[車迷區] Toyota Prius brake complaints start pouring in

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Good for the environment, bad for your health?

With 'PedalGate' sweeping the globe, mounting reports are indicatingthe Toyota Prius is also affected by unintended acceleration - butfaulty pedals and floor mats have nothing to do with it.

So far, about 100 complaints (two involving crashes) have been filedwith the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In Japan,the transport ministry has logged at least 14 complaints ofacceleration-related problems with the Prius.

The case getting the most attention is Steve Wozniak's (Apple'sco-founder) Prius. During a speech at the Discovery Forum, Wozniak said"I have many models of Prius that got recalled, but I have a new modelthat didn't get recalled. The new model has an accelerator that goeswild but only under certain conditions of cruise control. And I canrepeat it over and over and over again safely." In a later interviewwith CNET, Wozniak stated "This is software. It's not a badaccelerator pedal. It's very scary, but luckily for me I can hit thebrakes." Despite attempting to contact Toyota and the National HighwayTraffic Safety Administration for three months, he was unable to geteither organization to look for a software-related defect - until now.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has finally begun looking intoa possible software glitch which could cause the Prius to accelerateunintentionally. According to

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood,"We're not finished with Toyota and are continuing to review possibledefects and monitor the implementation of the recalls." While he didn'telaborate, several government sources have stated the review willinclude a look into possible electronic problems.

Despite the concern, Toyota is down-playing reports about a potential software problem.  In an interview with Automotive News,Toyota spokesman John Hanson said "After many years of extensivetesting, we've found no evidence of an electronic problem that couldhave contributed to unwanted acceleration. We've investigated manytimes and found no evidence to point to." His statement was echoed byToyota's vice president of quality, Shinichi Sasaki, who added "We havenot come across any case in which we have found a malfunction. But ifany additional reports arise, we will conduct testing using alltechnology at our disposal."

However, many people aren't buying Toyota's explanation. Consumershave fled Toyota showrooms and the U.S. Congress has called the companyto testify before the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee forinvestigations.

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