Daibutsu, Kamakura

Daibutsu, Kamakura
Daibutsu in Kamakura, June 2010. There were thousands of school kids visiting that day. It was still great fun.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Toyota casts doubt on runaway Prius claim

Toyota casts doubt on runaway Prius claim - Autos- msnbc.com: "SAN DIEGO - Toyota said there were 'significant inconsistencies' between a California man's claim that his Prius sped out of control and the findings of the company's preliminary investigation.

Toyota said in a statement that the accelerator pedal was tested and found to be working normally and a backup safety system worked properly. The automaker said the front brakes showed severe wear and damage from overheating, but the rear brakes and parking brake were in good condition."

The first time this story came out I was suspicious. It just didn't sound right and with how litigation-happy American's are, it was only a matter of time that someone would try a scam Toyota. Nothing has been proven yet but the evidence regarding this particular case is pointing to the driver not being honest about what happened. And it is logical to assume that the driver was attempting to scam Toyota. If it is eventually proven that the drive was lying, he should be put in Jail. Bad publicity like this potentially could cost Toyota millions in lost revenue.

7 comments:

  1. this should be investigated more.

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  2. The Federal Transportation Safety department also inspected the vehicle and apparently they did not find any problems either but they have not completed their review. My guess is that if they find nothing and there is evidence that the driver lied, then a law enforcement agency may investigate the driver.

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  3. This sounded a bit fishy from the start. I'm guessing the fellow is already in some hot water.... which is why his 'attorney' is answering questions.

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  4. I was thinking the same thing when I heard his lawyer also.

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  5. The "alleged" break problems in the Prius and other cars may also be related to age, not the age of the car, but the driver.

    http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2010/03/how-real-are-the-defects-in-toyotas-cars/37448/

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  6. There's a Balloon Boy Element to this story. I can smell the fish from here.

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