Karleen sent a message to Akio Toyoda President and CEO, Toyota Motor Corporation – email address that said:
Dear Sir - My husband and I have been driving Toyotas since 1984 and have never had an issue. However, on Sunday September 4, 20016, as I was driving slowly (approximately 5 mph) across my lawn to deliver bales of shavings to my horse barn, as I stepped on the brake to shift into reverse, I experienced a rapid acceleration episode!! Suddenly I was speeding forward at about 50 mph, completely out of control!! I pressed on the brake pedal as hard as I could and the truck began to shudder. I STOOD on the brake pedal with my right foot on the brake, my left foot braced on the floor and still we continued forward. Just before I crashed through our garden, the truck shuddered to a halt and began idling normally. You can still see where I tore up the lawn when the brakes were fighting with the engine! Our local Toyota dealership (from whence came the truck 9 years ago) towed the truck to their facility yesterday and hooked it up to their diagnostic computer. They also called me and took a lengthy report on the incident. Final verdict? They informed my husband that there is NOTHING wrong with the truck and most likely "the wife" was "confused" and had her foot on the accelerator instead of the brake pedal!! I am 64 years old and have driven many vehicles since I was 16 years old. I clearly know the difference between the accelerator and the brake!!! To be treated as such by Toyota is completely shameful!! This truck has an issue!!! I will not drive it again, nor will I drive another Toyota product! The worst part is that once I trade it in, most likely it will be sold to someone who is unaware of the rapid acceleration; some innocent person who could end up injured or dead! How can Toyota do that? Sell vehicles at the expense of their customer's lives? Shameful! I have taken my story to social media and the support has been over-whelming. It has also engendered reports of similar incidents, with similar results from American Toyota dealers - driver error! Shameful!!!!!! I'm sure you don't care about one little old lady here in America but this "confused" little old lady cares enough about others to share her story in the hopes of sparing others the terrifying experience of rapid acceleration in a Toyota product!!!!
