http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/11/auto...dex.htm?hpt=T2

For once CR gets it right - they have THE answer to unintended acceleration.

"There is one step that could be taken that
would stop most cases of unintended
acceleration", Champion said.

"The one thing we could do would be to ban
automatic transmissions altogether and sell
only manuals," joked Champion.

Let's not focus on the sorry state of Driver Ed, or the abysmal driving habits and skills of Joe & Jill Public ...

At least the electronics has been vindicated. Ignant twits ...


MGD

 

I'd LOVE that - it would get a LOT of incompetent drivers off the road!

 

So the first test to get into driver's ed is walking and chewing gum?

Or patting your head and rubbing your stomach? Or vice versa?

 

Yep.

Imagine - a North America without gridlock

And - as an added bonus, the all the idiots would no longer be able to use handhelds to talk/text as much - you only gots 2 hands .

The only downside to this is, the act of steering will take a back seat to Twittering Twits.

MGD

 

Haha. Some people will sadly take this seriously and start protest against auto transmissions (silly Toyota owners...)

I wouldn't mind driving a manual.

 

Same here, I'd rather drive a manual.

 

It can be done, it's just a lot harder.

 

This reeks of cover up to me.

No one else in todays society takes responsibility for their actions why should Toyota. It is always someone elses fault. All those cases. Just in Toyotas and it is driver error and floor mats. Really?

I call bull****.

I drove standard most of my life but the older I get and the worse my knees get the less I want to drive one ever again.

 

Yeah, unintended acceleration. It reminds me of Big Foot. You have those that claim to have experienced it but zero proof it ever happened. NASA just got finished with an exhaustive investigation into 10 of the Toyota cars that supposedly experienced the "unintended acceleration". They found nothing and nothing has ever been found either in any of the Toyota cars. The grease on the throttle assembly was a placebo for the non-issue. The biggest problem seems to be the loose nuts behind the steering wheel and a manual transmission is not going to fix that.

 

So you think that Toyota issued a massive recall for an issue that didn't exhist? A recall for driver error? To me they confirmed that there was a problem when they issued a recall. I can't think of any other car company that has issued a recall for a problem that wasn't there.

 

The problem is that in America everyone is supposed to be able to drive. Can everyone drive? No. That is where the danger lies.

I do agree with the silent cars making it difficult to hear the engine rev. When I swapped to a louder muffler I couldn't belive how much throttle I was using when it was quiet.

 

Perhaps you've forgotten the very similar issue with Audi 5000's many years ago? "Pedal misapplication" was the government's official finding. It sounded so much better than "idiot drivers."

 

In today's world, you bet manufacturers will do a recall before the cause is confirmed.

If they don't do a recall and the media or government thinks they should, there will be Hell to pay. The company has way too much invested in their image to have it all ruined by some reporter or congressman on a witch hunt.

Especially when the US government owns GM. You don't think some of them want to put Toyota out of business?

By recalling, even if its not necessary, everyone is appeased. The customer's are given the impression that Toyota cares, which restores loyalty. The media and congress have to back off because they think Toyota is doing everything they can. Dealers are happy because maybe a few of the customers coming in for the recall will buy new cars, and many will get their cars serviced in addition to having the recall done.

OTOH, if they don't do a recall and someone else dies, it could ruin the company.

It's how the game is played, and yes, the cost of unessecary recalls adds to the cost of your next car.

 

Don't worry. When the government gets through bankrupting the country, we will all be driving cars the size of smart cars with manual transmissions because they get slightly better gas mileage. We will be more like Europe.

 

We'll just have to 'Americanize' it some ...



... ahhh, much better!


As for driver training to address the 'loose nuts' - there are advanced tools available now: http://www.qrbiz.com/product/1234297...ART-CHICK.html

Can you spot the oxymoron in there?

MGD