Runaway Toyota Prius Sticks at 90mph
There was a high speed chase for California Highway Patrol on Monday, but it wasn’t a criminal act. The driver of a 2008 Toyota Prius said that his car uncontrollably accelerated to more than 90mph, and an officer had to help stop the car.
James Sikes, age 61, wasn’t injured in the incident, which is just another claim involving the gas pedal recall by Toyota, whose image has been damaged now more than it ever has. This runaway Prius incident happened in San Diego County, the same county were an off-duty highway patrol trooper and 3 family members were killed in an incident last August that brought the unintended acceleration issue to national attention, which has led to a major recall.
Sikes says that he got a recall notice to take his Prius to a Toyota dealership. However, when he did they told him that his car wasn’t on the recall list. The auto manufacturer recalled the 2004-09 Prius hybrids over concerns about loose floor mats that may hold down the gas pedal and cause unintended acceleration.
Then on Monday afternoon, Sikes went to pass another vehicle on Interstate 8, but wound up speeding 30 miles down the road in only 20 minutes, according to the trooper. Sikes says that after pushing the gas to get around the other car, the pedal jumped and just stuck there. He was trying to hit the breaks, but the car wouldn’t stop.
During the incident, Sikes called 911, and Todd Niebert was dispatched by highway patrol. The trooper pulled up next to the Prius and used his loudspeaker to tell Sikes to use both the regular and emergency brakes, as well as turn off the engine. When the car finally slowed to about 50mph, he turned off the engine and rolled to a stop with Niebert’s car in front of him, but the car’s didn’t touch, according to police.
In a statement, Toyota said that they dispatched a technical specialist to investigate the incident and offer assistance. The company has recalled over 8 million vehicles across the world for mechanical problems that can cause unintended acceleration. There have been at least 5 US crash deaths since 2007 that have been linked with the issue, while another 47 over the last 10 years are being investigated.