A Prius with stuck accelerator glides to safety

Geez! Lucky! :\
 
Just heard the 911 tapes..... Yhe operator was telling him to put it in N but he said he was trying to control the vehicle.....Yet he was able to call 911???

Also noticed today he was wearing a corvette owners club jacket.

My doubt has grown from pea size to bean size :hmm:
 
TXgolfer said:
I was thinking as I wrote that (should have typed it) that it would be tough to turn the key one notch in that situation.......

Had the guy checked the Toyota site he would have been more prepared.

There is also my skeptic side that wonders if the guy might have set it up for lawsuit purposes. The car was stopped pretty easily once the trooper got involved. Not saying that is what happened but there is a little bitty dot of doubt
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there's no key in Prius. it has a button. yea I'm as clueless as Sylvester Stallone in Demolition Man :lol:
 
here's what my lawyer friend (and also my biker friend) said about this situation - "Mr. Sikes needs to go back to driver's ed. "Sikes told reporters he didn't go into neutral because he worried the car would flip.

1. Toyota brakes are insufficient to override the engine power...FAIL
2. This guy endangered other drivers because he mistakenly thought neutral would induce a rollover...DOUBLE FAIL."

Our other biker friend chimed in... "He was able to operate his cell phone, AND to drive while reaching down to his feet to try and lift the gas pedal. Pretty crazy. He probably just known nothing about how a manual transmission works. Also, does the Prius even HAVE neutral? It's practically fly-by-wire."

:hmm: TXGolfer - I believe your suspicion is confirmed....
 
Yesterday morning, I watched news. They said that 911 operator told driver push to neutral. The driver said that he smell burn brake.

I guess that they won't solve problem with neutral
 
darkage said:
One month ago, I read news: Co-Founder Apple Computer, Steve Wozniak, has Prius. He blames software - cause accelerator problem.

Steve Wozniak's Prius Problems: Apple Co-Founder Thinks Software Is To Blame For Toyota Problem

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak says his Prius has acceleration 'software glitch' - Drive On: A conversation about the cars and trucks we drive - USATODAY.com

Apple Co-Founder Slams Prius Software Problem
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Well, Steve Wozniak is a well-known engineer and a good one at that. He's not a billionaire for nothing, you know.

I wouldn't be surprised if that does turn out to be the case.
 
darkage said:
Yesterday morning, I watched news. They said that 911 operator told driver push to neutral. The driver said that he smell burn brake.

I guess that they won't solve problem with neutral
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It may not stop the car ....but it would keep it from accelerating
 
Jiro said:
here's what my lawyer friend (and also my biker friend) said about this situation - "Mr. Sikes needs to go back to driver's ed. "Sikes told reporters he didn't go into neutral because he worried the car would flip.

1. Toyota brakes are insufficient to override the engine power...FAIL
2. This guy endangered other drivers because he mistakenly thought neutral would induce a rollover...DOUBLE FAIL."

Our other biker friend chimed in... "He was able to operate his cell phone, AND to drive while reaching down to his feet to try and lift the gas pedal. Pretty crazy. He probably just known nothing about how a manual transmission works. Also, does the Prius even HAVE neutral? It's practically fly-by-wire."

:hmm: TXGolfer - I believe your suspicion is confirmed....
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I tested the Prius at my work....it does disengage the engine power while in netural...but not sure about stopping it from 90 mph to zero while in netural. I think the Prius brakes are not strong enough to stop the car without the assist of the engine braking. It uses the electric motor as a generator to charge the battery while braking.
 
sequoias said:
I tested the Prius at my work....it does disengage the engine power while in netural...but not sure about stopping it from 90 mph to zero while in netural. I think the Prius brakes are not strong enough to stop the car without the assist of the engine braking. It uses the electric motor as a generator to charge the battery while braking.
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all the more reason for me hating computerized cars. I do not trust push-start car.
 
Jiro said:
all the more reason for me hating computerized cars. I do not trust push-start car.
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I agree also. I don't like computerized cars because of safety issue. On a standard shift car with stuck throttle can be simply disengage the clutch and hit the brakes and pull over, that's it.
 
sequoias said:
I agree also. I don't like computerized cars because of safety issue. On a standard shift car with stuck throttle can be simply disengage the clutch and hit the brakes and pull over, that's it.
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safety issue? nah. my hate for computerized car is because I don't like being told what to do by a damn computer :lol:
 
Of course, the Prius has a emergency brake lever which you use your feet to engage it.....why didn't he use that to stop the car when in netural? I guess he's car-literate. :lol: He shouldn't be driving, then.
 
The brakes were already fried.....Emergency brake at 90 would not end well. As I posted above.....Toyota recommended shifting to N. My thought would be shift to N.....If it is uphill (report said it was) it should slow quickly. At least to the point where you can ease into a median or guard rail
 
Wirelessly posted

Emergency brakes are not used often...theyre used on rear wheels...most of the braking power is from the front brakes.
 
sequoias said:
Wirelessly posted

Emergency brakes are not used often...theyre used on rear wheels...most of the braking power is from the front brakes.
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Yes but if the regular brakes are toast the emergency brake will not work properly......Lots of heat. Plus it will take some skill to slow a 90 mph car with the emergency brake.....especially a foot lever.......without flipping it
 
TXgolfer said:
Yes but if the regular brakes are toast the emergency brake will not work properly......Lots of heat. Plus it will take some skill to slow a 90 mph car with the emergency brake.....especially a foot lever.......without flipping it
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try the flintstone stop? :aw:
 
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