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I read about this during the last week of August. I think it also affects newer Corollas as well. GF is bringing hers to the dealer very soon.
Also, Corollas are having an issue with a part that will freeze up during very cold climates. I forget the name, but it's a simple repair.
Um, wow. The earliest cars with them were made in late 2003 and they're just recalling now? \"Incidents\" must not be too common, but I'm glad they're finally getting around to doing that.
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@SagarikaLumos: I heard the 911 tape on this one (very scary). The guy had a push button ignition and could not turn off the car while it was in motion. The not being able to turn off the car is a safety feature. The guy was also a highway patrol officer so it is assumed he was not able to shift gears either.
@SagarikaLumos: I suspect this is due to the crash in San Diego a couple weeks ago. The accelerator was stuck and the car crashed at something like 120 mph.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-343837-100x100.png\")
I think I would have thrown the sucker in neutral/reverse/park and let the engine blow before I crashed at 120.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-258636-100x100.png\")
@wgrune: My thoughts exactly. Try neutral, lower gears, grind up against a wall and e-brake it as a last resort.
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@Darklighter: yeah exactly, and there's really no need.
if you use the included clamps on the floor there's no issue, but because it was a cop who died Toyota is getting a lot of pressure to do something.
@Darklighter: 3.8 million car recall over one crash? I kind of doubt it. There would have to be many incidents to cause such a huge recall, even if noone else was hurt or killed. As Holytrainwreck noted above, though, many floormats (especially aftermarket) can bunch up from people getting in and out. Unless they can get a deep grip on the carpet or hook to the floor stud that many cars have, most aftermarket mats are at least as dangerous as these Toyota mats.
Mental note: if the car is running away with me, shift into neutral.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-647573-100x100.png\")
Dang it... 2007 Yaris not included... my floor mat is pretty dingy. I did forget to hook it in place once and it slid up under the accelarator pedal. I thought i had lost power becasue i couldn't fully accelerate, but then noticed the floor mat.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-529488-100x100.png\")
@esp13: Sounds like it has a hook, so it probably isn't included because of that. Toyota will most likely send you an advisory to make sure it's hooked on.
Hyundai did that when they had the airbag recall. I went in and got the part fixed, but they still sent out a notice on how to properly deal with the passenger airbag.
![\"user-pic\"](\"/mt-static/support/assets_c/userpics/userpic-461138-100x100.png\")
@Oranges w/ Cheese eats her veggies: I think it is the models without hooks on the mats, that have a problem. My 2009 Matrix has hooks that keep the mat from sliding up under the gas pedal and scrunching.
@Julia789: My dad has a prius, and he suggests that its mats that go *on top of* the mats with hooks. Why you'd want to have TWO floormats is beyond me, but his prius has the hooks and he says he's ok. *shrug*
And everyone said I was mad when I said not to get the floor mats because they were overpriced. They also kill! Now whose crazy, eh?!?!
@GitEmSteveDave_JustAddHotWater: You are, for not having experienced the awesomeness of a certified \"Toyota\" logo for you to place your feet on every day.
Now, I know your life must feel empty and hollow, knowing that all this time, you could have been enjoying this fine piece of craftsmanship. Running your naked toes past the \"T\", feeling the high-quality stitching created lovingly, fated to one day end up on your floorboard, accompanying you on your journeys, telling you that everything is going to be OK.
I may die on my way home today, but at least I won't have to live even one moment without my Toyota drivers side floor mat to comfort me through another mindless commute.
![\"user-pic\"](\"/mt-static/support/assets_c/userpics/userpic-1020806-100x100.png\")
@GitEmSteveDave_JustAddHotWater:
Now I've got a legitimate excuse for why I was speeding!
Except I don't have a Toyota.
Darn, almost-foolproof.
I had the same trouble with the mats on a 1996 Saturn SL1. I ended up removing them because they were such a pain.
Dammit! I just bought some new floormats for the used 2007 Tacoma we just bought...
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-808630-100x100.png\")
Wow, the first auto-related recall that has ever affected a car in my family. My husband has a Prius, either 2007 or 2008 I can't remember.
Thank you. I've let him know.
![\"user-pic\"](\"/mt-static/support/assets_c/userpics/userpic-469751-100x100.png\")
If you're going to put floor mats in cars, there shouldn't be anything under them but a rubber mat. Like in the old days. The part you put your feet on should be removable (I'd have mine out all winter) and washable.
Now wouldn't that make sense?
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-350854-100x100.png\")
I spent a pile of money for their overpriced floormats, and now they want me to drive around looking at that skanky-looking underfloor?
Sheesh.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-38607-100x100.png\")
@sock: I got the same question. We bought a 2010 Camry Hybrid two months ago. (Great car BTW) The news bulletin at Toyota seems to say they don't know what the solution will be. [pressroom.toyota.com] The ironic thing is that when we went to pick up the car (fully loaded), the floor mats were not in the car. We told the general manager who said he'd order them. But we asked for mats out of another car and got them
So, the question I have is, Will Toyota be compensating the customers because they had to remove the mats? or just take part of the car away(in some cases a premium part) and just call it a day because it's safety related?
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-681073-100x100.png\")
@Wheeldog: Well as soon as they make 2,300,000 replacement mats, they'll probably be replacing them with an upgraded version.
THIS HAS HAPPENED TO ME!
I own a '07 Lexus IS 350 and don't see how this is possible. The factory floor mats attach to clips in the carpet, but...
I was driving my secondary vehicle, a '97 Civic. I was driving across a bridge when all of a sudden my car starting accelerating for no reason. I downshifted and still kept picking up speed. At this point I'm going 80 in a 35. My heart is in my stomach and I'm slamming on my brakes but still accelerating. I keep it together, look down, and see my floormat shifted and was holding down the gas pedal. I quickly reached down and yanked it, and finally stopped.
@shepd: NO!!! do not turn the engine off, shift into neutral, pull over, shut it off, adjust floor mat.
@Hoss: uh, no. ACC only powers on electrical accessories. The power steering is driven by the engine (in most cases), and the power brakes is powered be vacuum created by the engine....
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@shepd: (shifting into neutral disengages the engine without losing steering. turning off the car will kill the engine, but you also lose the ability to steer. you also lose power breaking.)
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@gStein: you don't lost the ability to steer, you just lose power steering, and at any significant speed you probably won't even notice the difference, so yes to stop accelerating the first thing I'd do is turn off the engine, then carefully pull over and stop, just be ready for the steering to get harder the slower you go.
In an automatic I guess you could just drop into neutral, the rev limiter would prevent engine damage, but in a manual turning off the engine would be better and faster -- no gears to shift and no sense blowing the engine if you don't have to.
Of course the most important thing would be to stop and it seems like people don't think clearly in that situation (obviously), so I guess whatever comes to mind first is the way to go, forget about whether it'll damage the engine or not.
Related to this crash in San Diego county, that killed a CHP officer and his family.
Darn, my 2004 4-Runner didn't make the list.
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Okay, that's just terrifying.
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With all the talk about floormats affect pedals, I wonder about the reliability of 'throttle-by-wire' and 'push-to-start' on cars. What's to keep programming errors (this is a cost-at-all-costs industry) from suddenly flooring the engine?
If you press those start/stop buttons while the car is in gear and in motion, will it shut down or ignore it?
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-1353406-100x100.png\")
@andyross: It's actually 3 seconds of holding down the start/stop button to shut off the engine. Also, if you shift into neutral and push the start/stop button it will shut off immediately and go into accessory power. I own a 2009 camry hybrid with a push/stop button and the floor mats are hooked into the bottom as well. Does anyone know if camry hybrids are included, i'm guessing that they are.
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@andyross: From what I've heard, holding the engine start/stop button down for five or six seconds forces the engine to shut down. It's just like holding the power button down to shut off a locked-up computer.
If that's indeed true, automakers should post emergency-stop instructions next to the start/stop button to prevent another mishap like the San Diego incident; that is, in addition to designing better floor mats.
@1964F100: \"5-6 seconds\" = 2 football fields' length at 70mph. If I'm needing to kill power to the car in an emergency, 2 football fields is a bit too long for my liking.
@andyross: hear, hear!! would you trust some doofus software engineer with your life? i think not.
btw: harware engineer here. never, never, never, ever fly-by-wire.
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Looks like Toyota couldn't pay away this one like they did with their engine sludging issue that never made it to recall status.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-1224812-100x100.png\")
@RustyRyan:
Just another reason for me to continue buying manual transmissions.
I'm accelerating for no reason!!!
*clutch* *Neutral*
Now lets coast to a place I can fix this at.
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@drizzt380:
With an automatic you can put a car in neutral just with your hand (you do not even have to push the button), no wasted time stepping on a clutch.
Also if the accelerator was stuck you could also just turn your key to off.
This makes me believe that this happened to a driver with no license anyone with driving experience knows how to move a stick to neutral or turn a key.
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@threadislocked: Except very few people will react in that way unless they've actually trained in practice, because merely knowing something is almost never enough to assure its implementation in emergency circumstances.
Sounds annoying. At least you could just push the clutch down and coast to a stop if it happened though. Better than the brakes giving out, I guess.
Still, as someone else pointed out, it's curious that the vehicles affected stretch back 5 years!
@zoz: Except if you don't have a clutch - in which case you turn the engine off and put it in neutral - then start braking.
@unpolloloco: If you turn the engine off, you will lose power-assisted steering and power-assisted brakes.
Ever try to stop an old truck with no power brakes? It certainly isn't easy, and don't forget that newer cars have more powerful brakes and weigh a lot more. Steering is the same story, but much, much worse with modern front-wheel-drive cars with all the weight up front.
It's much safer to simply shift into neutral, pull over, and then turn the engine off when you're at a low speed, as your power brakes will last a few more seconds after that happens.
@BobSalawalatski: It's no picnic, but it's better than having the engine blow and be in the same position as if you had turned off the car while it was moving (except, then you'd have a blown engine too).
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Not listed is the Yaris. It's not that the accelerator doesn't get stuck on Yaris models. It's just that nothing happens when they do get stuck.
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@Quake 'n' Shake: The CHP and Merced County have evidence to the contrary and about $300 of mine to prove it :/
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Although I understand the reasoning behind the \"Speed\" photo, I think a \"Total Recall\" photo would have been more appropriate.
Bad Consumerist! Bad! Bad! Bad! The Keanu \"Speed\" DVD cover! LOL. I keep telling my boyfriend his cheap, moves when you blow on, it saran wrap mats are gonna be the death of him. Hopefully, now my Pradas can get to know the cushy G35 factory mats a little better.
This happened to me a few years ago with an ES350 loaner car from a dealer. Really scary. Put a post up on my blog after it happened. Six months later I got an e-mail from someone at the NHTSA. Ended up calling him and discussing what had happened.
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Was a recall really necessary? I've had it happen to me once, but that was because my floor mat had lost the little teeth on the underside so it wouldn't stay put. Newer vehicles tend to have that little hook in the floorboard that engages a hole in the mat to keep it from riding up.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-101852-100x100.png\")
My GM floor mats are working just fine. No death threat to me from my fine GM automobile. Best I ever bought...
Toyota is having issue after issue after issue. This follows the bad run of Camry and Lexus ES transmissions in 2007.
Toyota just can't make cars as well as the domestic automakers do. Why can't they make cars Americans want to buy?
Yeah I have a GM. Though the floor mats were optional (there was a built in rubber guard in my car). Still...there's a hook and grommet hole arrangement on the floor mats.
It wouldn't be my first choice car but the price was right as was the financing and it's lasted more than 50k miles in 3 years so...yeah...not bad for a sports coupe I've hammered through.
Still...having an STI or EVO probably would've suited me better but the monthly payment would've given me heartburn.
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@CaptainConsumer:
I was thinking as I read the article that if it were about a GM car, you'd have a bunch of GM haters bitching about GM. Since it's Toyota, it's not a big deal.
@tbax929 is back from the beach:
Bingo. All the usual BS about GM would be trotted out but when the halo company is putting people at risk the fanboy apologists immediately hit the \"But at least they're being up front and telling us about it\" chestnut.
Yeah, when the Government starts sniffing around and people are dead. I work in the industry, I could tell you story after story. How about the Toyota lawyer coming forward about unsafe cars being foisted on the public? Toyota's not saying anything about the cars per se, they're just trying to silence their former attorney.
@CaptainConsumer: That's why Hyundai/Kia is gaining market share so quickly - comparable quality (both due to Toyota's slipping and Hyundai's gaining) for less $.
I have a 2009 Camry and as others have mentioned, my floormats attach to the floor with hooks. There is no way the thing would come anywhere near the accelerator unless I pulled the thing up and in the wrong direction by hand and then stuck it underneath there. Of couse, there will always be those kind of people out there.
I read the original article about the crash that prompted this recall. What I don't understand is that the car had the wrong floormat (older model). So why does this warrant a recall? Seems like it would be more logical (but dumber) to just outlaw floormats.
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Does anyone know if this is related to the Prius' unfortunate tendency to \"shoot\" either forward or backward when you start it? I read that several people put their cars thru the garage wall (or door) and Toyota always blamed it on the floor mats.
There's a video out there that has a 911 call of someone in a Lexus with that problem, turned into a fatal accident.
At least one accident occurred here in San Diego--the one with the recorded 911 call. The driver was an off-duty police officer driving a loaner Lexus, with a push-button ignition. Apparently pressing the button will stop the car when the emergency brake will not, but it was not his car, and he didn't know this. Incidentally, another deadly accident occurred at the same location just days later, but was probably due to fog. Citizens are calling for changes at this T-intersection where people are approaching a busy road at the end of the freeway. These changes wouldn't have helped the police officer and his family, but might have warned the driver in the second crash.
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Whoops!
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I had this issue on one of my prior vehicles and it wasn't a Toyota. It didn't result in a recall. Just me figuring out the problem and removing the floor mat myself. The next vehicle I bought I specifically looked to see if it had a snap or method of attaching the floor mat in place so I wouldn't have to go through this again.
Funny, doesn't address the number of cases where this has happened in vehicles without floormats.
@Major-General: In that case it's more than likely a throttle body problem. A fairly easy and inexpensive fix.
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Yay - Sienna is not on the list. Sigh, I drive a boring minivan.
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I hate to sound like a jerk here. But why don't people use common sense?
If your gas pedal is stuck and you're flying down the highway, turn the car off or put the transmission in Neutral, and coast to the side of the road.
Don't call 911 and pray for Jesus.
Floor mat? I wouldn't call that a recall. Though...floor mats in my car were an option (80 bucks).
It's really just a problem with the size/placement of the mats. In most cars isn't there a small hook near the seat to make sure the mat doesn't interfere with the brake, clutch, and acc pedal? (again speaking from my car). Maybe that's a GM thing.
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@nstonep: I'd be surprised if these Toyota's didn't have it. I have a 9 year old Echo with the hooks.
I see some people suggesting turning the engine off when this happens, but this is very unsafe as power steering and power brakes rely on the engine running.
Think about how hard it is to stop an old truck with no power brakes. Do it for a few hours and you'll have a rock bruise on your foot, and they aren't very good at stopping anyway. Then realize that modern cars have larger, more powerful brakes and tend to be significantly heavier than old trucks. This means it will be much harder to bring the car to a stop without power brakes.
Steering is the same. Some old trucks were infamous for breaking people's wrists when you go over a bump too fast and at the wrong angle, but there was nothing anyone could do about it until power steering came along. And the effort required to turn the wheel was much like the brakes. Many of today's cars are front-wheel-drive, with much more weight concentrated in the front of the vehicle, and the tires tend to be wider, making steering even more difficult without power steering.
Because of this, shutting off the engine at highway speeds is actually extremely dangerous unless you're very big and strong, and know enough about vehicle dynamics to properly and safely control a car with no power.
What you should do instead is shift into neutral and let the engine rev and bounce off the limiter until you've pulled over and are nearly stopped (power assists will remain for a few seconds after the engine stops, as they are usually vacuum-powered).
Remember: A life is a hell of a lot more valuable than your engine.
I wasn't aware this was a major issue, because floor mats have ALWAYS gotten in the way of pedals when I drive, which is why the first thing I do (before adjusting mirrors, etc) is to take off the floor mat. Now, usually it's not so bad as the gas pedal being stuck- just minor things like being unable to hit the break!
I always saw this as \"obvious design flaw, wonder why they keep making these stupid things\", and removed the mats.
Couldn't they just warn everyone to toss their floor mats? Do they replace it with a problem-free mat?
This kind of happened to me, but in reverse. My floor mat got stuck under my clutch and I couldn't start my car. Unfortunately it occurred at the same time I was having chronic electrical issues so I kept misdiagnosing it whenever it occurred.
![\"user-pic\"](\"http://consumerist.com/assets_c/userpics/userpic-97671-100x100.png\")
This sort of happened to me once with my 95 ford contour Except that it was not the pedal that became stuck - but the accelorator in the engine itself.
I almost stuck several items going 90 mph plus with the brake pedal to the floor before realizing to just turn the key into the off position.
So a heads up - if this happens to you - turn your key asap
very scary
does anyone know a good place to look into vehicle recalls? I've googled safety recalls for cars and it pulls up a website for the nhtsa. clicking on the link to recalls pulls up a webpage to type in the info on your car.
Any other place to look for info?
Damn, I heard the 911 call from the guy in California on the radio today. Horrible. He said he was going 120 and the freeway was ending and couldn't stop the car. Seconds later, the crash happened and the line went dead. Everyone was screaming and I think I heard them say \"Pray\". Fcking cars.
I have a 2007 IS 250 and as soon as I read this article, I checked out my car to see if this might happen to me.
I don't see how it could. There's several inches of clearance between the floor mat and the bottom of the gas pedal. Like, I think I could probably force it to happen if I tried, but it just doesn't seem possible for it to accidently end up that way.
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There are a lot of other aftermarket floor mats that could cause the same problem, especially if it bunches up around the gas pedal.
@holytrainwreck: I've had that experience....very scary, thankfully the day before the radio show I listen to was talking about what to do when accelerators stick so I knew to shift to neutral then turn the car off.
It sounds like the problem is with clearance on the gas pedal. So the issue isn't the floor mat.