GM ownership, and union support by the Obama Administration makes one suspicious of the government actions against Toyota.
Many years ago, I tuned in to Motor Man Leon Caplan on KABC Radio here in Los Angeles, and was listening to the discussion of all things motorized. The subject turned to unexpected acceleration in automobiles. Leon said that he had been called as an expert witness to testify in many unexpected acceleration cases and found that most were caused by poorly installed floor mats!
Floor mats can get pushed away from the seat and up and under the pedals of a car. Some times the floor mat can get crinkled up in a position below the brake and above the accelerator pedal so that when you step on the brake the floor mat pushes down on the accelerator. In other cases the floor mat could prevent the accelerator pedal from returning to its idle position.
This is what happened in a case involving a San Diego Lexus dealer who installed an unapproved floor mat upside down in a loaner car!
In this case in San Diego, the pedal jammed and a horrible crash killed four people.
Holman W. Jenkins Jr. reports in the Wall Street Journal that Toyota issued recalls and service bulletins related to floor mats before this accident. If this is true, it would seem the broader fault would be the dealer, the specific fault would be the installer, but no fault should fall on the manufacturer.
Today the congress is holding hearings to make Toyota and its CEO Aklo Toyoda squirm. They will make the point that the problem is some type of bug in the electronic part of the accelerator that no one can find.
Few members of congress will doubt the testimony of Clarence Ditlow, a trial lawyer, who will testify today, and few will suspect that an electronic glitch that can’t be found might not be there.
It should be noted that some cars have a brake override so pressing on the brake overrides the accelerator’s action.
It should also be noted that environmental standards forced the installation of the electronic part of the accelerator that has a glitch that no one can find.
About a week ago, Mrs. Sailor looked up at me and said, “What do you think of this Toyota thing?
I said, “It looks very suspicious.”
I could be wrong, but it looks as though the government might want to take Toyota down a peg or two to prop up GM.
I’m rooting for Ford, who should have won, would have won, but the government stepped in.
CDsailor
