Toyota's Urgent Recall: Remove Toyota, Lexus Floor Mats

[john]

No floor mats allowed in the following !!!

2007-2010 Camry
2005-2010 Avalon
2004-2009 Prius
2005-2010 Tacoma
2007-2010 Tundra
2007-2010 Lexus ES 350
2006-2010 Lexus IS 250 and IS350



Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Government issues 'urgent' warning to remove Toyota, Lexus floor mats
David Shepardson / Detroit News Washington Bureau

Washington -- Toyota Motor Corp. agreed to recall nearly 3.9 million
vehicles -- the largest U.S. recall in the company's history -- as the
government issued an "urgent" warning to remove driver floor mats
because of the danger of inadvertent acceleration.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood urged owners of the Toyota and
Lexus vehicles to immediately remove driver's side floor mats because
of safety risks. Toyota is in the process of submitting the formal
recall documents to the government; its largest recall before this was
a 2005 recall of 900,000 vehicles.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that under
certain conditions, the mats from 2004-2009 model year vehicles could
cause the accelerator to stick in the full open position, which may
result in high speeds and serious crashes.

The agency strongly recommended removing driver-side mats and not
replacing them with any other mat. NHTSA has received more than 100
confirmed reports of accelerator pedal clearance issues which provide
the potential for an accelerator pedal to get stuck in the full open
position.

"This is an urgent matter," LaHood said. "For everyone's sake, we
strongly urge owners of these vehicles to remove mats or other
obstacles that could lead to unintended acceleration."

Sean Kane, president of Safety Research & Strategies, said an Aug. 28
crash that killed four -- including an off-duty California Highway
Patrol officer who was at the wheel of the 2009 Lexus when it plunged
over an embankment and burst into flames -- may have been the result
of sudden acceleration linked to a floor mat.

Mark Saylor and his wife Cleofe, both 45, their 13-year-old daughter,
Mahala, and 38-year-old brother-in-law, Chris Lastrella, were killed
after reporting to a 911 operator that they could not stop their Lexus
ES 350, as it careened down Route 125 in Santee, Calif.

The tape of the brief call was made public this month. It features the
voice of Lastrella, telling the operator that the vehicle had no
brakes. The call ended with occupants calling on each other to pray.

On Sept. 14, Toyota urged all dealers to "immediately inspect their
new, used, and loaner fleet vehicles and we urge all other automakers,
dealers, vehicle owners, and the independent service and car wash
industries to assure that any floor mat, whether factory or
aftermarket, is correct for the vehicle and properly installed and
secured."

In September 2007, Toyota recalled an accessory all-weather floor mat
sold for use in some 2007 and 2008 model year Lexus ES 350 and Toyota
Camry vehicles because of similar problems.

NHTSA's announcement was triggered by reports of vehicles accelerating
rapidly after release of the accelerator pedal. The incidents appear
to be related to factors including unsecured mats, accelerator pedal
configuration, and the unique steps needed to shut off the engines in
some vehicles with keyless ignition.

"Consumers should take this seriously," said NHTSA spokesman Rae
Tyson, who said the agency was pleased that Toyota had quickly agreed
to the recall.

The affected vehicles are:

2007-2010 Camry
2005-2010 Avalon
2004-2009 Prius
2005-2010 Tacoma
2007-2010 Tundra
2007-2010 Lexus ES 350
2006-2010 Lexus IS 250 and IS350

NHTSA has confirmed 102 incidents from 2004-2009 model year vehicles
relating to the floor mats. Nearly half -- or 42 -- were in the 2007
Lexus ES 350.

For more information, consumers can contact the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration's Hotline at [phone] or the
Toyota Experience Center at [phone] or the Lexus Customer
Assistance Center at [phone]. Information from Toyota is also
posted at http://www.toyota.com and http://www.lexus.com.

***@detnews.com [phone]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20090929/AUTO01/909290412/1148/auto01/Government-issues--urgent--warning-to-remove-Toyota--Lexus-floor-mats

[m***@aol.com]

Oh goodie !!!! I get to keep floor mats in my Lexus as it careens
madly out of control without brakes! That is so nice. The floor mats
will heap deaden our screams so our ears will not hurt so much as we
fly off the cliff !!!

[M. Balmer]

Don't hit the Pinto with the exploding gas tank as you careen to the bottom
of the cliff. Or move to Iowa or Kansass where they have no cliffs

Post by m***@aol.com
Oh goodie !!!! I get to keep floor mats in my Lexus as it careens
madly out of control without brakes! That is so nice. The floor mats
will heap deaden our screams so our ears will not hurt so much as we
fly off the cliff !!!

[hls]

The factory floor mats have eyelets which engage hooks in the floor,
holding them in a stable position. They dont move around this way.

If you dont have the proper floor mats, they can ride up under the
brake pedals, etc.

AFAIK, that is what this is all about.

I bought some aftermarket floor mats to protect my original carpeting,
and find they indeed ride up and cause this problem. No problem at
all with the carpeting that came with our cars.

[Tegger]

Post by hls
The factory floor mats have eyelets which engage hooks in the floor,
holding them in a stable position. They dont move around this way.
If you dont have the proper floor mats, they can ride up under the
brake pedals, etc.
AFAIK, that is what this is all about.
I bought some aftermarket floor mats to protect my original carpeting,
and find they indeed ride up and cause this problem. No problem at
all with the carpeting that came with our cars.

I have aftermarket mats on top of the OEM mats in my car.

What I did was to use a hole punch (like the ones used to punch leather) to
make a 1/4" hole in the aftermarket mats. This hole engages the OEM mat
hook. Luckily for me, the hook accommodates both mats at once.

I tried to do this in my wife's Tercel, but the mat hook is too shallow to
grab both sets of mats.

[aemeijers]

Post by Tegger

Post by hls
The factory floor mats have eyelets which engage hooks in the floor,
holding them in a stable position. They dont move around this way.
If you dont have the proper floor mats, they can ride up under the
brake pedals, etc.
AFAIK, that is what this is all about.
I bought some aftermarket floor mats to protect my original carpeting,
and find they indeed ride up and cause this problem. No problem at
all with the carpeting that came with our cars.

I have aftermarket mats on top of the OEM mats in my car.
What I did was to use a hole punch (like the ones used to punch leather) to
make a 1/4" hole in the aftermarket mats. This hole engages the OEM mat
hook. Luckily for me, the hook accommodates both mats at once.
I tried to do this in my wife's Tercel, but the mat hook is too shallow to
grab both sets of mats.

Why on earth would you run 2 sets of mats at once? I can understand
using the water-trapping mats in winter, but just throw the other mats
in the trunk till spring. Good idea about adding the hole, though. I
might mark the spot and stop by a tarp company and have then add a
grommet for durability. I wish my 99 Accord and 05 caravan had the hook
and hole setup like my 92 Taurus did. The hook worked, and I do have
some matt slippage in my current rides. Never enough to get up under
pedals, though.

--
aem sends...

[hls]

Post by aemeijers
Why on earth would you run 2 sets of mats at once? I can understand
using the water-trapping mats in winter, but just throw the other mats
in the trunk till spring. Good idea about adding the hole, though. I
might mark the spot and stop by a tarp company and have then add a
grommet for durability. I wish my 99 Accord and 05 caravan had the hook
and hole setup like my 92 Taurus did. The hook worked, and I do have
some matt slippage in my current rides. Never enough to get up under
pedals, though.
--
aem sends...

It is basically, as you already surmise, a halfway approach.
I dont want to ruin my OEM mats. The aftermarket ones are
not a perfect fit, but do protect the OEM ones.

I just need to get off my lazy ass and do it right.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

Why on earth would you run 2 sets of mats at once? I can understand using
the water-trapping mats in winter, but just throw the other mats in the
trunk till spring. Good idea about adding the hole, though. I might mark
the spot and stop by a tarp company and have then add a grommet for
durability. I wish my 99 Accord and 05 caravan had the hook and hole
setup like my 92 Taurus did. The hook worked, and I do have some matt
slippage in my current rides. Never enough to get up under pedals,
though.
--
aem sends...

It is basically, as you already surmise, a halfway approach. I dont want
to ruin my OEM mats. The aftermarket ones are not a perfect fit, but do
protect the OEM ones.
I just need to get off my lazy ass and do it right.

A can of Scotch Guard might do the trick just as well.

Alternative:

Carpet more important than your life.

[hls]

Post by aemeijers
Why on earth would you run 2 sets of mats at once?

It is basically, as you already surmise, a halfway approach. I dont want
to ruin my OEM mats. The aftermarket ones are not a perfect fit, but do
protect the OEM ones.
I just need to get off my lazy ass and do it right.

I just went out and fixed mine.. Took about 5 minutes. I aligned the
rear hem of the mat just behind the hooks, and made two "T" incisions
so the hooks can slip in.

Looks fine, should be a good fix.