Video: In-depth look at Toyota's sticky accelerator

[NewsFeeder]

Filed under: Recalls, Safety, Toyota

Click above to view the video after the jump

We're all gearheads here at Autoblog, with varying degrees of mechanical competence. But when the time comes to get technical - really technical - we inevitably hit up our own Sam Abuelsamid to get into the nitty gritty of modern automobiles.

Sam spent the better part of two decades working on anti-lock brake, traction and stability control systems, which means he brings a particularly keen insight to the recent Toyota recall. So Mr. A sat down with AOL Autos' Reilly Brennan and the accelerator pedal from a 2009 Toyota Camry for an impromptu deep-dive into what's causing the unintended acceleration issue and what owners of the affected models can do if their throttle pedal is pinned to the floor. Check it out after the jump and be sure to share it with anyone you know who's manning one of the eight recalled vehicles.

Continue reading Video: In-depth look at Toyota's sticky accelerator

Video: In-depth look at Toyota's sticky accelerator originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 29 Jan 2010 20:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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[Intrepidation]

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[Blake Noble]

Al Borland just explained why Toyota sucks. Cool.

[Croc]

Except he's wrong. If the brakes can overpower the throttle, then why did the CHP officer, who WAS STANDING ON THE BRAKES crash and die? Eyewitnesses reported seeing flames shooting out of the wheel wells.

[pow]

Except he's wrong. If the brakes can overpower the throttle, then why did the CHP officer, who WAS STANDING ON THE BRAKES crash and die? Eyewitnesses reported seeing flames shooting out of the wheel wells.

They can overpower the throttle from a stop (brake torquing), but maybe not at speed, and certainly not repeatedly.

[Croc]

They can overpower the throttle from a stop (brake torquing), but maybe not at speed, and certainly not repeatedly.

Exactly, but autoblog gave them a pass on this. I mean, this is only the highest-profile incident of this problem, right?

[PurdueGuy]

I don't understand how that explanation of the problem jives with the potential that the pedal would possible drop to the floor suddenly... wouldn't the pedal dropping mean a broken spring? I'm not buying this crap at all, but even their explanation doesn't make sense in itself.

[Intrepidation]

I agree, that's a mighty strong spring, I really don't see how a little foreign material would prevent it from returned, at best it might return more slowly (as CTS states would be the case), not drop the to floor and get stuck.