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Especially at 708 mph! (5 minutes for 59 miles = 708 miles/hour)
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Maybe not, maybe so? More plausible than the "shifter won't move to neutral." Her shifter wasn't broken in half so I know she didn't try hard enough to "budge" it. I'd of liked to have seen it sheared off for that excuse to hold any mustard.
It does sound like a case of unacceptable panic.
Just the other day some old guy drove a BMW off a 3rd story parking lot onto the parking lot at ground level while trying to park in San Diego's Fashion Valley Mall.
I think BMW should make a commercial about it "enough power to break concrete walls and barriers!"
All just to avoid a speeding ticket :sick:
Just nothing very mainstream....
Cars like the Chrysler Airflow, Tucker, etc. were all great vehicles, well ahead of their times, yet they didn't sell well at all.
Look at the cars made today, and see what features from those cars mention above are now either standard features, or available options.
The results for 4 cars..Sante Fe, Camry, Accord, and Malibu.
# of complaints : total sales
Sante Fe - 1 : 6,404
Camry - 1 : 2,960
Accord - 1 : 31,360
Malibu - 1 : 60,640
The complaint rate for the Sante Fe is 10x that of the Malibu and the Camry is 20x.
There are plenty of reports coming in for Toyota even after their recall, and Hyundai isn't trending very well either
#complaints : total sales
Ford Crown Vic - 1 : 26,450
Toyota Prius - 1 : 3,060
These complaints are made mostlly only after an accident of some kind and most reported multiple instances before the accident where the accelerator pedal stuck or responded abnormally. I am sure these are only a small percentage of actual occurances of UA.
I think it is safe to say that there are definitely instances of driver error where the accelerator is mistaken for the brake, but that does not explain the much higher rate in some makes, even when pedal positions and floor mat placement is taken into account. Luckily this is rare, but apparently real, and in all probabiltiy having something to do the the electronics and computer control.
This happened to a couple in their 60's in Korea in a Hyundai Sonata:
Sonata UA Video
To start off, you've simply made some assumptions that may (or may not) be accurate.
Do you KNOW the ages of the drivers involved in UA incidents, or are you guessing, simply based upon the car model? According to a quick Google search I just did on the average Prius owner, he/she is about 50, 10 years older than the average car owner.
I certainly don't have the stats, but I can tell you that on our local news, there's generally a UA incident at least once every 2 weeks, and the cars range from Toyotas to Ford Focus's, and many models in between, and in the overwhelming majority of cases, it's some geriatric driver that drives into a 7/11, laundromat or doctor's office.
The reason? Pedal confusion and panic.
That could be. Hasn't someone measured the distance between them along with the width of each pedal and compared them to the complaint rate? That is probably the first thing NHTSA should have done. But then again its a government agency, so who knows.
I don't have a Camry, but I do have a 09 Tacoma, and the pedals in it are closer than any other cars in my family...BMW, Mini, Altima and Versa.
The Tacoma is the only vehicle it recent history that I can remember stepping on both pedals simultaneously.
I'm very conscious of it when I drive the truck.
Again, this is not all that relevant. Similarly we could say that the reason there are so many rollover fatalities in all makes of SUVs is the design that puts the CG up high. And there are WAY more deaths from rollovers than SUA. So by that logic we should all quit buying SUVs.
Not gonna happen!
Chevy Malibu and Silverado. Tundra's do look close together but the others look about the same:
Now for your SUV, just make sure you know how to handle a sudden blowout and pay a bit more for good quality tires. I don't have any qualms driving either vehicle, but do pay a bit more attention to possible unusual ergonomics or handling issues when I drive one of them.
The "news" gets out there, and people that don't like to accept personal responsibility think "maybe I can get out of blame for this accident by claiming UA."
I can't say I entirely blame them as insurance companies are vicious leeches on society; and I can see why people would want to put one over on them. It wasn't me, it was the car, don't mark that accident as at-fault and raise my rates!
I believe the pedals being closer together helps a driver drive in more sporting fashion. Takes less time to move your foot from the brake to the gas and vice versa.
I found this to be refreshing reading.
It was from a clip from Automotive News that a friend sent me.
I think the effect of a GM bankruptcy was wildy exaggerated for people that live outside of Michigan and Ohio.
The police Studes of that error had a bench front seat but with bucket bolstering around the driver. Really strange-looking.
There are GM plants outside those areas. For some reason, people who aren't into Big Three makes always seem to think they almost all emanate out of some factory in Detroit.
My Malibu was built in Kansas City, for instance.
Towards the end they were building Astros and Safaris.
the petite crossover's estimated fuel cost of $1,900 per year is the lowest of any 2013 model year crossover sold in the States
Dunno about where you live but I just drove by a price of $4.11 per gallon, so that ought to give this small-engined sport/cute its best possible chance.
Cruze wagon, also.
Our '67 Chevelle was built in Baltimore, as were most Chevelles and Monte Carlos I looked at, at our local Chevy dealer, from then into the '80's.
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/aug/27/mom-dies-when-driver-mistakes-gas-ped- - al-for-brake/
I think UA is an "inconsiderate driver" issue, but since the accident involved a GM vehicle, I'm posting it here. :sick:
It was certainly inconsiderate to kill that woman.
1 complaint for thousands of cars isn't a significant sample, either.
Where were Bonnevilles built in 1969? I remember years ago (pre-internet) trying to de-code the VIN on my '69 Bonneville, and for some reason, Baltimore is sticking in my mind. Could that be correct?
Mid-size Pontiacs I can't say I recall, but I'm thinking they weren't built in Baltimore.
You would think in nearly 60 miles you'd have time to reach down there and pull it out if you have time to use your cell phone to call 911!
One without the other doesn't mean much.
Can the Encore get out of its own way?
'Locate the 11th digit. This indicates the plant location. There are multiple plants in the same cities. A is for Lakewood, Georgia; B for Baltimore,...'
http://www.ehow.com/how_7409645_decipher-gm-vin-code.html
- Ray
Don't have a VIN for the 1969 I sold a loooong time ago
- and it was not a GM.....
That is correct. But why would there be 20x the number of Unintended Acceleration complaints with a Toyota vehicle compared to a GM vehicle.
That is statistically significant, and there has to be a reason for it.
What that reason is apparently nobody knows.
Put a couple of well placed news reports about Chevy Cruze UA incidents on the national news and watch the alleged UA reports start multiplying on Cruzes...