Chicago Injury Lawyer Blog
A recently released technical service bulletin provides evidence that dealerships across the country were aware of unexpected acceleration deficiencies in 2002 Toyota Camry vehicles. The document, which was sent to every U.S. Toyota dealership in late August of 2002, stated in part, “Some 2002 model year Camry vehicles may exhibit a surging during light throttle input at speeds between 38-42 mph.” The release of this information comes on the heels of a series of car accidents related to the acceleration malfunction. Safety analysts have documented an estimated 2000 cases in which owners of Toyota vehicles including Camry and Prius models surged to speeds of up to 100 miles per hour.
Toyota has claimed that the incidents are the result of defective floor mats which can trap accelerator pedals causing car accidents. Toyota has recalled more than 2.3 million vehicles since January. The manufacturing giant claims that independent testing failed to find problems with the electronic throttle controls. However, the document which was released to Toyota dealers, did cite electronic controls as a cause of the acceleration. The document mentioned nothing about defective floor mats.
Most victims of the malfunctioning Toyota vehicles have maintained that the glitch was electronic in origin all along. The released documentation comports with the assertion that the vehicle malfunctions were not caused by faulty floor mats.
If you have been injured as the result of a vehicle defect, you should contact an attorney as soon as possible to investigate vehicle defects. To speak with an experienced Chicago area auto defect lawyer, please click here.