The big question at Toyota right now is it just floor mats or defective pedal mechanisms that are causing accelerators to stick? Or is it the computer system, which Toyota denies. All of this started with a four-person fatal accident of an off-duy policeman and 3 passengers near San Diego. Is this a computer flaw from the Toyota hardware as it came off the line? Could a hacker change the computer to program it so that unintended acceleration took place? Could the accident in San Diego really been a planned murder? In these other cases of complaints involving Toyotas and Lexus, could someone have sabotaged the computers to embarass Toyota and thus put a huge chink in their brand reputation for quality? Computers in cars have raised many, many questions that challenge the notion of the car as a feedom machine. What if you have OnStar? Can someone listen to your conversations? Follow exactly where you are located? Cause the car to accelerate and involve you in a potentially fatal accident?
If you encounter a situation with unintended acceleration, do this -- move the transmission lever to neutral as soon as you can!
