Toyota has finalized a settlement on the sudden acceleration issue that was a major news story in 2009.

In the interest of full disclosure I own a 2006 Toyota Prius.

So, Toyota has now paid nearly $50 million in fines for various incidents in addition to this $1 billion settlement. None of these incidents was in any way the fault of Toyota. Sudden unintended acceleration is not possible. I urge each and every one of you to go to your cars, put your left foot on the brake, and push the accelerator to the floor. Your car will not move. The brake mechanism is far more powerful than the acceleration mechanism. Ask any engineer. Most cars will now turn the engine off when both accelerator and brake are depressed at the same time. If your car is one of those that doesn’t turn itself off then do not continue to press the accelerator. You will eventually damage your car although not because you ran into anything.

Here is the NASA report showing Toyota cars tested did not accelerate unintentionally. Here’s a summary of that report.

If you put your foot on the brake your car will eventually stop. That’s it. It will not accelerate. It is not possible. Don’t trust me. Go to you car, go now, try it. There have been numerous tests of car with wide-open throttles being braked. They all stopped. Car and Driver, Edmonds, a state sponsored German commission. All cars stopped.

Here is a link showing how ABC’s story on sudden acceleration was false and faked.

There was a scare in the 1980’s about Audi and sudden acceleration. It was also phony.

The floor mat incident with a Lexus that started this entire witch-hunt was actually real. A dealership installed an all-weather floor mat designed for a different Toyota vehicle and didn’t secure it to the floor. It became stuck under the pedal causing the accelerator to stick. This incident resulted in the deaths of four people although if the driver had put the car in neutral or braked  it would have come to a stop. The dealership was told by a previous driver (who didn’t panic and brought the car to a safe stop) that the accelerator got stuck under the floor mat and they did nothing. They should be fined for installing improper equipment and ignoring a dangerous issue. Not Toyota.

The hysteria aroused by these so-called events is astounding and the repercussions beyond imagination. A billion dollars for doing nothing wrong.

Here is the Wiki article on all the Toyota recalls. It’s interesting reading. Near the bottom they get into the causes of sudden unintended acceleration. People put their foot on the gas instead of the brake. The car moves forward. They panic and press harder. The car moves forward faster.

I’m ready to take some grief on this one because I’ve found people are passionate about the topic. Before you get too mad at me, please do the experiment I suggest at the beginning of the blog.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Twist
Current Release: The Sword of Water
Future Release: The Spear of the Hunt