Fuelcards.co.uk motoring news: Toyota denies runaway claims

Toyota has cast doubt on a widely-reported story that a Toyota Prius driver lost control of his vehicle on Californian freeway last week, the BBC reports.

James Sikes, 61, claimed that his vehicle suddenly accelerated while on a San Diego freeway and that he was unable to brake for 20 minutes until a highway patrol officer helped him to slow down.

However, at a news conference earlier this week, Toyota said an examination of the Prius did not support Mr Sikes’ claims. Its findings suggested that he had repeatedly applied the brakes around 250 times, but only lightly, instead of decisively slamming on them.

Toyota spokesman Mike Michels said: “While our analysis is not finalized, Toyota believes there are significant inconsistencies between the account of the event of 8 March and the findings of this investigation."

Federal safety investigators said the incident remained unexplained.

Earlier this month, Toyota also denied claims that faulty electronics were responsible for the recall of 8.5 million vehicles.

David Gilbert, an engineer at Southern Illinois University, claimed to have rewired the electronic accelerator system on a Toyota Avalon and caused ‘runaway’ acceleration.

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