NHTSA Complaint #10492872 — 2006 PONTIAC TORRENT

TOTAL OF 4 OCCURRENCES. AFTER ACCELERATING, ACCELERATOR PEDAL BECAME LODGED IN ALL-WEATHER FLOOR MAT AND VEHICLE CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE AFTER THE OPERATOR REMOVED PRESSURE FROM THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL. UNINTENDED, UNCONTROLLED ACCELERATION CONTINUED DURING ATTEMPTED BRAKING. CONTINUED BRAKING WAS ONLY MARGINALLY EFFECTIVE AT REDUCING VEHICLE SPEED. OPERATOR WAS ABLE TO GRADUALLY REDUCE SPEED THROUGH CONTINUOUS BRAKING ALTHOUGH THE ENGINE CONTINUED TO DELIVER POWER IN OPPOSITION. ULTIMATELY, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL RELEASED FROM THE FLOOR MAT AND THE DRIVER BROUGHT THE VEHICLE TO A STOP. PRIOR TO THE FIRST OCCURRENCE, AFTER-MARKET FLOOR MATS HAD BEEN INSTALLED FOR LESS THAN 1MONTH AND WERE SUSPECTED TO BE DEFECTIVE AS THEY HAVE NARROW, DEEP "WELLS" THAT CROSS THE MAT SIDE TO SIDE IN THE REGION BELOW THE PEDALS RATHER THAN ALONG THE LENGTH. BY INSPECTION, IT WAS EASILY DETERMINED THAT THE HEEL OF THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL EASILY BECAME ENTRAPPED IN THOSE WELLS. FOLLOWING THE FIRST INCIDENT, THE FLOOR MATS WERE REPLACED WITH ONES WITHOUT THE DEEP HORIZONTAL WELLS. HOWEVER, 3 ADDITIONAL SIMILAR INCIDENTS HAVE OCCURRED WITH THOSE MATS. THE DURATION OF UNINTENDED ACCELERATION WAS MUCH LESS BECAUSE THE OPERATOR KNEW TO "KICK" THE PEDAL LOOSE. *TR