Toyota announced Feb. 1 that it had come up with a fix for a sticking accelerator issue in its cars that caused the recall of more than 2 million vehicles comprised of eight separate models.
Officials said that the parts to fix the problem would reinforce the pedal assembly and would take roughly 30 minutes to install per car.
The parts have already been shipped and Toyota has begun issuing letters to owners of the affected cars.
While this solution has disappointed many Toyota haters, who had hoped to deride the world’s No. 1 automaker and witness its demise, Toyota has yet to say anything about why its multi-million dollar research and development team did not see this fault coming.
Surprisingly enough, the company known for its reliability and innovation in hybrid technology has not implemented simple, yet effective solutions to the design of the accelerator other manufacturers already use.
One of these features is a brake override system, in which throttle input is completely canceled regardless of its position when the brakes are applied.
And this feature is a no-brainer to implement considering all new cars use throttle-by-wire systems. That is, cars no longer run cable-throttle setups that directly connect the accelerator pedal to the throttle body as seen in your father’s ’93 Taurus.
Throttle-by-wire systems enable accelerator pedals to communicate with the car’s electronic control unit, which in turn communicates with the throttle body in the engine. In other words, the accelerator pedals in cars today are essentially big digital input switches.
Since we’re all trotting around in giant computers on wheels, there’s no reason a car shouldn’t be smart enough to know its driver is in danger when he or she is mashing the brake pedal through the floorboards.
But wait, there’s more.
Shortly after this whole sticking accelerator fiasco, Toyota announced it would have this brake override feature installed in its cars beginning this year.
Toyota claims that the introduction of this feature has nothing to do with the recall. Coincidence? Apparently a big one.
Investigations conducted by officials and consumers alike have revealed that numerous carmakers implemented the brake override feature years ago.
It comes as no surprise, as such a feature only makes sense. Racing and motorsports aside, there’s no need for the brake and throttle to ever be applied simultaneously.
Is there any excuse for the world’s largest automobile manufacturer to miss this?
Toyota has made some brilliant automobiles over the years, but its quality standards have become questionable lately.
More motorists trust their commuting lives to Toyotas than any other brand. A fault such as this one can push the automaker onto thin ice.
As paranoid motorists (and those Toyota haters) continue to report problems with their Toyotas, trust with the brand will quickly deteriorate.
Will we find out that Priuses are powered by baby kittens and 4Runners are all missing four-wheel-drive systems next?
One thing is for sure: Toyota has cleared a lane for other companies such as GM to get ahead.
Newton Liu is a communication junior and may be reached at [email protected]
