Ask the Car People.SM


Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety - READ ONLY

447 messages,  Last post on Jan 31, 2010 at 12:48 PM

You are in the Toyota Camry Forum.

What is this discussion about? Toyota Camry, Sedan

General Toyota Recall Questions/Comments: Accelerator Stuck Problem Recall

Messages Page 1 of 45

#1 of 447 Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety by revit

Dec 25, 2009 (8:35 pm)

As a current Camry owner, I always thought I bought the best of the mid size class car. But after reading the article a friend gave to me, I am wondering if I should sell it as soon as possible due to safety problems?
 
Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety problems
 
During a routine test on its Sienna minivan in April 2003, Toyota Motor Corp. engineers discovered that a plastic panel could come loose and cause the gas pedal to stick, potentially making the vehicle accelerate out of control.
 
The automaker redesigned the part and by that June every 2004 model year Sienna off the assembly line came with the new panel. Toyota did not notify tens of thousands of people who had already bought vans with the old panel, however.
 
It wasn't until U.S. safety officials opened an investigation last year that Toyota acknowledged in a letter to regulators that the part could come loose and "lead to unwanted or sudden acceleration."
 
In January, nearly six years after discovering the potential hazard, the automaker recalled 26,501 vans made with the old panel.
 
In a statement to The Times, Toyota said that there was no defect in the Sienna and that "a safety recall was not deemed necessary" when it discovered the problem in 2003. The company called the replacement part "an additional safety measure."
 
A peerless reputation for quality and safety has helped Toyota become the world's largest automaker. But even as its sales have soared, the company has delayed recalls, kept a tight lid on disclosure of potential problems and attempted to blame human error in cases where owners claimed vehicle defects.
 
The automaker's handling of safety issues has come under scrutiny in recent months because of incidents of sudden acceleration in Toyota and Lexus vehicles, which The Times has reported were involved in accidents causing 19 fatalities since 2001, more deaths from that problem than all other automakers combined.
 
After Toyota this fall announced its biggest recall to address the sudden-acceleration problem, it insisted publicly that no defect existed. That drew a rare public rebuke from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which chastised the automaker for making "inaccurate and misleading statements."
 
In the wake of Toyota's announcement of the massive recall, The Times examined some of the ways the automaker has dealt with safety problems in recent years and found that:
 
* The automaker knew of a dangerous steering defect in vehicles including the 4Runner sport utility vehicle for years before issuing a recall in Japan in 2004. But it told regulators no recall was necessary in the U.S., despite having received dozens of complaints from drivers. Toyota said a subsequent investigation led it to order a U.S. recall in 2005.
 
* Toyota has paid cash settlements to people who say their vehicles have raced out of control, sometimes causing serious accidents, according to consumers and their attorneys. Other motorists who complained of acceleration problems with their vehicles have received buybacks under lemon laws.
 
* Although the sudden acceleration issue erupted publicly only in recent months, it has been festering for nearly a decade. A computerized search of NHTSA records by The Times has found Toyota issued eight previous recalls related to unintended acceleration since 2000, more than any other automaker.
 
* A former Toyota lawyer who handled safety litigation has sued the automaker, accusing it of engaging in a "calculated conspiracy to prevent the disclosure of damaging evidence" as part of a scheme to "prevent evidence of its vehicles' structural shortcomings from becoming known" to plaintiffs lawyers, courts, NHTSA and the public.
 
As a result, plaintiffs attorneys are considering reopening dozens of product-liability suits against the automaker.
 
Toyota has called the allegations of the attorney, Dimitrios Biller, "both misleading and inaccurate" and noted that he is also suing another former employer. The company said it had "acted appropriately in product liability cases and in all reporting to federal safety regulators."
 
In a written statement to The Times, Toyota said that it strove to keep government officials and consumers informed about potential safety problems with its vehicles, which it says are tested to meet or exceed federal standards.
 
"Toyota has absolutely not minimized public awareness of any defect or issue with respect to its vehicles," the company said.
 
Currently, Toyota is a defendant in at least 10 lawsuits alleging unintended acceleration that caused five fatalities and four injuries. Two of those suits are seeking class-action status.
 
But few, if any, sudden-acceleration cases ever make it to trial, according to attorneys who handle such cases.
 
After a 2007 crash of a Camry that accelerated out of control for 20 miles before killing the driver of another car in San Jose, Toyota was sued by members of the victim's family. Their attorney, Louis Franecke, said the automaker "didn't want to go to trial," and paid them a seven-figure sum in exchange for dropping the case and signing a non-disclosure form.
 
In an interview, Guadalupe Gomez, the driver of the runaway Camry, said he also signed a confidentiality agreement and received a settlement from Toyota. He was initially arrested on suspicion of manslaughter for causing the crash, but charges were never filed.
 
By settling, Toyota has managed to keep potentially damaging information out of the public eye, said Raymond Paul Johnson, a Los Angeles attorney who said he had settled four sudden-acceleration cases with the automaker.
 
"It's just a matter of risk control for them," Johnson said.
 
Toyota said that although it does not comment on individual cases, it "has resolved and will continue to resolve matters with litigants through confidential settlement when it is in both parties' interests to do so."
 
The majority of unintended acceleration incidents don't end up in accidents. But even after minor incidents, some consumers have obtained deals under which their cars were repurchased on favorable terms.
 
Tim Marks, a small businessman in Camden, Ark., parked his daughter's 2006 Lexus IS 250 in front of the dealership last year and said his family would never drive it again after experiencing four sudden-acceleration events.
 
"They told my daughter she was texting while driving and wasn't paying attention," Marks recalled. "She is a 95-pound, little itty-bitty thing, but she was fixing to twist off on that man."
 
The vehicle was bought back and the title branded as a lemon, according to vehicle registration records. It was later registered in Florida, suggesting that the dealer resold it.
 
Much the same thing happened to Joan Marschall, a Visalia resident whose 2003 Camry accelerated on its own three times before she complained.
 
"I took it to the dealer and said I wouldn't drive it again," Marschall recalled. "I

#2 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [revit] by gtgtcobra

Dec 26, 2009 (7:09 pm)

Replying to: revit (Dec 25, 2009 8:35 pm)
I say keep the car. There's nothing wrong with it. The Camry is a very decent vehicle. I think that everybody is over exaggerating by claiming that the Camry has runaway acceleration problems. Drive your car and try to enjoy it. It's not a bad car.

#3 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [gtgtcobra] by revit

Dec 27, 2009 (6:40 am)

Replying to: gtgtcobra (Dec 26, 2009 7:09 pm)
I concerned with not only my car, but several of my relatives own Toyotas and it seems like the entire lineup may have issues. For years, Consumer Reports always recommended all the Toyota vehicles, but it now seems the quality is not all that great and there was alot of cover-up going on. Sorry, but when it comes to safety, I don't take chances and I think in a couple of weeks I might trade in the Camry on a new Ford Fusion.

#4 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [revit] by gtgtcobra

Jan 02, 2010 (8:57 pm)

Replying to: revit (Dec 27, 2009 6:40 am)
I LOVE my Camry. The Ford Fusion isn't anything special just so you know.

#5 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [gtgtcobra] by revit

Jan 03, 2010 (6:31 am)

Replying to: gtgtcobra (Jan 02, 2010 8:57 pm)
I DID too (past tense), no longer do I want to keep an unsafe vehicle and will no longer own a Toyota until they get their act together. There is no excuse for coverup when it comes to safety.

#6 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety by comus

Jan 03, 2010 (1:26 pm)

Replying to: gtgtcobra (Dec 26, 2009 7:09 pm)
Hey GT, I love my Camry. If only it would run, 2 years old, 4 BLOWN TRANNYS, and a DEACELERATION PROBLEM when TRACTION CONTROL kicks in. Luck, just lucky a tractor trailer did not share my space...............at the time of DEACELARATION....................It all remains to be seen, what happens to my case............................................................................- ...................................

#7 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [revit] by kdhspyder

Jan 13, 2010 (3:13 pm)

Replying to: revit (Jan 03, 2010 6:31 am)
LIfe's too short to be unhappy. If you are worried and concerned, even though that article was mostly bogus, then you should sell the vehicle and move on to something else. Don't be unhappy.

#8 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [kdhspyder] by revit

Jan 13, 2010 (3:39 pm)

Replying to: kdhspyder (Jan 13, 2010 3:13 pm)
Oh, I agree completely about being happy, but have to disagree about the article being mostly bogus. Now what was bogus was Toyota's response to the article. People lives are no joking matter and car safety must be taken serious. There is no excuse for this and here I thought Toyota was different than the other automakers, seems they are much of the same, even worse in some cases. Shame on Toyota for trying to cover up the truth all along!

#9 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [revit] by kdhspyder

Jan 13, 2010 (5:12 pm)

Replying to: revit (Jan 13, 2010 3:39 pm)
Sorry none of that happened. The LAT made up statements in that article. Pure and simple. The response to that article only came out as the actual facts after the LAT wrote their fabrications. The response to the article were the actual Qs and As that caused the article to be written.
 
Believe what you wish but on this you're very wrong. You'll notice that the LAT hasn't said squat since Toyota published the actual Qs and As and slapped it around in public. But, if you aren't happy then sell it.
 
BTW did you see that RL Polk yesterday gave Toyota the award for 2009 as the manufacturer with the most loyal customer base? Don't let that influence you. If you're unhappy sell the vehicle and move on.
 
We move on.

#10 of 447 Re: Afraid Camry Owner - Toyota found to keep tight lid on potential safety [kdhspyder] by gtgtcobra

Jan 13, 2010 (8:09 pm)

Replying to: kdhspyder (Jan 13, 2010 5:12 pm)
"BTW did you see that RL Polk yesterday gave Toyota the award for 2009 as the manufacturer with the most loyal customer base?"
 
That's VERY true. The Camry is THE BEST selling car. I see a lot of 2007 to 2010 Camrys all over the place whenever I go. They are everywhere. I am curious to find out how many units have been sold for each year for the 2007, 2008, 2009 and the 2010 Camry? Does anybody in here know?

Messages Page 1 of 45

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement