http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/car-tests-blame-drivers-for-some-toyota-accidents/story-e6frf7ko-1225891677036
US Transportation Department tests of "dozens" of data recorders from Toyota vehicles that were in accidents blamed on sudden acceleration found many drivers mistakenly hit the accelerator instead of the brake, The Wall Street Journal reported.
"The early results suggest that some drivers who said their Toyotas and Lexuses surged out of control were mistakenly flooring the accelerator when they intended to jam on the brakes," the report said.
Yet the findings as part of a broad federal investigation into Toyota's recalls "don't exonerate the car maker from two known issues blamed for sudden acceleration in its vehicles: 'sticky' accelerator pedals that don't return to idle and floor mats that can trap accelerators to the floor,'" the report added.
The data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration included a sampling of "reports in which a driver of a Toyota vehicle said the brakes were depressed but failed to stop the car from accelerating and ultimately crashing," the report noted.
The Transportation Department however, "found that throttles were wide open and brakes not engaged on Toyotas involved in accidents blamed on sudden acceleration," the Journal report said citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.
Toyota has pulled around 10 million vehicles worldwide since late last year, mostly due to acceleration problems.
The company is looking to improve its recall process following heavy criticism of the way it handled safety issues in the US that have been blamed for more than 80 deaths.
Toyota president Akio Toyoda in June apologised to shareholders for the recall crisis, saying he thought he might have to resign when he was hauled before a US congressional hearing in February.
So in those cases where it was proven that the drivers hit the gas pedal instead of the brake pedal....could Toyota sue them for defamation or something like that? For wrongly accusing the company of negligence?
I reckon it'd open a whole can of worms.
And those proven to have hit the accelerator, and had been involved in an accident where insurance payed them out, you reckon insurance companies would be chasing their money back?
