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I have a '10 Prius.
Hold the "power" button in for 3 seconds to stop the engine when not in park. You have to hold it, as you don't want an accidental tap to shut it down. Of course, at 120 MPH 3 seconds is an eternity. Perhaps a "press power button 3 times fast" option might be a good alternative, as that's likely what a panicking driver might try.
Neutral is also possible at speed with the Prius self-centering shift paddle. However you have to hold the shifter in the neutral position for a moment to get it to shift into neutral. Less than three seconds, but not so short that an accidental tap will do it.
I think it's pretty obvious that the state trooper was simply not familiar with the car. The odds of the accelerator sticking AND the power button not responding AND the shift control not responding are, well, small. However, a more intuitive panic stop system would not be unwelcome, as uncontrolled acceleration is not the kind of thing you run into routinely.
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macphanatic wrote:
[quote=yeoman]
The is no key. It's a smartkey you keep on your person. There's a button to start but no stop button.
IIRC, pushing the button while in any position other than "Park" does nothing.
Apparently you have to hold the "Start" key down for a period of time to have it work as a "Stop" button. Of course that assumes the electronic controls sees the press, and the programming operates correctly. Same holds for electronic shifting of an automatic transmission. I am beginning to like the idea of a manual even more. At least you have a clutch peddle to disengage the engine. On a previous car that is what I had to use to control speed when its cruise control computer went bad and engaged any time I went over 40, even though it was supposed to be off.
Oh, and a big no it won't work to the idea of throwing an automatic tranny into Park. All you will do is strip the pawl, at speed it will not engage or hold. And yes, I know that from practical experience.
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The first thing I would do is install a kill switch in the primary ignition path. And bill the manufacturer for failure to provide a non-computerized engine kill.
But that's just me.
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And it has been mentioned several times (but not in this thread) that in the state trooper incident, it was not his car but a loaner from the dealer.
The loaner was identical to his car.
But no fuzzy dice.
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Was the cause of Audi's unintended acceleration ever discovered? I recall the company's line was stupid drivers with big feet.
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All the reports say was that the trooper had turned in his Lexus for service, and got a recent model Lexus ES350 as a loaner. None I have seen listed the model or year of the trooper's car. But considering that many people following the reports have managed to only get part of what they heard right, such as saying why did the driver call on his cell, when it was a passenger, I am not surprised that someone would make the jump to saying it was the same car.
As for other issues, the wrong floor mats were in the car for starts. The NHTSA report also mentions that the brakes showed signs of extensive use for braking such as pitted, overheated rotors and pad material stuck to them. In addition, NHTSA reported that prior investigations into the ES350 braking showed they lost a good portion of their power boost when the engine was operating at full throttle.
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NHTSA reported that prior investigations into the ES350 braking showed they lost a good portion of their power boost when the engine was operating at full throttle.
That's something most "experts" never think about. A lot of people assume that brakes will *always* overpower an engine.
WOT will cause brake fade (evidenced by the pitted rotors and brake material stuck to them) and no boost (or damn little) is developed under acceleration.
I've seen several reports that the loaner was a 2009 ES350, but none saying what the driver owned.
I don't know if the "black box" electronics can say whether or not the Power button was pushed.
Reading a few car forums (l know- generally a mistake) there's lots of speculation and conclusions, but little fact. Oh, and no shortage of bravado. But I did see a mention of not being able to put some cars in Neutral while under way. Naturally, nobody had any first hand experience, but there were a lot of "I think you can" and "I don't think you can" remarks.
Anybody own a 2009 ES350 and *know* if one can put the car in Neutral when in motion?
