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Automotive News & Views Toyota in decline in 2009?
3864 messages, Last post on Dec 09, 2009 at 11:15 AM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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Replying to: kdhspyder (Nov 03, 2009 4:48 pm) You want to believe they aren't because Toyota uber alles is the goal.  Even if it means people dying.  It's hard to brush off all those people commenting on ABC.com as just liars: it didn't happen, they just made it up, to get to post on an ABC news story. Sure. I am really anxious to hear what the black box has to say was going on in the way of inputs or at least sensors and reactions.
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Replying to: gagrice (Nov 03, 2009 5:28 pm) |
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Replying to: imidazol97 (Nov 03, 2009 5:51 pm)  Charlene Blake, that woman's a real FLAKE! I think every car she'd owned up to her allegedly sludged Toyota was a lemon, according to her. And her previous cars weren't Toyotas; one was a Chrysler minivan as I recall. She has ZERO credibility. I'm always skeptical of testimony in and of itself. What really happened? No one knows without a dispassionate investigation. That's one reason these "black boxes" will come in handy. Meanwhile, here's my favorite comment from the web version of ABC's "news" story: Some of these complaints are exactly like the AUDI runaway vehicles of the 80s. We're seeing the same allegations of demonic cars with minds of their own and drivers claiming total innocence as then. The ultimate finding in the Audi's was 100 percent operator error. Fact: the brakes on modern cars are in all cases STRONGER than the engine. Period. If you are pushing down on the brake, the car will slow regardless of what the engine is doing. Fact: if you slip a car's transmission into neutral, zero power will be going to your wheels. Period. Prediction: This will be ABC's "Dateline" moment. You probably remember, back in the early 90s when that NBC program used small rockets to help make the Chevy/GMC full-size pickup truck explode in a ball of flames when the truck's side-saddle gas tank was rammed by a Chevy Citation! And of course, CBS was the one who "proved" that the Audi 5000 was dangerous. Three of a kind, I guess!
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Replying to: 210delray (Nov 03, 2009 6:07 pm) Was she posting in the comments at ABC or something? As I recall, she also was unhappy with her Hoover in the early days before she latched onto car problems.
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Replying to: steve_ (Nov 03, 2009 6:17 pm) |
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Replying to: 210delray (Nov 03, 2009 6:07 pm) But that was okay because it was a GM pickup that they were trying to show had a potential to catch fire, wasn't it? > If you are pushing down on the brake, the car will slow regardless of what the engine is doing That's the part I can't understand about the whole thing. Brakes are usually much stronger than the motor, even on a car with high revolution high output and a transmission with 6 speeds so that it can be in an optimum gear at 100 mph for max acceleration. Even without boost, I would think a stong man could use both legs to brake without the power assist. >And nothing would make your day like seeing the mighty Toyota brought down to its knees Wrong. There are a few people, present company excepted, who have had an arrogance about the image and reality of their car company and were especially critical of US companies including GM. They need to be down a few notches. Looks like this and the sludge, which many people know about but don't understand, may add up. The transmission lag in shifting for acceleration in certain, unique conditions doesn't seem to have concern many people who weren't experiencing it. I think a factor here is that many people remember the Audi acceleration problems where the brake and accelerator are too similar in position and height and people hit the accelerator thinking it was the brake. They understand acceleration that's uncontrolled and unexpected. |
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Replying to: imidazol97 (Nov 03, 2009 6:44 pm) No, it wasn't okay. "Dateline" faked it and had to publicly apologize for sensationalizing the problem. They only earned back their reputation by covering crash tests by the respected Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Of course, now they're back in the gutter again with "Predator" series and the like. The crash tests got too boring as the cars got better. Even without boost, I would think a strong man could use both legs to brake without the power assist. That's what I think also. Maybe he panicked to the point that he didn't KEEP his feet firmly on the brakes. I defend Toyota because they've done fine by me with 3 cars (4 if I include the Corolla my wife brought into the marriage). I grew up on GM iron, so I don't really have a bone to pick with them, except I disagreed with the bailout. I remember their glory days (60s) and wish they could get some of that mojo back, but realistically, they'll never be what they once were.
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Replying to: 210delray (Nov 03, 2009 6:07 pm) The "smart" gas pedal makes sense, but that probably won't end the unintended acceleration fairy tale. Those same folks will still insist that the darn thing must have malfunctioned when they drove thru the garage doors, over a cliff, or whatever.
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Replying to: houdini1 (Nov 03, 2009 7:05 pm) That "over the cliff" into the Pacific story has the hallmarks of this. Now, I'm no spring chicken myself anymore, but when it said that couple had been married for 46 years, that's starting to get up there, and mistakes like that aren't unusual for *some* older people. |
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Replying to: imidazol97 (Nov 03, 2009 6:44 pm) |
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