Dangerous Toyota and Lexus Floor Mats Cause Massive Recall

There are many things that we as drivers take for granted when we are driving a car.  If you stop and think about just how many technologies you have in your car it is amazing just how many simple things your car does that you may take for granted and never even think about.  One of the major things that many people never give a second though to about their vehicle is their brakes.  Sure you have them checked to make sure they are working properly and you have new brake pads installed from time to time but what if your brakes are fine and you are under the impression that when you apply pressure to those brakes your car will stop but it doesn't!  This is a topic that many Lexus and Toyota owners are being warned about by Toyota and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

On Tuesday Toyota announced the recall of 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles because of potentially dangerous floor mats.  Earlier this month Toyota made a safety announcement warning Toyota and Lexus owners to make sure their floor mats were properly installed.  The announcement was made shortly after a fatal accident occurred which caused the death of a man and his family which was possibly linked to a Lexus floor mat.  

The potentially dangerous floor mats risk the accelerator pedal getting stuck in an engaged position.  If the gas pedal is being pushed down because the floor mat is holding it there it makes it hard, if not impossible, to stop the vehicle which can potentially result in an accident causing serious injury or death.

According the the CPSC, Toyota has not yet released the exact car models that were affected by this recall as of yet because they are still investigating.  Instead they have asked that for now, until they figure out what models need to be recalled, vehicle owners of the following vehicles remove the floor mats from their car until further notice:

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

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that so far they have received 102 reports of Toyota and Lexus' potentially being linked to the unsafe floor mats.  Some of the reports they received also included 911 calls of passengers in vehicles calling and saying they could not stop their car from accelerating and that their vehicle was going over 120 mph. 

Toyota warns owners of the Toyota and Lexus car models listed above to follow these steps in case they believe their floor mat is causing their acceleration pedal to be pushed down while they are driving:

1. Check to see if you can remove the floor mat from the gas pedal safely while you are driving.  If you can not remove it safely move onto Step 2.
2. Push down on the brake with both feet until the vehicle slows down
3. Put the car in neutral if possible
4. Switch the ignition switch to accessory power

Being involved in a situation where your brakes fail to work or where your car is accelerating uncontrollably is a scary situation.  If your vehicle is listed above as a vehicle that potentially has the problem of causing the gas pedal to accelerate uncontrollably remove the floor mat from your vehicle immediately.  In the even you are in the situation where your car is accelerating out of your control follow the check list above and if necessary call 911 for further assistance.  If you were already involved in a matter such your acceleration pedal being stuck in an engaged mode and you were injured you may consider contacting an injury lawyer regarding the accident.