat."

Read Toyota USA’s Update on Safety Advisory.

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