Toyota Recall, Lexus Recall, Acceleration Problem Lawsuits

July 2010 Update

Citing anonymous sources, The Wall Street Journal reported on July 13, 2010, that the U.S. Department of Transportation has analyzed dozens of data recorders from Toyota vehicles involved in accidents blamed on sudden acceleration and found that the throttles were wide open and the brakes weren't engaged at the time of the crash, suggesting that drivers were to blame for the accidents.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received about 3,000 complaints about sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles and is conducting its own examination of them. After the Wall Street Journal report was published, NHTSA said in a statement that it had reached "no conclusions" about the causes [look for a link to this statement] and denied the accuracy of the Wall Street Journal report. "It didn't come from us," Julia Piscitelli, a NHTSA spokeswoman, says. "Toyota gave The Wall Street Journal that story. All I can say officially is, 'No comment.' The investigation is ongoing."

In the litigation against Toyota, the complaints charge that flaws in Toyota's electronic throttle system and the failure to equip the vehicles with a safety feature, known as 'brake-to-idle' override, that enables drivers to override the electronic throttle, have played a direct role in why the vehicles suddenly accelerated.

May 2010 Update

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that from 2000 to mid-May 2010, it had received more than 6,200 complaints involving sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles. The reports include 89 deaths and 57 injuries over the same period. Previously, 52 deaths had been suspected of being connected to the problem.

On May 14, 2010, as part of organizing the lawsuits in federal court against Toyota for vehicles that suddenly accelerated, Judge James V. Selna of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California appointed attorneys to manage the pretrial proceedings and other aspects of the litigation for the plaintiffs. The court appointed Elizabeth J. Cabraser as Co-Lead Counsel of Plaintiffs' Liaison Committee for Personal Injury/Wrongful Death cases.

April 2010 Update

On April 9, 2010, The San Francisco Chronicle reported that according to documents that were submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Toyota was aware as early as 2006 that accelerator pedals could stick, causing unintended acceleration.

March 2010 Update

On March 23, 2010, CNN reported that it had obtained documents showing that Toyota warned dealerships as far back as 2002 that Camry owners were complaining about throttles surging, and recommended adjustments in an electronic control unit to fix the problem. The technical service bulletin went to every U.S. Toyota dealership in late August 2002 after some customers reported their vehicles were speeding up unexpectedly. Toyota maintains that its current problems do not involve electronic components.

On March 15, 2010, The Los Angeles Times reported that Federal regulators in 2007 asked Toyota to consider installing software to prevent sudden acceleration in its vehicles after receiving complaints that vehicles could race out of control. Toyota only began installing the safety feature, known as brake override, in January 2010 after it announced recalls of its vehicles.

Earlier in March 2010, The Los Angeles Times reported that more than 60 drivers have complained of sudden acceleration incidents despite the fact that their cars were repaired by Toyota in the current recalls.

February 2010 Update

On February 22, 2010, members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee charged that Toyota had relied on a flawed study in dismissing the notion that computer issues could be at fault for sticking accelerator pedals, and then made misleading statements about the repairs. The comments, from Henry A. Waxman, the committee's chairman, and Bart Stupak, a subcommittee chairman, came in an 11-page letter to James E. Lentz III, the president of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.

Also in February 2010, Congressional investigators announced they are are expanding their look into the large recall of Toyota vehicles by examining whether the sudden acceleration problems affect other models, suggesting as well that all Toyota vehicles be retrofitted to avoid the problem.

Toyota and Lexus Acceleration Recalls

To date, Toyota has recalled over 7 million vehicles in the U.S. due to the danger of unintended and sudden acceleration. This includes Toyota vehicles that have been recalled due to stuck gas pedal and those recalled due to faulty floor mats. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has called the Toyota acceleration problem "a serious safety issue."

Toyota vehicles recalled a wide range of recent models, including the Highlander, Corolla, Venza, Matrix, Camry, Avalon, Tacoma, RAV4, Sequoia and Tundra, as well as the Lexus ES 350, Lexus IS 250 and IS 350 and earlier Prius models. Read the complete list of current Toyota vehicle recalls.

Has Toyota Actually Identified the Reason Its Vehicles are Suddenly Accelerating?

Since 2002, there have been multiple government investigations and over 2,000 consumer complaints of unintended acceleration of Toyota vehicles. Only in 2010, did Toyota apparently acknowledge the full scope of the problem. As stated in the New York Times,

"At almost every step that lead to its current predicament, Toyota underestimated the severity of the sudden-acceleration problem affecting its most popular cars. It has veered from discounting early reports of problems to overconfidently announcing diagnoses and insufficient fixes."

Toyota claims it has developed a fix to the gas pedal of its vehicles that will stop sudden acceleration. However, the manufacturer of the pedal denies it was defectively made. Of the 2,000 complaints of sudden acceleration, just 5% blamed a sticking gas pedal. Nor did any of the government investigations into sudden-acceleration problems in Toyota vehicles identify a sticking pedal as a potential cause.

Toyota Sudden Acceleration Lawsuits

Lieff Cabraser represents injured persons nationwide and families of loved ones who died in Toyota sudden acceleration accidents. You can read a copy of the complaint we filed in the February 2010 case of Chin Lin v. Toyota.

Since 2002, the electronic throttle system in most Toyota vehicles, including cars that Toyota has to date refused to recall, relies on sensors, microprocessors and electronic motors instead of a mechanical linkage, such as steel cable, to connect the accelerator pedal to the engine throttle plate.

"Millions of Toyota vehicles were not equipped with a safety feature, known as 'brake-to-idle' override, that enables drivers to override the electronic throttle and control the vehicle in the event of a sudden unintended acceleration," stated Lieff Cabraser attorney Robert J. Nelson. "This safety feature is used by other automotive manufacturers. Toyota's failure to incorporate it played a direct role in the deaths and injuries of scores of persons across America."

Why Toyota is Liable: Toyota Sudden Acceleration Lawsuits

In the lawsuits filed against Toyota by Lieff Cabraser's clients, the plaintiffs charge that:

Toyota Recall Attorneys | Lawyers

Persons injured in accidents involving Toyota and Lexus vehicles that suddenly accelerated who would like to learn more about their legal rights are welcome to contact an attorney at Lieff Cabraser by clicking here.

You may also call us toll free at 1-800-541-7358 and ask to speak to attorney Todd Walburg. There is no charge or obligation for our review of your case.