Floor Mat Safety Issue
09-15-09, 01:31 PM
#1
Pole Position
Thread Starter
Floor Mat Safety Issue
I saw the following in the news today and wanted to share my own experience:
TORRANCE, Calif. (AP) -- Toyota has ordered dealers to inspect their cars after a floor mat was suspected of snaring the accelerator pedal of a Lexus that crashed in San Diego County and killed four.
Torrance-based Toyota Motor Sales USA announced Monday that dealers must make sure all Lexus and Toyota vehicles have the proper mats.
California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor, his wife, 13-year-old daughter and an in-law died Aug. 28 when a Lexus ES 350 loaned by a local dealer crashed.
Witnesses say the car was doing more than 120 mph when it went off an embankment. The family's screams were heard in a 911 call.
A preliminary investigation found that their loaner car had a mat from another Lexus model that may have caused the accelerator to get stuck.
My experience:
I have an IS350 and leave the winter mats (the factory ones for the car) in the car.
The car wash folks (not a dealer) do not routinely re-anchor the mats after vacuuming the carpets.
Last week I was heading onto the highway and floored the accelerator.
I noticed that the car kept pulling after I let off the accelerator.
I used the brake pedal to slow down the car, put it into neutral and pulled into the break down lane.
I tried using the start/stop button but the engine did not shut off.
I was able to reach down and pull the mat toward the rear and the engine returned to idle (from the red zone).
The car was fine after that and I re-anchored the mats as soon as I got home.
So the message here is, keep those mats anchored.
TORRANCE, Calif. (AP) -- Toyota has ordered dealers to inspect their cars after a floor mat was suspected of snaring the accelerator pedal of a Lexus that crashed in San Diego County and killed four.
Torrance-based Toyota Motor Sales USA announced Monday that dealers must make sure all Lexus and Toyota vehicles have the proper mats.
California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor, his wife, 13-year-old daughter and an in-law died Aug. 28 when a Lexus ES 350 loaned by a local dealer crashed.
Witnesses say the car was doing more than 120 mph when it went off an embankment. The family's screams were heard in a 911 call.
A preliminary investigation found that their loaner car had a mat from another Lexus model that may have caused the accelerator to get stuck.
My experience:
I have an IS350 and leave the winter mats (the factory ones for the car) in the car.
The car wash folks (not a dealer) do not routinely re-anchor the mats after vacuuming the carpets.
Last week I was heading onto the highway and floored the accelerator.
I noticed that the car kept pulling after I let off the accelerator.
I used the brake pedal to slow down the car, put it into neutral and pulled into the break down lane.
I tried using the start/stop button but the engine did not shut off.
I was able to reach down and pull the mat toward the rear and the engine returned to idle (from the red zone).
The car was fine after that and I re-anchored the mats as soon as I got home.
So the message here is, keep those mats anchored.
09-15-09, 02:04 PM
#4
Guest
Posts: n/a
I don't think I'm Einstein as I've driven Lexus for what 14 years, driven them all, owned a few and I do recall maybe once the mat slipped once or twice b/c I didn't secure it. I didn't panic, I simply let off the gas, reached with my hand and brought it up.
I even recall dropping a phone a couple times and it slipped right under the accelerator and again, didn't panic, glanced up, let off the gas, quickly felt and grabbed the phone, end of problem.
Seems to me again, driving tests should be harder......
The other issue is mats get worn and I've noticed the "******" under the mats break and they "slide" a lot easier than when new.
I even recall dropping a phone a couple times and it slipped right under the accelerator and again, didn't panic, glanced up, let off the gas, quickly felt and grabbed the phone, end of problem.
Seems to me again, driving tests should be harder......
The other issue is mats get worn and I've noticed the "******" under the mats break and they "slide" a lot easier than when new.
09-15-09, 02:11 PM
#5
I don't think I'm Einstein as I've driven Lexus for what 14 years, driven them all, owned a few and I do recall maybe once the mat slipped once or twice b/c I didn't secure it. I didn't panic, I simply let off the gas, reached with my hand and brought it up.
I even recall dropping a phone a couple times and it slipped right under the accelerator and again, didn't panic, glanced up, let off the gas, quickly felt and grabbed the phone, end of problem.
Seems to me again, driving tests should be harder......
The other issue is mats get worn and I've noticed the "******" under the mats break and they "slide" a lot easier than when new.
I even recall dropping a phone a couple times and it slipped right under the accelerator and again, didn't panic, glanced up, let off the gas, quickly felt and grabbed the phone, end of problem.
Seems to me again, driving tests should be harder......
The other issue is mats get worn and I've noticed the "******" under the mats break and they "slide" a lot easier than when new.
09-15-09, 02:46 PM
#6
executive matchup
what i can't understand is the driver can't brake? 
assuming the mats tangled up with the accelerator, you can still brake (just stomp on the brake pedal). and there is also the foot brake or hand brake that can be used too. inexperienced drivers and panic make for one bad situation.
but i agree, don't let dealer wash your car (exterior or interior). and i've had zero occurances of my mats slipping off (and that's with rubber mats on top of my carpet mats).
assuming the mats tangled up with the accelerator, you can still brake (just stomp on the brake pedal). and there is also the foot brake or hand brake that can be used too. inexperienced drivers and panic make for one bad situation.but i agree, don't let dealer wash your car (exterior or interior). and i've had zero occurances of my mats slipping off (and that's with rubber mats on top of my carpet mats).
09-15-09, 03:28 PM
#7
what i can't understand is the driver can't brake? assuming the mats tangled up with the accelerator, you can still brake (just stomp on the brake pedal). and there is also the foot brake or hand brake that can be used too. inexperienced drivers and panic make for one bad situation.
but i agree, don't let dealer wash your car (exterior or interior). and i've had zero occurances of my mats slipping off (and that's with rubber mats on top of my carpet mats).
assuming the mats tangled up with the accelerator, you can still brake (just stomp on the brake pedal). and there is also the foot brake or hand brake that can be used too. inexperienced drivers and panic make for one bad situation.but i agree, don't let dealer wash your car (exterior or interior). and i've had zero occurances of my mats slipping off (and that's with rubber mats on top of my carpet mats).
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09-15-09, 03:58 PM
#8
Lexus Champion
I know on Hondas without standard floor mats like the Fit and Insight, the dealer/installer MUST install the plastic retaining clips provided carefully in the factory-scored areas, but the clips only grab on the carpet, not on anything solid.
Even more worse than Honda's setup is what BMW, Mercedes, VW and Audi uses which is like one big jean fly snap. The plastic snaps on those have a tendency to fall apart. Some models use Velcro on steroids which doesn't work too good.
On my 1LS, I have WeatherTech mats in it but no way to anchor them down. I just cut a slit into them but it still slides somewhat. However, the throttle pedal is a floor-pivot type.
Even more worse than Honda's setup is what BMW, Mercedes, VW and Audi uses which is like one big jean fly snap. The plastic snaps on those have a tendency to fall apart. Some models use Velcro on steroids which doesn't work too good.
On my 1LS, I have WeatherTech mats in it but no way to anchor them down. I just cut a slit into them but it still slides somewhat. However, the throttle pedal is a floor-pivot type.
09-15-09, 04:09 PM
#9
My experience:
I have an IS350 and leave the winter mats (the factory ones for the car) in the car.
The car wash folks (not a dealer) do not routinely re-anchor the mats after vacuuming the carpets.
Last week I was heading onto the highway and floored the accelerator.
I noticed that the car kept pulling after I let off the accelerator.
I used the brake pedal to slow down the car, put it into neutral and pulled into the break down lane.
I tried using the start/stop button but the engine did not shut off.
I was able to reach down and pull the mat toward the rear and the engine returned to idle (from the red zone).
The car was fine after that and I re-anchored the mats as soon as I got home.
So the message here is, keep those mats anchored.
I have an IS350 and leave the winter mats (the factory ones for the car) in the car.
The car wash folks (not a dealer) do not routinely re-anchor the mats after vacuuming the carpets.
Last week I was heading onto the highway and floored the accelerator.
I noticed that the car kept pulling after I let off the accelerator.
I used the brake pedal to slow down the car, put it into neutral and pulled into the break down lane.
I tried using the start/stop button but the engine did not shut off.
I was able to reach down and pull the mat toward the rear and the engine returned to idle (from the red zone).
The car was fine after that and I re-anchored the mats as soon as I got home.
So the message here is, keep those mats anchored.
09-15-09, 07:00 PM
#10
Driver
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Florida
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Braking made the vehicle go faster! What happens is that the floor mat curls up under the brake pedal and on top of the accelerator pedal. When the driver applies the brake he depresses the accelerator at the same time. Even if he uses both feet on the brake pedal, the accelerator will over ride the effects of the brake. That was the issue that mandated anchors in the floor mats originally.
09-15-09, 07:12 PM
#11
09-15-09, 07:29 PM
#12
Pole Position
Thread Starter
92 SC400 The summer mats are not in the car. The winter mats just moved forward from normal driving activities.
encore888 Thanks for mentioning the 3 second point. After I made this post I looked in the ES area and learned this earlier today. I took delivery using flatbed shipment and did not have a full orientation at my dealership when I bought the car.
encore888 Thanks for mentioning the 3 second point. After I made this post I looked in the ES area and learned this earlier today. I took delivery using flatbed shipment and did not have a full orientation at my dealership when I bought the car.
09-15-09, 07:58 PM
#13
No problem, glad to provide the info, it's clear many (and probably most) new Lexus owners aren't aware of the 3-second feature.
Good thing you were able to resolve the situation.
And yes we should all check to see our floor mats are installed correctly.
Good thing you were able to resolve the situation.
And yes we should all check to see our floor mats are installed correctly.
