Consumers: NHTSA = No Help To Solve Anything

The public is finally getting a first hand look at the way government has been protecting Toyota (and no tellin' who else) instead of Toyota's ripped off customers. A class action lawsuit filed against Toyota a couple of months ago in West Virginia reveals shocking evidence of politically inspired chicanery within the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and challenges Toyota's "fixes" for unintended acceleration. Another class action suit has just been filed in Ohio accusing Toyota of fraud.

NHTSA has become little more than a front for corporate interests, and this latest Toyota mess is only the tip of an iceberg. To name a few examples, its a disgrace when over three thousand Toyota customers resort to signing an online petition seeking relief because of oil sludged engines. Its a disgrace when a carmaker is allowed to exclude obviously defective models from recalls, and its a disgrace when the government agency charged with traffic safety turns a deaf ear to a major car club's carefully documented complaints. The list goes on and on ad nauseum, but the NHTSA's negligence regarding unintended acceleration may turn out to be the straw that broke the camel's back. It brings to light one simple question. How many people have been seriously injured or killed because of political influence within the NHTSA?

Here's the real shame of it all. Toyota would still be doing business as usual except for the deaths of four people (including a 13-year-old girl) in a highly publicized 120 mph crash documented on tape when an occupant in an out of control Lexus made a frantic call to 911.

Lawsuit links unintended acceleration, electronics

There are comments all over the Internet alleging that Toyota's "fix" for sudden acceleration does not address the cause. Actually, a lawsuit was filed months ago revealing evidence of a malfunction in Toyota's electronics. The suit also gives the public good reason to believe that political influence within the NHTSA has kept things quiet for Toyota.

This lawsuit may force some meaningful answers out of Toyota, along  with an explanation as to why certain models have been exempted from recalls. Customers say that exempting certain models from recalls is a tactic that goes back to Toyota's oil sludge problems. Toyota must be gettin' help from somebody. Thousands of customers have signed an online petition complaining of abuse, and at least one lawsuit is being planned to force Toyota to comply with the terms of the oil sludge settlement.

Unintended acceleration linked to electronics? Political influence at the NHTSA? Why hasn't this lawsuit made headlines on the evening news?
http://www.tradingmarkets.com/new/stock-alert/tm_w-va-lawsuit-targets-toyota-740398.html

Government pressures Toyota to stop sales

Toyota's latest batch of recalls seems to be the ol' proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Thanks to government pressure, Toyota has now stopped selling several of its most popular models, including its much ballyhooed Camry, Corolla, and RAV 4 crossover. Not that there's any connection, of course, but government intervention also coincided with a sudden stop in the production of these vehicles. If you ask me, Toyota oughta also quit exposin' the public to other models, startin' with the Prius. Better yet, why doesn't Toyota just do everyone a favor and close their lousy business down entirely? Apparently, the government was finally forced to act because of the horrific consequences of Toyota's defects, and the never ending barrage of consumer complaints, not only to government agencies such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, but also complaints lodged all over the Internet via comments on numerous websites, an online petition signed by over three thousand desperate Toyota customers, and individual blogs devoted to exposing the truth.

There are costs involved with producing a quality product and then reimbursing customers when honest errors are made. But cuttin' such costs invariably turn out to be even more costly in the long run. The long "run" occurs when irrate customers get together and run offending businesses like Toyota clean out of town.

Bad news keeps rollin' in for Toyota

Update: Today (10/26/10) Yahoo censored comments I submitted that were critical of Toyota and Consumer Reports magazine, including remarks about engine failures in MR2 Spyders.

Hooray for the public getting an unvarnished look at Toyota. 'Tis a pity mainstream media still refuses to expose all those engine failures in Toyota's MR2 Spyders. Nonetheless, many of the horrors of doing business with Toyota are finally coming to the public's attention.

This 1/22/10 BusinessWeek article uses some interesting terminology, sayin' Toyota can't even "buy" a break from the continuing barrage of bad news. Hmmm. Is puttin' a little cash in the right hands the way Toyota has been keepin' things quiet about their lousy products? Frankly, I'm still puzzled over Consumer Reports' silence regarding engine failures in MR2 Spyders. I no longer have any confidence in Consumer Reports magazine. I contacted CR about the problems with MR2 Spyders, and my efforts turned out to be a waste of time. Sorta like the folks runnin' the Spyderchat website complainin' to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Let's face it. The consumer has been sold down the river by an electoral system that's the best money can buy. Both parties marchin' along to the drumbeat of Wall Street. Isn't it a dirty, rotten shame that taxpayer dollars have been spent to help corporations like Toyota victimize an unsuspecting public?
http://www.businessweek.com/autos/autobeat/archives/2010/01/toyota_to_recal.html

Floor mat attacks Avalon by remote control

Yessir, the floor mat had most certainly been removed, so some sort of remote control is the only logical expanation for this case of unintended acceleration involving a 2007 Toyota Avalon.  Apparently, what this pesky floor mat - they're known to be vindictive and hateful -didn't count on was the driver being able to get the car to the dealer while the problem was occuring. If Toyota will look into this matter a little closer, they'll no doubt discover that floor mats are highly sensitive, and it irks 'em to be removed.

Based on my experience, floor mats get treated better than Toyota's customers.
http://www.leftlanenews.com/toyota-avalon-displays-unintended-acceleration-without-floor-mat.html

2010 Prius features brake failures galore

Yessir, Toyota's little wonder car is just flat out unstoppable. Their latest edition features horrifying accounts of brake failure so prevalent they've already gotten the attention of mainstream media. I reckon' them thar floor mats are actin' up again...

At Toyota, it seems that quality is job NONE.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34611930/ns/business-autos/

Cause of Lexus crash still unknown

Not that I'll ever believe anything Toyota says, but why would anyone wanna deal with a car company that can't even get it right regarding floor mats?

Police investigators say mechanical failure can't be ruled out in the horrific crash that focused national attention on unintended acceleration:
http://www.injuryboard.com/national-news/crash-that-led-to-toyota-recall-inconclusive.aspx?googleid=275542