911 Call Reveals Prius Driver's Terror

(CBS/AP)  "A Prius? And what's going on? Is your accelerator stuck?"

That was the response from a Southern California 911 dispatcher after an apparently terrified man on a San Diego highway called for help from his out-of-control car.

"I tried to pull it back - it won't pull back," driver James Sikes says, his voice quivering in released audio of the call. "I tried to push on the brakes."

Listen to an Excerpt from the Driver's 911 Call

Sikes tells the dispatcher that he is going "eighty-something."

With the help of a California Highway Patrolman, Sikes was able to come safely to a stop, but the incident is more tarnish on Toyota's rapidly deteriorating reputation.

Sikes said that the incident Monday occurred just two weeks after he had taken the vehicle in to an El Cajon dealership for repairs after receiving a recall notice, but he was turned away.

"I gave them my recall notice and they handed it back and said I'm not on the recall list," Sikes said.

In fact, Toyota issued a recall for its Prius hybrid - the same model involved in Monday's incident in November but has yet to send official notices to all vehicle owners.

Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons told CBS Radio News that the automaker would notify owners of the recall "soon," but a Wall Street Journal report ($) quotes Lyons as saying Toyota "hasn't developed the remedy yet."

The recall, which covers 2004 to 2009 models, was issued Nov. 25 to ensure that faulty floor mats don't lock the cars' gas pedals in an open position.

In the interim, owners were advised to remove the floor mats from the driver side of their cars.

This latest incident comes as Toyota fired back at critics after weeks of apologies. The company is now using its own scientists to demonstrate that electronics are not the source of unintended acceleration, CBS News correspondent Ben Tracy reports.

Toyota has dispatched a field technical specialist to investigate the latest incident, according to a statement, Tracy reports.

Federal officials are sending two investigators to California to determine what caused Sikes' Prius to race out of control.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Transportation said Tuesday that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will try to determine what caused the incident.

Sikes sped along Interstate 8 for 20 minutes Monday before a Highway Patrol officer helped slow down the car.

CHP Officer Brian Pennings says the 2008 Prius was towed to a Toyota dealership in El Cajon - presumably for inspection.

Toyota has recalled some 8.5 million vehicles worldwide - more than 6 million in the United States - since last fall because of acceleration problems in multiple models and braking issues in the Prius.

On Monday, Sikes called 911 about 1:30 p.m. after accelerating to pass another vehicle on Interstate 8 near La Posta and finding that he could not control his car, the California Highway Patrol said.

"I pushed the gas pedal to pass a car and it did something kind of funny ... it jumped and it just stuck there," the 61-year-old driver said at a news conference.

"As it was going, I was trying the brakes ... it wasn't stopping, it wasn't doing anything and it just kept speeding up," Sikes said, adding he could smell the brakes burning he was pressing the pedal so hard.

A patrol car pulled alongside the Prius and officers told Sikes over a loudspeaker to push the brake pedal to the floor and apply the emergency brake.

"They also got it going on a steep upgrade," said Officer Jesse Udovich. "Between those three things, they got it to slow down."

After the car decelerated to about 50 mph, Sikes turned off the engine and coasted to a halt.

The officer then maneuvered his car in front of the Prius as a precautionary block, Udovich said.

Toyota owners have complained of their vehicles speeding out of control despite efforts to slow down, sometimes resulting in deadly crashes. The government has received complaints of 34 deaths linked to sudden acceleration of Toyota vehicles since 2000.

One of the crashes claimed the life of a CHP officer in August.

Off-duty CHP Officer Mark Saylor was killed along with his wife, her brother and the couple's daughter after their Lexus' accelerator got stuck in La Mesa.

The Toyota-manufactured loaner vehicle slammed into a sport utility vehicle at about 100 mph, careened off the freeway, hit an embankment, overturned and burst into flames.

More on Toyota's Troubles:

Toyota Fires Away at Acceleration Theory
House Panel Seeks Details on Toyota Recall
New Reports of Post-Recall Toyota Troubles
No Fix? Trouble with Some Repaired Toyotas
Senate Committee Members' Toyota Links
NYT: Troubles Predate Recalled Toyotas
Poll: 49% Say Toyota Hiding Something

[andyk1969]

The Lexus crash was real and caused by improper floor mats double stacked and jamming the accelerator. Toyota has admitted that they engineered proper clearance for one properly installed mat but failed to engineer for the possible misuse of muliple stacked or improper mats. That is the nature of the floor mat recall.

The Prius story stinks:

1) We are to believe that the Prius accelerated on in its own and the pedal stuck forward and wouldn't return even pulling on it with all his strength. Hmm.. The Prius pedal has no mechanical device to move it forward on its own. (not cable linked to anything and even cruise doesn't physically move the pedal) Even if the computer had an amazing glitch, it can't and doesn't physically move the pedal.
2) On a Prius even if you intentionally floor the gas with one foot, all Toyota Hybrids (including this 08) are already equipped with the much discussed brake override that would kill the accelerator immediately. Anyone with a Prius can safely try this.
3) Even if we were to assume that an electronic gremlin accelerated the car and disconnected the brake override, the standard brakes would overpower the engine without contest.
4) On an 08 Prius neutral is engaged by a single flick of the clearly marked shift lever to the left . It is not anywhere close to engaging reverse (which would not engage anyway). Anyone who has ever used an automatic carwash in a Prius knows how easy it is to engage neutral. The only legitimate reason for not engaging neutral in a 30 minute wild ride is because you don't want to engage neutral.... The shift lever on Prius is inches from the steering wheel and easy to reach.

[crj1036]

Ok, for all you car and driver geeks out there ... why are some of us stupid for not knowing how to stop a run away car? Do you understand how to work a particle accelerator? Or create a vaccine? Same difference. And I'm glad you're all assuming that everything always works out as planned.

As for this case .. I'm quite skeptical of this guy. The things he said he did - reaching down to the accelerator - I couldn't even do that at 20 mph without jerking the wheel. I'd love to know how he did it at 80. The 911 call isn't even that convincing. If he is found to be lying he should be prosecuted - as should anyone who is found to be lying.

Back to shifting to neutral, if 911 is telling you to do it, it makes no sense to ignore them - unless you're hoping to get more attention.

[rzezz]

I'm a little confused by your first paragraph. Are you trying to equate operating a car, for which all licensed drivers have been "trained"(arguable) to do, to operating a particle accelerator, for which very few people have been trained? If so, this is flawed logic. If you don't know how to stop your car if the throttle gets stuck, you shouldn't be driving. Best to move to a big city with public transportation.

[indy_jh3760]

This guy is LYING!!!
1) A Prius would slow down completely if you stepped on the brake -- even at full throttle! (The motor is very small, folks!)
2) How did he make a 911 call AND reach down and try to pull the accelerator up YET could not manage to take the car out of gear?
3) Notice how he is talking on the call -- not real. He's fake.

If I were a Toyota exec, I'd hire an attorney and go after this dude.

[rzezz]

Watch this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=II_03lbr-Jw

[rzezz]

Sorry the link didn't work in my first post. Read the 3rd post here...

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-technical-discussion/77484-does-prius-refuse-go-into-n-above-42-mph.html

[rzezz]

This has scam written all over it. Listen to the 911 tape. They repeatedly tell the guy to put it in neutral, and he simply refuse to listen.

Also, check out Car and Driver's test they did on with a 267 HP Camry, an Audi, and a 500+ horsepower supercharged Mustang. They took all 3 cars up to 70 mph, pushed both pedals to the floor, and guess what? They ALL stopped. In fact, with the gas pedal to the floor, the Toyota Camry's stopping distance only increased by 9 feet. NINE FEET!! This guy is a complete joke, or the most incompetent driver I've ever seen.

Some Prius drivers have tried to putting the car in neutral under several scenarios, and every time, it goes into neutral. Here's an owner's first hand results from his experiment. (post #3)

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-p...ve-42-mph.html

"I had never heard that putting the Prius in neutral above 42 mph could harm the electric motor. So, on the way home this evening I put the car in neutral under various situations, all at highway speeds (65+ mph). I engaged cruise control and put the car in neutral. I accelerated using the cruise control and put the car in neutral. I accelerated manually with the pedal and put the car in neutral. I accelerated using both the cruise control and the pedal and put the car in neutral. No matter what I did, the car simply went into neutral. I would also like to know if the driver in San Diego attempted to put his car in neutral."

[chrisx1]

Even if the gas pedal really stuck, the guy is a moron for letting it go on for 30 miles! He wouldn't turn it off or try neutral when the 911 operator told him to because he says he was scared the car would flip. He's clearly lying.
Richard Heene was more believable.

[run2jazz2]

I am not going to doubt this guy's story, but why was he not able to shut the car off when he saw the car was accelerating to speeds he could not control? I would hate to think that this is just some way to get "15 minutes" of fame?

I bet this guy has gotten more lawyers calling him regarding a lawsuit against Toyota than Sarah Palin got ink spots on her hands? hahahaha!

[A_Moderate]

Wow this guy is getting more press than anything I have ever seen (3rd Day). Any bets we will see his face tomorrow on the news AGAIN? I have never bought his story! It's fishy and full of holes. It has been shown (even videos on the web) he could have put his car in Neutral at anytime. Did he try pulling out the dongle (key)? Yes his power steering might have gone out but that is okay at these speed and no tight turns. The point is he tried none of these and yet had time to call 911 for a photo shoot. Could something be wrong with his car? YES - but it need to be investigated and not taken at fact (as the news is reporting) that the car was not a fault. Remember balloon boy and the Jack-In-The-Box meat scare - all media manipulated. To prove my point my question is: has anyone officially investigated this independent of Toyota, the Driver, and the CHP???

[ajvw]

"911 Call Reveals Prius Driver's Terror"

took a prius on a test drive. only went around the block and was terrified all the way. darn thing is so small it's like riding in a coffin. i'll keep my bmw