SAN DIEGO – Toyota Motor Corp. dismissed the story of a man who claimed his Prius sped out of control on the California freeway, saying Monday that its own tests found the car’s gas pedal and backup safety system were working just fine.
The automaker stopped short of saying James Sikes had staged a hoax last week but said his account did not square with a series of tests it conducted on the gas-electric hybrid.
The episode March 8 was among the highest-profile headaches Toyota has suffered in recent months. It recalled more than 8 million cars and trucks worldwide because gas pedals can become stuck in the down position or be snagged by floor mats.
In Sikes’ case, Toyota said it found he rapidly pressed the gas and brakes back and forth 250 times, the maximum amount of data that the car’s self-diagnostic system can collect.
Toyota officials said they believed Sikes was hitting the pedals lightly, which would have prevented the brake-override system from kicking in.
The company had no explanation for discrepancies with Sikes’ account but confirmed the brakes were overheated and the pads worn. Bob Waltz, vice president of product, quality and service support at Toyota Motor Sales USA., said the front brakes were “metal to metal.”
Toyota said it believes a CHP officer’s account that he smelled burning brakes while guiding Sikes on the freeway.
Sikes has said his car raced to 94 mph on a freeway near San Diego.
The CHP officer ultimately helped bring the car safely to a stop by telling him over a loudspeaker to hit the emergency brake and foot brake simultaneously. Sikes spoke to reporters shortly after the incident but has since kept a low profile.
And the rest of the car was fine, the automaker said — the gas pedal was not slowed by friction, the floor mat was not even touching the pedal, and a system that cuts the engine power when the gas and brakes are pressed at the same time was working.”If there were some kind of electronic problem, you would think it might actually stay permanent,” Michels said. “When your TV goes on the fritz, when electronic stuff goes on the fritz, it doesn’t just do it once and never do it again.”
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