Investigations
ACCESSORY FLOOR MAT
NHTSA Preliminary Evaluation PE07016 - closed, opened 2007-03-29.
NHTSA investigation PE07016 is a Preliminary Evaluation opened on 2007-03-29 and currently closed. The subject is tracked inside the Office of Defects Investigation queue. Latest activity on this investigation was logged on 2007-08-08 - NHTSA updates that field whenever an Information Request goes out, a supplement is filed, or a status change is recorded in the public docket.
A Preliminary Evaluation like PE07016 is the entry point of the federal defect-investigation process. NHTSA engineers scan complaint databases, field reports, and manufacturer data to decide whether an Engineering Analysis is warranted, whether a voluntary recall is already sufficient, or whether the pattern does not rise to a defect finding.
Investigators summarized the matter as follows: "COMPLAINANTS INTERVIEWED BY ODI STATED THAT THEY APPLIED THE THROTTLE PEDAL TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE THEN EXPERIENCED UNWANTED ACCELERATION AFTER RELEASE. SUBSEQUENT (AND SOMETIMES REPEATED) APPLICATIONS OF THE BRAKE PE..." Investigations are the early-warning layer of the federal auto-safety system, sitting upstream of formal recalls and defect orders. Whether this one closes without action or escalates into an Engineering Analysis, the full history stays in the ODI archive so researchers, litigators, and buyers can pull the paper trail at any time.
Investigation Summary
COMPLAINANTS INTERVIEWED BY ODI STATED THAT THEY APPLIED THE THROTTLE PEDAL TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE THEN EXPERIENCED UNWANTED ACCELERATION AFTER RELEASE. SUBSEQUENT (AND SOMETIMES REPEATED) APPLICATIONS OF THE BRAKE PEDAL REDUCED ACCELERATION BUT DID NOT STOP THE VEHICLE. IN SOME INCIDENTS DRIVERS TRAVELED SIGNIFICANT DISTANCES (MILES) AT HIGH VEHICLE SPEEDS (GREATER THAN 90 MPH) BEFORE THE VEHICLE STOPPED (ODI NOTES THAT MULTIPLE BRAKE APPLICATIONS WITH THE THROTTLE IN AN OPEN POSITION CAN DEPLETE THE BRAKE SYSTEM'S POWER (VACUUM) ASSIST RESERVE RESULTING IN DIMINISHED BRAKING). THE SUBJECT VEHICLES HAVE AN ENGINE CONTROL BUTTON INSTEAD OF A TRADITIONAL IGNITION KEY. SOME DRIVERS REPORTED THAT THEIR ATTEMPTS TO TURN THE ENGINE OFF BY PRESSING THE CONTROL BUTTON WERE UNSUCCESSFUL. IN THESE CASES IT APPEARS THE DRIVERS WERE UNAWARE THAT THE BUTTON'S FUNCTIONALITY CHANGES WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION REQUIRING THAT IT BE DEPRESSED FOR 3 SECONDS (INSTEAD OF MOMENTARILY) TO STOP THE ENGINE. ODI HAS OBSERVED THAT AN UNSECURED LEXUS ACCESSORY ALL WEATHER FLOOR MAT CAN TRAP THE THROTTLE PEDAL IN AN OPEN POSITION RESULTING IN SIGNIFICANT UNWANTED ACCELERATION. UNSECURED FLOOR MATS HAVE BEEN FOUND IN THE MAJORITY OF INCIDENT VEHICLES. IN ADDITION, ODI HAS INSPECTED TWO INCIDENT VEHICLES DOCUMENTING BRAKE DAMAGE DUE TO OVERHEATING. IN THE FIVE ODI CRASH INCIDENTS THE OPERATORS ALLEGE THEY EXPERIENCED UNWANTED ACCELERATION AND WERE UNABLE TO STOP THE VEHICLE TO AVOID THE COLLISION. FOUR OF THE FIVE CRASHES ARE MULTI-VEHICLE (ONE INVOLVING 7 VEHICLES) AND TWO RESULTED IN TOTAL LOSS DAMAGES (ONE INVOLVING A FIRE). ONE INJURY, WHICH RESULTED FROM A ROLL-OVER CRASH, WAS SIGNIFICANT AND THE INJURED PERSON CONTINUES TO SHOW SYMPTOMS. ONE INJURY INCIDENT IS NOT CRASH RELATED (COMPLAINANT ALLEGES A KNEE INJURY DUE TO OVEREXERTION DURING BRAKE APPLICATION). IN THEIR RESPONSE TO ODI'S APRIL 5, 2007 INFORMATION REQUEST LETTER, TOYOTA ACKNOWLEDGES THAT SOME OF THE ALLEGED INCIDENTS ARE
About This Investigation Type
A Preliminary Evaluation (PE) is the first phase of NHTSA's investigation process. It is opened when the agency identifies a potential safety defect pattern, usually triggered by consumer complaints, manufacturer reports, or field monitoring. During a PE, NHTSA gathers information to determine whether a formal engineering analysis is warranted.
Data from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Cross-references: NHTSA recall campaign API and NHTSA FARS where fatality records overlap. PlainCars does not rate or recommend vehicles. about how PlainCars sources NHTSA data.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.