NHTSA Complaint #10313319 — 2009 TOYOTA RAV4

NEW TOYOTA ELECTRONICS PROBLEMS MY RAV4 SOMETIMES DOES HAVE INTERMITTENT ACCELERATOR 'STICKING' PROBLEMS, EVEN THOUGH THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL HAS FULLY RETURNED TO IDLE CONDITIONS. DURING THE WINTER I OFTEN WHERE SORELS. I THOUGHT THAT BECAUSE OF MY BOOTS I WAS HITTING BOTH THE BRAKE AND ACCELERATOR. ONE TIME I EVEN HAD TO PUSH THE TRANSMISSION INTO NEUTRAL TO MAKE A STOP, CURSING THE TOYOTA DESIGNER WHO PUT THE BRAKE PEDAL SO CLOSE TO THE ACCELERATOR (ANOTHER PEDAL DESIGN FLAW?). FROM THEN ON I WAS VERY CAREFUL TO KEEP MY FOOT ON JUST ONE PEDAL. HOWEVER, I STILL NOTICED PROBLEMS SOMETIMES, AND NOW THIS "PSEUDO RECALL" HAS SOLVED A DILEMMA I HAD. THE PROBLEM IS NOT WITH UNINTENDED ACCELERATION, IT IS WITH IMPAIRED DECELERATION. THE ENGINE IS FIGHTING AGAINST THE BRAKING SYSTEM BECAUSE THE ENGINE DOES NOT RETURN TO IDLE SOON ENOUGH. WITH THE OLD MANUAL ACCELERATOR LINKAGE SYSTEMS, YOU COULD FEEL WHEN YOU LET OFF THE GAS. NOW INSTEAD THE COMPUTER IS DECIDING HOW TO SLOW THE ENGINE. THIS IS WHERE THE PROBLEM LIES. WHAT "BONE HEADED" TOYOTA ENGINEER ALLOWED BOTH THE ACCELERATOR AND BRAKE TO WORK AT THE SAME TIME ON A "DRIVE BY WIRE" SYSTEM? THERE IS NO MECHANICAL LINKAGE TO UNDO, SO HITTING THE BRAKE SHOULD DEFEAT THE ACCELERATOR (I.E. QUICKLY RETURN THE ENGINE TO IDLE MODE). THAT IS ALL THAT WAS NEEDED TO PREVENT THIS PROBLEM. THIS IS AT LEAST ONE PROBLEM WITH THE TOYOTA ELECTRONIC THROTTLE SYSTEM. IT IS A TOYOTA 'MYTH' TO INSIST THERE IS(ARE) NO ELECTRONIC PROBLEM(S). WHAT OTHER MORE COMPLEX PROBLEMS ARE THERE IN THE ELECTRONICS, IF THIS BASIC PROBLEM WAS NOT ACCOUNTED FOR? *TR