Toyota’s vehicle recalls have been well documented in the news. Unfortunately for consumers and Toyota Canada, most media outlets do not understand that Canadian Toyotas and their accessories are different than American Toyotas.
In addition, reporting suspected problems is different in each country. In Canada, recalls are not initiated until the company can prove it has a repair to the problem. These differences often lead to politics overshadowing the original issues.
The problem that started everything was floor mats that were too thick or could come loose. This might interfere with throttle operation.
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Except for some new Venza owners, Canadian Toyota owners were not affected because Canada uses different floor mats.
Toyota Canada specified a different floor mat for Canada because our weather is much harsher than in most parts of the U.S. Canadian floor mats are thinner and made from a different rubber, which remains pliable at lower temperatures.
After-market floor mats in general can cause problems if you don’t follow directions on how to make them fit in a vehicle.
Another problem can occur if you take the plush velour carpet floor mats in a new car and turn them over so that the rubber side is up. They don’t fit properly and can get caught in the throttle or brake.
Toyota’s second and more important problem is the stuck throttle pedal. It would be unnerving to have the throttle of your car stick wide open. Independent testing of 11 different models from seven different manufacturers showed that if you were accelerating from 80 to 100 km/h and went to wide open throttle, you could still stop safely.
It takes about five metres longer than usual to stop and requires extra effort on the brake. You only get one chance because the brake booster will run out of vacuum and high revving engines don’t produce much vacuum.
Plan B, which can work in conjunction with Plan A, is to manually lift the pedal with your foot. I have seen the Toyota assembly on a workbench and the location of the parts tells me that lifting it will slow the engine.
There are claims that the problem is electronic in nature, but no one has been able to provide a credible explanation of how that might be, particularly since Prius uses this assembly with the added controls to send regenerative power to the battery and reduce engine power if the brake pedal is pressed.
A sticking throttle is not new. I’ve had it happen to me with old GM trucks, newer Nissans and others. Frost built up in the throttle and locked it until I thawed it. Other problems included return springs that broke and linkages that jammed.
Toyota believes it has found the mechanical solution to the problem and is trying to get enough parts produced to make the repair.
It takes time to make all the shims necessary to bring the throttle return back into proper specification. It takes time to implement a repair properly, but if you don’t, the fix could create a worse problem.
If you have a Toyota covered by this recall, don’t be afraid to drive it. If the throttle sticks, push on the brake as hard as you can until you stop and/or put the gearshift into neutral.
Or you can turn off the key as a last resort. This is a last step because it is difficult to stop the key at the off position and not lock up the steering. In addition, many of the new keyless, push button engines may need to be held for about three seconds to get the engine to shut off in gear.
Due to the complexity of making a vehicle, recalls will likely become more common.
Would I buy a Toyota? Yes. I have as much confidence in Toyota as I ever did. But being cheap, I would probably wait to see if sales drop to get a deal.
