Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

[GRG55]

...Drive like Hell.

Now I am not one for conspiracy theories, but I have to wonder if the US Government's dominant ownership of two auto manufacturers, in collaboration with the UAW, and in the early stages of an election year campaign, has anything to do with the public flogging that Toyota is being subjected to over this brake issue.

Just askin'...:rolleyes:

U.S. Starts Inquiry Into Brake Problems on Prius

By NICK BUNKLEY
Published: February 4, 2010

DETROIT — No sooner had Toyota dealerships begun to repair accelerator pedals on millions of recalled vehicles than the carmaker said it was considering yet another major recall, this time for problems with the brakes on its Prius hybrid.

Safety regulators in Washington said Thursday that they would open an investigation into the brakes on the 2010 Prius, which had been spared from the recall lists.

The announcement was made hours after Toyota acknowledged that it had identified a flaw in the car’s antilock braking system and corrected it for Priuses built since late January...

...In opening the investigation into the Prius, the highway traffic safety agency said it had received 124 complaints about the brakes on 2010 Priuses. But by Thursday afternoon, its database listed nearly 300 complaints on that issue. Eight of them involved crashes — mostly into the rear of another car at a low speed...

[metalman]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

...Drive like Hell.

Now I am not one for conspiracy theories, but I have to wonder if the US Government's dominant ownership of two auto manufacturers, in collaboration with the UAW, and in the early stages of an election year campaign, has anything to do with the public flogging that Toyota is being subjected to over this brake issue.

Just askin'...:rolleyes:

U.S. Starts Inquiry Into Brake Problems on Prius

By NICK BUNKLEY
Published: February 4, 2010

DETROIT — No sooner had Toyota dealerships begun to repair accelerator pedals on millions of recalled vehicles than the carmaker said it was considering yet another major recall, this time for problems with the brakes on its Prius hybrid.

Safety regulators in Washington said Thursday that they would open an investigation into the brakes on the 2010 Prius, which had been spared from the recall lists.

The announcement was made hours after Toyota acknowledged that it had identified a flaw in the car’s antilock braking system and corrected it for Priuses built since late January...

...In opening the investigation into the Prius, the highway traffic safety agency said it had received 124 complaints about the brakes on 2010 Priuses. But by Thursday afternoon, its database listed nearly 300 complaints on that issue. Eight of them involved crashes — mostly into the rear of another car at a low speed...

had the same thought... so i mosey over to the dot site for a looksee...

http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/pr...hlyreports.cfm

& what do i find? no toyota accelerating or prius brake investigations. plenty of others, tho! engine fires... brake line ruptures... throttle sticking to the floor... only annoying not dangerous defects for toyotas...

• 2010 January - Report
• 2009 December - Report
• 2009 November - Report
• 2009 October - Report
• 2009 September - Report
• 2009 August - Report

tried searching for toyota defects but i'm not smart enough to figure it out...

http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/pr...fectsearch.cfm

[blazespinnaker]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

Could be, I wouldn't be surprised.

Anyways, it's perfectly fair if you ask me. Japan has historically had an extreme cultural bias against buying from other countries.

They don't even need tariffs or government intervention, the people just don't buy anything that isn't Japanese - end of story.

This worked OK before, but I think the US doesn't really see it as viable anymore if they want to ween themselves from the consumption culture and go back to manufacturing.

But, yeah, this could get ugly.

[thunderdownunder]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

If you had not noticed, it is ugly ....... a very ugly cygnet. This is going to cost a Motza. This is an "ouch" with permanent costs.

[c1ue]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

They don't even need tariffs or government intervention, the people just don't buy anything that isn't Japanese - end of story.

I'm sorry, but this is just plain wrong.

Japan up until recent times was the single largest per capita market for European luxury goods. It may since have lost this title, but a walk through any of the Japanese cities show a profusion of foreign brands and brand stores.

Japan has very high tariffs and a complicated import licensing scheme due to the influence of Japanese companies and trade associations. Thai rice is a great example "It does not go well with Japanese digestion"

Even in the area of cars: the import tariffs on cars mean that equivalent foreign models are ridiculously expensive. Despite this, there are PLENTY of Mercedes Benz's, BMWs, Ducati motorcycles, Ferraris, and what not.

The 'quality issue' at Toyota and Honda is more in the line of "American digestion"...

[Thailandnotes]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

yep its wrong

when the occasional stack of budweiser or god forbid iron city beer showed up at our local supermarket it was wiped out in a day, same with US oranges, lettuce, etc.

there were very popular restaurants that grabbed customers attention with foreign ingredients many of which were smuggled in.

when the rice crop failed and japan was forced to import thai rice, the papers printed tons of stories saying thai rice was full of mouse droppings and unfit for consuption, but the rice sold and was cooked. I could smell it riding my bike home from work.

[HisHighnessDog]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

I lived in Japan for 2 years. Foreign luxury goods (typically from Europe) were very popular over there, even at high prices. Whatever "cultural bias" exists against foreign goods has a lot to do with perceptions about quality. Those perceptions are balanced against prestige; I saw plenty of foreign supercars in my neighborhood. Since I departed, I've read that this adoration of luxury foreign goods is less true now... 20 years of stagnation has a funny way of changing tastes.

Toyota may have undergone a culture change of late but in general the Japanese reputation for ultra-high attention to detail and to quality is deserved... to an extent that cannot be appreciated by Westerners who have not experienced it; it literally is unimaginable.

[Glenn Black]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

I agree. In my experience, Japanese will only buy the very best soya beans. The same for tuna. And so on. They have very selective tastes and high standards. It has taken N. Americans (workers & managers alike) more than 3 decades to even see and understand what it is that makes Japanese choose what they choose.

I am reminded about fussy 2-year olds who won't eat broccoli tonight but usually do so. Parent thought the kids were just acting out. Eventually, scientists tested the broccoli (good and bad as identified by the toddlers), and they identified a very accurate correlation between toddlers selections and a trace constituent of the broccoli. This trace constituent depends on the field, water supply, and the growing conditions for its relative concentration in the broccoli. It is very bitter, and the hyper-sensitive taste buds of 2 yr olds could naturally detect it easily, but adults had no hope of tasting it when the adult tried to figure out what the child complained about. The adult trusted their weak taste senses more than the child's evidence, so they scape goated the kids and threatened them with no dessert and no TV.

Now that the 2 yr olds are vindicated, have parents stopped? Not from what I've seen. Most don't know about this research data. How do you think the 2 yr olds feel when they are forced to eat brocolli that tastes like "shit", or go to bed early with no dessert or TV?

Probably the same way the Japanese feel when they are forced to take N. American "shit", or be accused of unfair trade practices.

[ggirod]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

Now I am not one for conspiracy theories, but I have to wonder if the US Government's dominant ownership of two auto manufacturers, in collaboration with the UAW, and in the early stages of an election year campaign, has anything to do with the public flogging that Toyota is being subjected to over this brake issue.

Actually, maybe No... Maybe it is related to Obama's statement that foreign corporations would be able to influence our politics in the aftermath of the Supreme Court Decision.... Everybody thought he was crazy ... but maybe not... After All, Toyota already managed to escape accountability for their troubles just a bit ago. Maybe it was due to Toyota buying the right legislators who put the right pressure on the right bureaucrats. Time may tell.

Meanwhile, read this wonderful article that shows how we have the best government money can buy .. or so it appears. Then, again, maybe it was just an innocent mistake -- yeah, that was it.

Then, after Toyota gets through this gauntlet, the next one will be relatively easy... just identify the Toyota enemies and fund their opponents. Add in the public's (actually the gullible Democrats') new tendency to vote out the incumbents, and Toyota should get a bargain No more trouble for 2 - 6 years depending on whom they funded...

Wow, it is so nice seeing how things will play out...

[GRG55]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

Actually, maybe No... Maybe it is related to Obama's statement that foreign corporations would be able to influence our politics in the aftermath of the Supreme Court Decision.... Everybody thought he was crazy ... but maybe not... After All, Toyota already managed to escape accountability for their troubles just a bit ago. Maybe it was due to Toyota buying the right legislators who put the right pressure on the right bureaucrats. Time may tell.

Meanwhile, read this wonderful article that shows how we have the best government money can buy .. or so it appears. Then, again, maybe it was just an innocent mistake -- yeah, that was it.

Then, after Toyota gets through this gauntlet, the next one will be relatively easy... just identify the Toyota enemies and fund their opponents. Add in the public's (actually the gullible Democrats') new tendency to vote out the incumbents, and Toyota should get a bargain No more trouble for 2 - 6 years depending on whom they funded...

Wow, it is so nice seeing how things will play out...

So GM, Ford, Chrysler, Honda, Nissan, and all the others don't have any lobbyists in D.C. looking for favours? Just Toyota?

Somehow I am sceptical...

[GRG55]

Re: Kyota Prius Brakes...Go to Heaven...

Looks like Ford has the opposite problem...the cars don't "run away"...they stop dead. Nobody's going to accuse Ford of not being "fail-safe"...

All-electric cars mean more EMI

When Ford Motor was developing its Escape hybrid, it would shut off as it left a particular supermarket parking lot in California, says Scott Staley, chief engineer of electric and fuel-cell vehicles.

The cause discovered: a wireless fence to alert the store when shoppers tried to take shopping carts outside the lot.

Ford reworked the electronics to ensure that wouldn't happen again, but auto engineering experts say hybrids inherently have more potential for electromagnetic interference (EMI)...

..."There's a higher probability for EMI, and that could lead to unwanted results in the car's computers," says Verma. "The probability of interference is greater if there is more radiation and there are more things that these signals can interfere
with."

It may not be too far off the day when your car tells you to shut off all cell phones, games and other electronic devices for the duration of the flight...:rolleyes: