Toyota recall, largest in company's history

Toyota Motor Corp. will be recalling 3.8 million vehicles in the U.S., the company's largest recall in U.S. According to Toyota.com's news room, "Recent events have prompted Toyota to take a closer look at the potential for an accelerator pedal to get stuck in the full open aunch a safety campaign on specific Toyota and Lexus vehicles. Throughout the process of developing the details of the action plan, it will advise the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). 

Until Toyota develops a remedy, it is asking owners of specific Toyota and Lexus models to take out any removable driver’s floor mat and NOT replace it with any other floor mat. The following models are affected:

• 2007 – 2010 Camry
• 2005 – 2010 Avalon
• 2004 – 2009 Prius
• 2005 – 2010 Tacoma
• 2007 – 2010 Tundra
• 2007 – 2010 ES350
• 2006 – 2010 IS250 and IS350

Should the vehicle continue to accelerate rapidly after releasing the accelerator pedal, this could be an indication of floor mat interference. If this occurs, Toyota recommends the driver take the following actions:

First, if it is possible and safe to do so, pull back the floor mat and dislodge it from the accelerator pedal; then pull over and stop the vehicle.

If the floor mat cannot be dislodged, then firmly and steadily step on the brake pedal with both feet. Do NOT pump the brake pedal repeatedly as this will increase the effort required to slow the vehicle.

Shift the transmission gear selector to the Neutral (N) position and use the brakes to make a controlled stop at the side of the road and turn off the engine.

If unable to put the vehicle in Neutral, turn the engine OFF, or to ACC. This will not cause loss of steering or braking control, but the power assist to these systems will be lost.

-If the vehicle is equipped with an Engine Start/Stop button, firmly and steadily push the button for at least three seconds to turn off the engine. Do NOT tap the Engine Start/Stop button.

-If the vehicle is equipped with a conventional key-ignition, turn the ignition key to the ACC position to turn off the engine. Do NOT remove the key from the ignition as this will lock the steering wheel.

In the event owners choose not to remove their floor mat, Toyota strongly recommends that they ensure that the correct floor mat is being used, that it is properly installed and secured, that it is not flipped over with bottom-side up, and that one floor mat is not stacked over another. Information on proper floor mat installation can be found on http://www.toyota.com and http://www.lexus.com/.

Owners with questions or concerns, are asked to please contact the Toyota Customer Experience Center (1 800 331-4331) or Lexus Customer Assistance Center (1 800 255¬3987), or consult the information posted at http://www.toyota.com and http://www.lexus.com."

Funny Friday

To follow up with yesterday's post about don't talk on the cell phone while driving.  Here's a funny video of a kid failing a driving test 5 times in a day while on cell phone. Enjoy!

Texting While Driving

According to the Associate Press, the Auto Industry, including automakers like General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp., and others, are supporting bans on texting while driving.  "The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers said Wednesday that using a hand-held device to text or make phone calls while driving represents a saftey risk and it supports the ban."

As of January 1, 2009 the Wireless Communications Device and Wireless Telephone Law went into effect to follow the previous Hands-free law in July 2008.  Not only us it an infraction to talk on a cell phone without a hands-free device, it's also an infraction to "write, send or read text-based communication on an electronic wireless communications device, such as a cell phone, while driving a motor vehicle."

To read more about the laws, visit http://www.dmv.ca.gov/cellularphonelaws/.

New technology promises to make and receive texts while driving possible.  Some car companies, like Ford and Mercedes, include text-to-speech features in newer models.

Tips for better gas mileage

Last week we posted on 2009's top 10 most green vehicles.  That post helps if you're in the market for a vehicle.  But, what if you like your current vehicle or just can't afford a new one?  Here are some tips to make your car or truck more fuel efficient.

According to www.fueleconomy.gov:

1. Drive Sensibly.  Maintaining a steady speed can lower your fuel cost by 33% on the highway.  Rapid acceleration and braking causes you to waste gas.  So keep your road rage to a minimum!  And, to help you in maintaining a steady speed, remember your cruise control.
2. Observe the speed limit.  Gas mileage usually decreases at speeds above 60mph and from 60mph to 75mph, your gas mileage decreases by 25%. 
3. Remove excess weight. Unnecessary items in your car can cost you, especially the larger items.  An extra 100 pounds can cost you 2% on your average miles per gallon.
4. Keep your car properly tuned.  Taking car of your engine can save you up to 4% on gas mileage.  Rule of thumb is around 7,500 miles or 6 months for tune ups.  Most owners manual, especially for newer models, advise you on when to have your car tuned up.
5. Keep your tires properly inflated. Under inflated tires can decrease your gas mileage by 3%.  The proper tire pressure for your vehicle is usually found on a sticker on the driver's side door jam, glove box or in the owner's manual.
6. Use the reccommended grade of motor oil.  Using the reccommended motor oil can save you 1-2%.  Rule of thumb is to change your motor oil every 5,000-7,000 miles for most vehicles. 

More information regarding these tips can be found at the Federal Trade Comission.

Green Cars

The house has approved an expansion to a recently approved bill for goverment-led research in making vehicles more fuel efficient.  The expansion has given this area of research a total of $550 million dollars in annual spending.  

"The bill would authorize $2.9 billion to the Energy Department to boost the research over five years. It would push the government to team up with companies and universities to conduct research on technologies such as batteries for hybrid vehicles, electric cars, hydrogen fuel cells and infrastructure for the electric grid," accoring to an article by the Associate Press.

In the market for a green car NOW?  According to the thedailygreen.com, 2009's top 10 Most Fuel Efficient cars and trucks are:

1. Toyota Prius
2. Honda Civic Hybrid
3. Nissan Altima Hybrid
4. Mercury Mariner Hybrid tied with Ford Escape Hybrid and Mazda Tribute Hybrid
5. Smart Fortwo
6. Toyota Camry Hybrid
7. VW Jetta
8. Toyota Yarius
9. Mini Cooper
10. Honda fit

To all my fellow female drivers - Is this you???

A friend of mine, emailed me this video.  And I thought it was hillarious!  Check it out!  Especially the woman trying to park because I know I've done that a couple times in my life :)

Is your car your closet?

As a working mom, I find myself with a messy car ALL THE TIME! Anytime I try to organize or clean it, it only lasts for a day, if that! I’m not the cleanest or most organized person in the world, but having somewhat of an order to my madness would help in my hectic life.  

I’m a huge pack rat (thanks mom), I think everything is important, therefore I need to keep everything. This includes “important items” I need for my 20-month old, you know just in case the world falls apart and we’re stuck in some remote location. And, to top it off, I have other miscellaneous items that wind up on the floorboard. However, I will say, I am much cleaner and more organized than when I was in high school and college. That’s a different story; my car was practically my closet on wheels. From sports gear to books and school supplies to food and drink containers, anything and everything would be on the floor board and in the trunk. I had a Jetta at the time, and those trunks are huge! I guess the bigger the space, the more opportunity to hold more junk.

 

Researching the Internet and taking best practices from my husband, family members and friends; I’m hoping these suggestions will not only help me, but other pack rats like me.

 

1. Keep your car from clutter. Cup holders, the console, side door panels and floor board wind up becoming cluttered with junk. Here are some other tips I’d like to try… 

• My husband always keeps trash in one location of his car and when he parks somewhere, whether at home, a store or a gas station, he throws it all away.
•  My mom keeps a bag handy (either in the back seat floor board or between the console and the passenger seat) to use as a trash bag and empties it when she gets home.
• On some retailer sites, they have storage bins or trash bins that you can keep behind the passenger seat.

 2. Organize your must-haves for Moms. I’m not talking about the important papers that you need for your car, like the registration, proof of insurance, manual, and tire pressure gauge. That’s what the glove box and/or center console is for, among other little items you want to store. But for me, what about stuff for my 20-month old, like extra diapers, her sippy cup, her pacifiers, snacks, etc? Believe it or not, there are organizers made especially for this! There available at most retail stores and online. You can do an online search for “car organize accessories” and a slew of results come up. Another great reason to shop!

  

3. Organize your must haves for people whose car is their office. Same as above, there are organizers designed especially for those who have their office on wheels. I particularly like how Organize.com has a section especially for travel, called Auto Organizers. Or for those on a really tight budget, try creating a makeshift organizer with extra boxes you have around the house. A friend of mine used a box on her passenger seat as a desk and for her laptop! It’s not very appealing, but it works.

  

4. Make it habit to clean your car frequently. At least once a day or every other day, throw out any unnecessary items that have piled up on your recent trips. However much time you have available, make it a habit to clean your car frequently.

 

These are only a few suggestions I had, let me know what you’ve tried on organizing your car.

Welcome to Auto Expert!

Hi Everyone,

Wahoo!! Auto Expert now has a blog, at http://aeauto.blogspot.com/. We will update this a couple times a week with tips, advice, ideas and anything and everything that has to deal with autos!