Looking at these guys having trouble stopping their Prius' I'm happy that my car has the factory Egas defeat upon brake application.

It would be very dangerous if the gas pedal got stuck for any reason (floor mat, etc..) at stock or higher power levels

 

When I brake boost I only give it so much throttle. When I'm trying to make a TON of boost which always ends up in wheel spin I go a little less than half throttle. You should not floor it while brake boosting.

If there was a chance of the TB getting shut all you need to do is throw her in neutral and kill the car.

 

Strangely one of the car mags did a test on multiple cars to see if they could stop WOT with the brakes. The Toyota, which lacks the egas defeat (or did...) took longer but DID stop. The Ford Cobra also did but it was a bit harder I think

IMO some of these stories smell of fish and I'm holding my opinion until more is known. I do think it's odd Toyota didn't do the egas thing like all of the other OEMs apparently did. But even without that feature the cars DID stop....

 

I have factory mats and I think it is impossible for it to get under the pedal? I brake boost all the time and usually go full throttle.

 

I have been brake boosting for over a year. The only problem that I face is replacing my rotors. I have been brake boosting around 15 to 20 pounds.
Good luck
Robert

 

i agree u should be able to out brake the engine in most cars (about 85%)

 

... in the other 15%, just throw it in Neutral and let the engine either nukie itself, or let the auto cut-out feature kick in. (Either way, there will be no propulsion.) I have never, ever, been in a car that couldn't go from drive to neutral. While I feel sad for anyone that may have lost their lives, I have difficulty understanding how a driver that keeps his cool can't get one of these cars to slow down. You shouldn't have to worry about a jammed accelerator, but you should be able to save yourself if it does happen.

 

They managed to bring a Ford Cobra to a stop and that's a car with a ton of torque. I cannot judge others, particularly the dead, so I look forward to hearing more when the sensation is over and we find out more...

 

From what speed? I tried it my Acura TL at freeway speeds and braking distances were greatly increased. Never mind the fact that brake fade would set in rather quickly and significatly affect braking ability.

 

The story i just read was odd.. unless i misread.. This motorist had time to call 911, allow a highway patrol to pull up next to him and give instructions to him over a PA system so he could get the car down to 55mph from 94mph while standing on the brakes & pulling the Ebrake.. Yet he couldnt figure out how to turn the key off?? WTF..

I might have more trouble weaving in and out of traffic @ 95mph on the phone with a highway patrol then simply turning the key off..

Some people shouldnt be allowed to operate a car.. Yes i feel bad for those who panicked and lost their lives too..

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_runaway_prius

 

I would have to find the article and I will try but it won't be tonight. The speeds were highway speeds and then some, it was pretty obvious the Toyotas didn't have the throttle disabled when brakes applied as their distances were much greater. They tried more than just one speed though.

As for the officer and family that died.... The car wasn't his it was a rental or loaner and not one he had much experience driving. This car had a push button ignition and not a key. Simply pressing the ignition would NOT turn it off, the button had to be held down for some period of time from what I read. Repeated presses didn't stack, it had to be held. At high speed in a panic in an unfamiliar car mistakes were obviously made and the man I read about - along with others - lost their lives. I believe the report I read even said he had issues with the trans, right now there's so much hype who knows. Edit: Interesting - that article claims the officer's car was a stuck mat issue on a Lexus. I wonder if it's that conclusive...

The test I mentioned above though would seem to make it sound as if he should have been able to stop. This manes he may have simply panicked or maybe there were other issues. No matter what it was a tragedy and it's really easy to second guess. The guy I read about was supposed to be law enforcement I think and thus assumed to be trained and cool under pressure - and he died. So really I feel badly even trying to second guess, especially now that the press is fanning the flames and a near lynching of the company is taking place. Hopefully facts will come out and the smoke will clear. I look forward to an engineering mag or something doing a proper report. Until then I feel for the folks who's lives have been lost and I try hard not to assume I could do better

 

I'm with you. But the Prius doesn't have a key, just an engine start/stop button that has to be held for 3 seconds for the engine to stop.

I bet this guy gets busted for pulling a scam? I agree 100% that something is fishy with a lot of these claims.

Still wouldn't want to experience the gas getting stuck wide open under full boost unexpectedly.

 

Never driven a prius but what about neutral?? all cars with auto trans that i know of click into neutral.. I have had stuck cable hold my car WOT but luckily i was slowing down, pushed in clutch and turned key off.. I realize probably my own mother wouldnt be as smart and turn off the car by any means possible without panicking.. But im trying to figure out how a guy called 911 and jumped thru hoops but couldnt find another way to cut car off..

Mike

 

I've had a stuck throttle too and killed the ignition no problem. I have also met at least 4-5 people who felt that if you turned off the ignition while at speed "bad things" would suddenly occur! I managed to have one of them in the car one day and turned off the ignition - they FREAKED until they realized that DUH it was no biggie. Obviously I didn't lock the column and a restart in a stick was just turning the ignition back on without drama. My point is not everyone realizes you can do this - VERY strange to us car guys but maybe to the general public it's crazy voodoo? <shrug>

 

The recent Prius driver was just interviewed on the news earlier. When asked by a reporter why didn't he just put the car in Neutral, he said he wasn't used to the car was afraid the car was going to flip...

The Prius he was driving looked to be a Gen2, so unless he just bought it used, it shouldn't be the first time he was behind the wheel of that car.

Sounds kind of fishy to me.