Prius Owners Wonder: Does Pride Go Before A Fall?

By Nancy K. Crevier

As my friends and family — and most likely anyone who is a regular Newtown Bee reader — knows, I love my Prius. I have owned it for three and a half years, and have reveled in its economical, comfortable ride. On the highway, on the surface roads, and even over deeply rutted country lanes, I have never wavered in my total adoration. But now, a dark shadow has overshadowed my smug little world of Prius ownership.

Since last fall, Prius owners have been baffled by vague notifications and more recently, by an out-and-out pending recall regarding floor mats and unexpected acceleration issues, as well as braking issues.

The two recalls, scheduled on a rolling recall notification, are the Sticking Pedal Accelerator Recall, “in which in rare instances, over time, and under certain environmental conditions, there is the possibility that certain accelerator pedal mechanisms may mechanically stick in a partially depressed position or return slowly to idle position”; and the Potential Floor Mat Interference with Accelerator Pedal recall, in which “this condition is the potential for an unsecured or incompatible driver’s floor mat to interfere with or entrap the accelerator pedal and cause it to get stuck in the wide open position. Toyota has determined that this condition can occur in vehicles in which the driver’s floor mat is not compatible with the floor mat and/or is not properly secured.”

Other Toyota vehicles are affected by the Sticking Pedal Accelerator Recall and/or the Floor Mat Interference Recall, but the earlier model Priuses are affected, at this time, only by the Potential Floor Mat Interference with Accelerator Pedal recall.

The latest information posted at Toyota.com strongly advises that owners of Prius model years 2004 to 2009 should take out any removable floor mats, and after receiving notification, should take the car to the dealer. The dealer personnel have been trained to implement the following fix: “The shape of the accelerator pedal will be reconfigured to address the risk of floor mat entrapment,” says the statement posted February 4.

On February 8, Toyota did post a recall on approximately 133,000 2010 Model Year Prius vehicles to update software in the vehicle’s antilock brake system (ABS) to address the ABS’s response time, as well as the system’s overall sensitivity to tire slippage. Prius vehicles produced since May 2009 are subject to this particular recall. First and second generation Priuses use a different ABS and are not affected by this recall, said Toyota.

I did receive a letter of notification last September regarding potential problems with floor mats sticking beneath the gas pedal. I had never noticed any movement, but I checked my mat, felt it was securely in position, and pretty much forgot about the letter from Toyota. As recently as January, I asked my service person about that letter, having never received a follow-up recall letter. He suggested that if it wasn’t broke, don’t fix it — pretty much the stance I had taken.

He hinted that the mechanics even then were undergoing training to reshape the gas pedal. It seemed like a drastic measure to address a floor mat issue, and frankly, I decided that I might let these newly trained mechanics practice on a few thousand other vehicles before I ever let them touch mine.

According to its website, Toyota is currently “in the process of confirming” reports that “some customers have experienced inconsistent brake feel when the vehicle is driven over potholes, bumps, or slippery road surfaces.” I have never encountered loss of braking power going over ruts or slippery surfaces, even though my road in winter is often a slick hill of packed snow and ice. I have never questioned my Prius’s braking power, nor for one moment wondered if it was accelerating beyond what I asked of it or when I did not ask it to accelerate.

Even so, the allegations that the Toyota Prius may have production problems affecting two crucial pieces of driving safety has planted a seed of doubt in my mind. I listen to the engine (when I can hear it running, that is) for any unusual sounds of revving; I hold my breath for just a nanosecond every time I depress the brakes. More than making me feel concerned, though, the whole thing just makes me feel sad. It is as though I had caught my Prius cheating with a less reliable vehicle. And even though she has promised that nothing happened, I wonder…

But like any devoted lover, I continue to stand by my Prius and her maker.

While I am not the only Prius driver in a quandary, others are more stalwart in the face of adversary.

Keeping The Faith

Ellen Parrella has owned her bright red 2007 Prius since August of that year. It was the second Toyota product that she and her late husband, Fred, had owned. The first, a 1995 Camry, never gave them trouble for any of the 130,000 miles that they drove it. Ms Parrella said that she did not receive a notice in the fall of 2009 concerning the floor mats in her Prius, but is unconcerned. “My floor mat has these little hooks on it that hold it down and it doesn’t budge,” she declared. “I have had no problems with my Prius, none whatsoever. I feel sorry for people who are having troubles, but I’ve never experienced any problems,” she said.

She bought her Prius because “people were raving about it,” and her previous experience owning a Toyota had been “fabulous. My confidence in Toyota remains extremely high. It hasn’t changed at all,” said Ms Parrella. “I absolutely love my Prius.”

Dan Coffman, the choir director at Newtown Congregational Church, and his wife, Maureen Kelly, have driven a Prius since 2002, and Ms Kelly is currently the main driver of the 2007 model they now own. “I have had absolutely no trouble with either and they really do get the gas mileage they are supposed to,” said Ms Kelly.

They bought their most recent Prius used, said Ms Kelly, and her son did notice a problem with the floor mat. “It doesn’t worry me since I’m aware of the problem, and I can certainly remove a floor mat by myself,” she said. Right now, she is more concerned that the horn in the car does not work and sees that as a pressing safety issue that she will address. “[My Prius] has not been recalled and I am sorry that Toyota is having this problem, and hope they recover and can move forward. If it’s recalled, I might think it’s a good idea to take it in, but whether it gets done is another question. It depends on the level of safety concern, I guess,” she commented.

Sue and Gerard Campbell have owned their Prius since 2005, and also own a 1999 Camry. “We have had no issues at all driving it,” said Ms Campbell, adding that every driver in the family has been behind the wheel of the Prius, and that it has become primarily the car of her daughter, Lilly, a senior at Villanova University.

When they received the letter indicating a floor mat problem last fall, Mr Campbell inspected it. “It looked fine, so we didn’t do anything,” Ms Campbell said, and added that even if Toyota sent out a recall letter, they would probably “wait and see” rather than fix a problem that they do not think exists.

A Car With Personality

“[The recall] is certainly disconcerting,” said Lilly in response to an email from The Bee, “but we’ve had our car for a long time and I think that that gives me a level of confidence in its machinery. Even though I have a 2005 model, the recall doesn’t apply to my version, so my biggest concern right now is just making it through a very snowy winter — maneuvering in the snow is always a challenge.”

She is in step with her parents in the level of confidence in Toyota that she retains at this point. “Driving a Prius is a funny thing, because it really is a car with its own personality. For a while, it was a novelty and people would approach me in parking lots to ask how I felt about it. Even now, I still get surprised looks from my friends when I touch a button to turn on the car. Overall, I enjoy driving the Prius and the message it sends about conservation is something I am happy to align myself with. I just really hope these recalls don’t make the public wary about buying environmentally friendly cars because that would be a shame,” said Lilly.

Ms Campbell’s brother, envious of her Prius, has recently purchases a newer model Prius, she said, “So I guess he will have to deal with that. Our confidence in the product, having owned the Camry, was never shaken. I definitely still feel confident in our Prius and having Lilly driving it,” said Ms Campbell. “I’m sad, because I felt that the Prius was making an impact on environmental awareness, and now I think people may hesitate to buy one,” she said, “but I think Toyota is a strong company and will come out of this.”

Drs Diane and Robert Wenick have owned a Prius, one of several Toyotas they have purchased over the years, since 2009. The lack of urgency in the letter they received last fall concerning the floor mat, as well as the lack of a problem with it, led them to do nothing about it.

“I do notice that when the antilock brakes kick in there is an unusual hesitation to the car. The antilock brakes also kick in at times when one would think they should not — i.e., over bumps in the road,” said Dr Diane Wenick, who is the driver behind the wheel of the Prius for the most part. Again, it did not seem an issue worth addressing, and she never felt there was a problem related to acceleration.

Sagging Confidence

The recalls and investigation have shaken her faith in the Toyota products, however. “I had a great deal of confidence in Toyota prior to the recall,” said Dr Wenick, “and my confidence level has dropped a bit.”

“Interestingly,” she added, “I have coworker who bought an American van years ago. Within the first year of ownership he said there were at least four to five recalls. Its odd but you rarely heard about them. Now that this happened to Toyota, just as the American companies are trying to get back on their feet, it’s all we seem to hear about…”

Toyota truly is not alone. From Cadillacs to BMWs, from Mini Coopers to school buses, from motor homes to motorcycles, millions of vehicles are recalled for safety issues by leading manufacturers each year. According to a posting at FordFusionForum.com, in early February Ford announced a “customer satisfaction program” to update the software of the regenerative brake system of some 2010 model Ford Fusion Hybrids and Mercury Milan Hybrids, in response to customer complaints of “a different brake feel” that could be perceived as loss of brakes.

Kim and Jack Weber feel less confidence in their Prius, and are confused by the mixed reports that have surfaced in recent days. “Now they’re saying the braking problems as well as the acceleration issue may involve cars back to 2005,” said Ms Weber. “What to do?”

The acceleration issue to which she referred involves the 2010 model Prius.

The Webers bought their Prius in May 2009. It was the third Toyota in their current car stable. “We have owned six in total, four Corollas, one Sienna, and the Prius,” she said. “We buy Toyotas because they are reliable, have minimal maintenance issues, and last forever.”

She was also told at a scheduled maintenance appointment that while she might want to remove the floor mat, if she had not experienced any problem, she was fine. “They did not seem overly concerned,” said Ms Weber, and none of the family drivers have ever experienced unusual braking or acceleration problems.

Nonetheless, the recent allegations have shaken her confidence to the point that she drives the Prius less frequently, will not take it on out of town trips, and no longer allows her daughters to borrow it. She feels confused by the mixed messages sent out by Toyota, and said, “I don’t want mechanics messing [shaving a pedal] with a car that is not broken, and yet I want to be a responsible driver. If ‘down the road’ I caused an accident because of something I failed to fix, I’d feel worse than terrible,” she said.

And yet she added, “I still love my Prius.”

(For complete information on all Toyota recalls, visit Toyota.com.)