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Well fellow Corolland members, today Ray LaHood, head of the DOT said that after a 10 month intensive study by the brightest minds in the US, that the DOT could say with full confidence that the Toyota supposed accelerator issues were not the result of the electronic systems on the vehicle.
They also found no evidence during their testing of the physical pedal that any pedal ever stuck or returned slowly when used with the proper floor mat.
So basically and its sad to say, Toyota got screwed by having to pay $48.8 million through the course of a recall that shouldn't have ever happened.
The hit they took to their reputation was unfair, and since so much of the press made it front page news that the vehicles were flawed, now it should be front page news that they weren't.
To those who say that the floor mat issue is a design flaw, think again. Any product used incorrectly has the potential to cause harm. It clearly says in the owner's manual of every car Ive ever driven not to stack floor mats as it may interfere with operation of the pedals or cause your foot to slip.
People used the floor mats incorrectly and to me that's just plain stupid. When people end up getting hurt by improper use of a product, that is no fault of the manufacturer. Only when injury occurs during use following all instructions and recommended precautions it is determined that the manufacturer's product was still unsafe is it the manufacturer's fault.
That's my take on the situation.