Ms. Smith should have turned the ignition switch off and back into run so she could steer the car into the emergency lane instead of a guardrail or a canal.

Yeah, I don't think anyone went to jail for that either because the cars were too old.

I remember Chevy pickups with the gas tanks on the outside of the frame were blowing up with side impacts. But Chevy corrected to problem in later models.

I also remember a car that when you pulled up the carpet in the trunk you could see the top of the gas tank.

Also VW's ejection seats. They made the seat rails so thin that when you got rear ended your head would smash the back window.

My Ranger is like that because the glass is right behind your head and there is no headrest to protect you. Either way I don't think I would survive a side impact. I saw somebody die like that. There is not a whole lot of body to protect you in a pickup.

I see some of the crash tests and you can see most cars collapse around the driver.

People need to slow down a realize they could die in a crash.

We had a guy here who couldn't get his cruise control to disengage and phoned the emergency services who talked him into stopping.

The link gives the transcript of the call - it's a strange story and I'm not sure what the examination of the car showed. At first I thought he just panicked and did the wrong thing, but weird things happen and maybe a design fault that only shows up under unusual circumstances was at fault.

The transparency of big business and big government working hand in hand is becoming so apparent so fast it scares me. Pretty soon they won't even try to deny that big business IS the government. GM, Ford, and Chrysler have all had numerous recalls over the years. Numerous. It never got the attention of the Feds before ... but now ... well ... now it's a Japanese company moving in on their territory and driving the big 3 to the brink of bankruptcy right in their own back yard. A couple recalls provided the perfect opportunity but not for the reasons you might think. The article's statement that the raids had nothing to do with the recalls makes perfect sense to me. They were simply taking advantage of the fact Toyota is losing it's public approval ratings and they're striking while the iron is hot. Tabloids and even the national news broadcasts have been proving for decades you don't have to prove anything to make accusations. This is the perfect time to make the public believe anything they want them to. If you don't think Ford or GM had anything to do with this then you prolly believed there were WMDs in Iraq too and that the bombings in Afghanistan were about finding Bin Laden rather than protecting a pipeline.

Call me crazy but that's my 2¢

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Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

Best thing any car driver could do is ride a bike for a month. I did while my old honda was in for repair. 4 weeks on a 125 and you soon see how stupid you were as a car driver. That sense of being safe in your metal cage becomes nothing but a distant memory.

On a side note I had a ford, the clutch cable snapped 15 miles from home. I managed to limp it home by doing just what you suggested above. Everytime I wanted to change gear i turned the ignition key. The flywheel engaged and the gearbox free'd up. It was touch and go but it got me home.

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No no and no

Isn't interesting that the US government which is now actually a partner in at least one major American auto maker is now starting a groundbreaking investigation of a foreign automaker of which it is now a direct competitor?

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I'm not an expert, but I play one on the internet.

That's what I was trying to say but I guess you put it a little more directly.

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Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

If Toyota were ONLY automotive... I'd be really worried about their future. But there's a lot more to the giant than cars and trucks. Most corporations are well diversified so if one branch takes a dive, they will not have to fold.

Toyota is one of those. Yamaha, GE, and Kawasaki Heavy Industries are a few more examples of globally diversified companies.

No... Toyota is not going away any time soon no matter what happens. Granted, the global economy is not in good form so this is not a good time to have troubles.

Ah right. Like a steering wheel paddle shift. Well it's just more nonsense, another pointless gimick like so many others on modern cars. I much prefer a car that you have to drive, rather than one that drives itself. There making driving far too easy.

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No no and no

GM and Toyota are business partners. Toyota actually builds some GM models too. If I were an exec at GM, I would be a little worried about that connection.

Notice:

I've just had a little chat with Mike away from the Forum and it seems this thread originally relates to something that has not made the news internationally and of which I was therefore unaware.

So my flippant tone in my post at the beginning of the thread probably looks in bad taste. No disrespect intended and apologies to anyone who feels it was out of place.

Not the first time I've got the mood wrong like that. My brain is now being recalled to the factory for some adjustments to the "think first" facility...

Cheers guys - C

Ceri, your post wasn't anything really bad, I actually got a
good chuckle out of it.

It seems like the origin of this problem started with a Lexus :

http://tinyurl.com/yjlb6g3

Notice the timeline of events.

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

I'm not much for conspiracy theories (well some), ButI am going to have to agree with you on this one!! It is terrible what happened to those people. But you can't help but wonder. Fear is a good anesthetic.

Not that I am an expert by any means, but when I first heard of the issue I instantly thought it was an electronic or software issue, because lets face it, cars these days are pretty much just 2 to 3-ton computers...

In fact, I know some motorheads who won't work on newer cars because there's too much electronics and computers to deal with these days under the hood and greater risk for shock/electrocution than previously.

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RAMA LAMA FA FA FA

I wish I could accuse the two of you of being cynical, but I suspect that what you are saying is pretty close to the mark. If the US government--which owns General Motors and has a major stake in Chrysler--can demonize the world's top auto manufacturer, the frightened public might flock back to the perceived safety of their local Chevrolet and Dodge dealerships.


Finding a scapegoat--especially a foreign one--is a time-honored method of diverting attention away from domestic problems. Our government's tactic of choice in recent years has been to keep people distracted by bread-and-circuses issues like this while taking all kinds of covert actions to undermine the Constitution and erode the republic. And the scariest thing of all is that the American people keep falling for it.

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I really like all them "Aster" guitars. You know, like the Stratoc, Telec and Jazzm.