Boston Car Accident Lawyer Blog
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced the findings of a study requested by Congress on the unintended acceleration in Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles. Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood assured that “We enlisted the best and brightest engineers to study Toyota’s electronics systems, and the verdict is in. There is no electronic-based cause for unintended high-speed acceleration in Toyotas.”
Under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the study was administered by NASA engineers, who, after ten months of exhaustive testing and research into the electronic operating systems of the car, came to the conclusion that sticky pedals and a design flaw of floor mats jamming pedals were the only verifiable causes of unintended acceleration. Since 2009, Toyota has recalled approximately eight-million vehicles to remedy these causes of unintended acceleration, in addition to paying $48.8 million in civil penalties.
Here in Massachusetts, owner of Expressway Toyota in Boston, Robert Boch said: “We are not the powerhouse that we were prior to the recalls…but this will certainly be a step in the right direction.” Within New England, there have been at least seven fatal car accidents resulting in ten deaths that have been attributed to Toyota drivers losing control of their vehicles because of unintended acceleration.
Sources:
US finds Toyota electronics weren’t to blame in crashes, The Boston Globe, February 9, 2011
U.S. Department of Transportation Releases Results From NHTSA-NASA Study of Unintended Acceleration in Toyota Vehicles, United States Department of Transportation, February 8, 2011
Acceleration questioned in fatal crashes, The Boston Globe.
The Massachusetts car accident lawyers at Altman & Altman can advise you if you have been injured on the road.
