Re: O.T. runaway car Message #3 Posted by bill platt on 28 Jan 2010, 2:58 p.m., in response to message #1 by designnut
Here is the correspondence I had with Toyota some months ago:
Recently you contacted Toyota. Below is a summary of your contact message and our response.
Thank you for allowing us to be of service to you.
Subject
Brake Override Sysytem on 2007 Camry
Discussion Thread
Response (JSpe) 12/11/2009 02:46 PM
Mr. Platt,
Thank you for your email to Brian Lyons, it has been forwarded to Toyota's Customer Experience Center for a response.
Your feedback to Toyota about your 2007 Camry is greatly appreciated, and we apologize for any concerns caused by the Potential Floor Mat Interference with Accelerator Pedal Safety Recall notification Toyota has issued regarding possible interference between the floor mat and the accelerator pedal on certain Toyota and Lexus models.
The brake override system you mention would prevent operation of a manual transmission in way described in your email. Please understand that the recall has just been issued, the application of the brake override system is still being researched. Once you receive your notification in the mail, please speak with your local Toyota dealership to see if any changes have been made and how the may affect the repairs that need to be completed on your vehicle.
If we can be of further assistance, please utilize the following link to find a variety of avenues to contact our offices, http://www.toyota.com/help/. Your email has been documented at our National Headquarters under file #0912119660.
Jay Spencer
Customer (Entered by JSpe) 12/11/2009 02:18 PM
Dear Mr. Lyons,
I am the owner of a 2007 Camry with manual 5 speed transmission. I find the car to be pretty good. But I am concerned about this latest recall, and the plans being suggested, specifically:
"In addition, as a separate measure independent of the vehicle-based remedy, Toyota will install a brake override system onto the involved Camry, Avalon, and Lexus ES 350, IS350 and IS 250 models as an extra measure of confidence. This system cuts engine power in case of simultaneous application of both the accelerator and brake pedals."
As I mentioned, I am owner of the rather rare 5-speed manual version of the Camry. I like to drive it, and I frequently heel-toe and double-clutch on downshift. It seems to me that if a brake override system were installed, my car would not function properly. Will this new "feature" be installed on all future Toyota manual transmission cars?
I am further concerned that something more is going on with this story. My dealer tells me that the Root Cause Analysis showed the problem to be extra floormats--stacked on top of factory ones. The extra ones, which are specifically not authorized, slide around. It seems to me that this could (and probably does) happen on many types of cars, and further, that this is an operator problem. Why wouldn't Toyota stand up against this? I understand pleasing your customers and all, but I am a pleased customer, and having driven my car over 65k miles, I just cannot see how there is any sort of legitimate claim against Toyota, unless there is in fact something else going on. Is GM behind this? Is there actually something else that Toyota engineering is concerned about but not mentioning? I wonder.
I do hope that something will be done to prevent the loss of functionality of the manual transmission car. (It is bad enough now that we have clutch interlocks. In the old days, if you stalled in a flood, you could literally drive the car out of it on the starter motor--I know from experience. Now you have to lose your car in a flood--which happened to my father once).
I hope to hear from you with an answer to my concerns regarding manual transmission heel-toe and downshift.
Best regards,
Bill Platt
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