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Engine failures in MR2 Spyders

6/11/2014 - Updated the original post by entering direct links to reference material, and added remarks about the legal issues involved with...

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Sudden unintended acceleration trial exposed Toyota's shameful conduct

"We proved at trial that the software that controlled the ETCS was defectively designed and failed to conform to industry standards. Moreover, the jury was convinced that Toyota was fully aware of problems with the system, but concealed them from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the public and its customers." Jere I. Beasley, Beasley and Allen Law Firm

SO thrilling that a law firm finally dared to challenge the absurd notion that Toyota's ongoing problems with sudden, unintended acceleration were attributable to floor mats, beer cans, the driver's age, etc. ad nauseum. Once done, Plaintiffs were rewarded with a guilty verdict after a jury in Oklahoma heard the facts about the Recall King's shenanigans involving its electronic throttle control system (ETCS). Enough to prompt the jury to declare that Toyota acted with "reckless disregard" of the Plaintiffs' rights.

In a scathing summation of trial highlights, Plaintiffs' attorney's have not been bashful  regarding Toyota's behavior. Reminiscent of the Associated Press investigation concluding that Toyota is deceitful when sued, it's now obvious that Toyota is deceitful not only when sued. Toyota is deceitful period:

"Toyota’s conduct from the time the ETCS was designed has been shameful. This jury had the courage to let Toyota and the public know that Toyota was reckless and that the automaker had covered up a known defect in the ETCS."

I'll pose the question again: Why should anyone trust anything Toyota says?

Isn't it a outrage that citizens in the sweet land of "liberty and justice for all" have little recourse against slob corporations other than filing expensive, risky, and time-consuming lawsuits? Toyota's friends at NHTSA jumped at the chance to champion NASA's "investigation" of Toyota's sudden, unintended acceleration, and we now have solid evidence that - as common sense dictated all along - NASA's "investigation" left much to be desired:

"Although NASA investigated Toyota’s software, Toyota withheld certain important software source code from NASA and misrepresented the existence of vital memory protection characteristics of the Camry throttle control system."

And when it comes to NHTSA:

"...in reporting to NHTSA, Toyota removed the search term “surge” and only used the term “mat,” which resulted in only 124 claims being reported to the government agency. This was a deliberate move on Toyota’s part and was designed to hide a known defect."

NHTSA wasn't hoodwinked. NHTSA was willfully hoodwinked. And we can expect proof of that infuriating fact to emerge as NHTSA refuses to take action against their friend Toyota in spite of technical disclosures - so far kept secret from the public - now referenced in court records.

Indisputable evidence of the best system money can buy. A government of dishonest, corporate-financed thugs - Repukes and Demagogues alike - who run roughshod over the citizenry. Is anyone surprised that nothing has been done about all those engine failures in MR2 Spyders?