Toyota Knew of Floor-Mat Problem Two Years Ago

The National Highway Safety Administration and Toyota Motors issued a warning today about potential dangers related to the floor mats possibly jamming accelerator pedals on almost 4 million Toyota cars. Toyota Motors and the agency, however, have known about the problem for more than two years.

Questions will no doubt arise about Toyota’s awareness of the problem, after four people were killed in San Diego when the accelerator became stuck in a Lexus. This tragedy was blogged about here, and was a true tragedy, killing a husband and wife and their minor daughter.

According to reports, the NHSA began investigating the connection between floor mats and stuck accelerators after receiving five complaints from owners of the Lexus ES, model year 2007. That led to a 2007 recall of all-weather floor mats. Further investigation found that the design of the accelerator pedal allowed it to become easily entangled in the floor mat if the mat was not secured adequately. The research also disclosed that drivers were also likely to have difficulty shutting off the engine because Lexus uses a button instead of a key.

Source: New York Times

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