4 ms·

I the case of the runaway Toyota cars in the news currently, the reports from people are that they do NOT stop with the break engaged. In fact, the recent inci

I the case of the runaway Toyota cars in the news currently, the reports from people are that they do NOT stop with the break engaged. In fact, the recent incident under investigation in California involved the car at a speed of 90 mph until the emergency break was applied decreasing it to 50 mph. For the neutral part, I haven't seen a clear answer. I've heard rumors that the Toyotas either couldn't shift into neutral or the person was too panicked to do so.

blhack 17y ago
the person was too panicked to do so. Not to sound like a jerk, but if you're too panicked to do this, maybe you shouldn't be piloting a several thousand pound piece of steel around... Also, this supports my belief that every driver should have to know how to drive a vehicle with a manual-shift gearbox. Shifting into neutral would probably happen without much of a second thought for somebody who normally drives a stickshift.
MrFoof 17y ago
The California case is currently being subjected to intense scrutiny. Here's the full, 24-minute 911 call audio. Does that sound like genuine panic to you? How would someone who doesn't know how to stop a car have any idea if their "brakes are almost burned"? http://jalopnik.com/5489553/runaway-prius-911-tape-im-over-90 http://jalopnik.com/5489553/runaway-prius-911-tape-im-over-9... The driver filed for bankruptcy in 2008, and still has $700,000 in debt. http://jalopnik.com/5491101/did-bankrupt-runaway-prius-driver-fake-unintended-acceleration http://jalopnik.com/5491101/did-bankrupt-runaway-prius-drive... There's significant reason to suspect this guy may have attempted a pretty blatant cash grab. Regardless, I think the Corolla is the only Toyota sedan that still has rear-drums. I believe all others (maybe barring the bottom-rung Camry) are 4-wheel discs. The brake systems on Lexuses are also significantly beefier (though nowhere near sports car territory). C&D did tests with Mustang GT500s -- which while having beefier brake packages, aren't anything compared to normal supercars and high-end sports cars -- had no problem stopping a 500HP engine from 120mph while maintaining wide-open-throttle. Sure, it took some distance, but it definitely stopped. My point is, if you step on the brake pedal and don't release, ANY car that is properly maintained will stop.
- 27182818284 17y ago
  Oh I know, when I said "the reports from people" in my parent comment I really meant that. Even before today's news I thought the CA case was fishy, so your comment is preaching to the converted a bit :-) I strictly meant that the drivers report to have tried to apply the brakes as hard as they can in most (all?) of the cases. On a side note, I recently had a stuck accelerator less than a week ago. (No it isn't a Toyota) Since I drive a manual transmission, I just quickly clutched and shifted to neutral. The engine redlined a bit before I killed it, which isn't good, but no serious harm to anyone or machine as far as I can tell. I coasted to a stop and then pulled the gas pedal from the floor with my hand. The weird thing is, after your comment just now I was trying to remember whether I tried to apply the brakes and I don't remember. It is cliche, but it "happened so fast," haha.

blhack 17y ago

the person was too panicked to do so. Not to sound like a jerk, but if you're too panicked to do this, maybe you shouldn't be piloting a several thousand pound piece of steel around... Also, this supports my belief that every driver should have to know how to drive a vehicle with a manual-shift gearbox. Shifting into neutral would probably happen without much of a second thought for somebody who normally drives a stickshift.

MrFoof 17y ago

The California case is currently being subjected to intense scrutiny. Here's the full, 24-minute 911 call audio. Does that sound like genuine panic to you? How would someone who doesn't know how to stop a car have any idea if their "brakes are almost burned"? http://jalopnik.com/5489553/runaway-prius-911-tape-im-over-90 http://jalopnik.com/5489553/runaway-prius-911-tape-im-over-9... The driver filed for bankruptcy in 2008, and still has $700,000 in debt. http://jalopnik.com/5491101/did-bankrupt-runaway-prius-driver-fake-unintended-acceleration http://jalopnik.com/5491101/did-bankrupt-runaway-prius-drive... There's significant reason to suspect this guy may have attempted a pretty blatant cash grab. Regardless, I think the Corolla is the only Toyota sedan that still has rear-drums. I believe all others (maybe barring the bottom-rung Camry) are 4-wheel discs. The brake systems on Lexuses are also significantly beefier (though nowhere near sports car territory). C&D did tests with Mustang GT500s -- which while having beefier brake packages, aren't anything compared to normal supercars and high-end sports cars -- had no problem stopping a 500HP engine from 120mph while maintaining wide-open-throttle. Sure, it took some distance, but it definitely stopped. My point is, if you step on the brake pedal and don't release, ANY car that is properly maintained will stop.

27182818284 17y ago
Oh I know, when I said "the reports from people" in my parent comment I really meant that. Even before today's news I thought the CA case was fishy, so your comment is preaching to the converted a bit :-) I strictly meant that the drivers report to have tried to apply the brakes as hard as they can in most (all?) of the cases. On a side note, I recently had a stuck accelerator less than a week ago. (No it isn't a Toyota) Since I drive a manual transmission, I just quickly clutched and shifted to neutral. The engine redlined a bit before I killed it, which isn't good, but no serious harm to anyone or machine as far as I can tell. I coasted to a stop and then pulled the gas pedal from the floor with my hand. The weird thing is, after your comment just now I was trying to remember whether I tried to apply the brakes and I don't remember. It is cliche, but it "happened so fast," haha.