NHTSA Complaint #10301865 — 2005 AUDI A8

MY 2005 AUDI A8L CONTAINS A DEFECT WHICH ALLOWS THE DRIVER'S FLOOR MAT TO POP OFF IT'S RESTRAINING/LOCATING PEGS ENABLING THE MAT TO MOVE FORWARD AND PUSH AND HOLD THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL DOWN, RESULTING RUNAWAY ACCELERATION, THIS SEEMS TO BE A PROBLEM SIMILAR TO WHAT TOYOTA OWNERS HAVE EXPERIENCED AND FOR WHICH TOYOTA HAS INSTITUTED A LARGE RECALL. THIS SITUATION HAS OCCURRED AT LEAST SEVEN TIMES TO THREE SEPARATE DRIVERS OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS. AT THE FIRST OCCURRENCE TO EACH ME AND MY WIFE, WE WERE ABLE TO CONTROL THE ACCELERATION WITH THE BRAKE TO BUY SUFFICIENT TIME TO GATHER OUR WITS AND SHUT OFF THE ENGINE, THOUGH IT WAS SCARY. NOW WE KNOW TO APPLY THE BRAKE AND PULL THE MAT BACK, REPLACING IT ON ITS PEGS ONCE WE STOP. AFTER THE FIRST OCCASION, I TOOK THE VEHICLE TO MY LOCAL AUDI DEALER IN DANBURY, CONN. THEY KEPT IT FOR THREE DAYS, HAD IT INSPECTED BY "CORPORATE" PEOPLE, AND IN WRITING CONCLUDED THAT EVERYTHING WAS "OPERATING AS DESIGNED AND INTENDED." THE SERVICE WRITER AT THE DANBURY AUDI DEALER TOLD ME THAT AUDI FELT THE PROBLEM WAS THE FLOOR MAT, AND SUGGESTED I PURCHASE HEAVY WINTER-TYPE MATS. I RENEWED MY COMPLAINT TO AUDI IN THE FALL OF 2009 IN LIGHT OF THE TOYOTA ISSUE, BUT THEY AGAIN DENIED THERE WAS ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND COMPLAINT, WE EXPERIENCED AT LEAST FIVE MORE EPISODES OF RUNAWAY ACCELERATION CAUSED BY THE FLOOR MAT PUSHING AGAINST THE ACCELERATOR. I TRY TO BE VIGILANT NOW EACH TIME I DRIVE THE CAR TO LOOK AT THE POSITION OF THE FLOOR MAT. *TR