NHTSA Buys "Possessed" Lexus; Will Test

The Lexus ES350 described in Congressional testimony on Tuesday as "possessed" is off the streets, four years after the incident.

One day after disclosing that Rhonda Smith sold the car (today's clarification from NHTSA: traded it to a Toyota dealer) after what she called a "near-death" experience and that a family has put 27,000 trouble-free miles on the vehicle since then (something that no one mentioned during Tuesday's hearing), the NHTSA has written that family a check and taken possession (pardon the pun) of the vehicle. They plan to test it.

Full details from the Detroit News.

Read more »

Lentz to Congress: Recall May "Not Totally" Solve Problem

Testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Committee Tuesday, Toyota Motor Sales USA president Jim Lentz told lawmakers the gas pedal recall affecting millions of the company's vehicles may not solve the problem.

Lentz said the company is still investigating the problem, including the possibility that the electronics system may be at fault.

Also testifying today, United States Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who told the committee the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has found no evidence of electronics issues and believes floor mats and sticky pedals pose the greatest threat.

And the committee heard the testimony of Rhonda Smith, who says her Lexus sedan sped out of control for six minutes, reaching 100 miles an hour in 2006.  Mrs. Smith called Toyota's response to her complaint "a farce."

There was an emotional moment as Lentz mentioned that he had lost his brother in an automobile accident 26 years ago. His voice breaking, he told lawmakers "There's not a day that goes by that I don't think of what these families go through."

Read more »