NHTSA Complaint #10683883 — 2005 SATURN ION

ENGINE WOULD NOT DE-ACCELERATE AND HITTING THE BRAKES DID NOT STOP THE VEHICLE. I WAS PASSING CARS ON A HIGHWAY,AND I COULD NOT GET THE ENGINE TO DOWN SHIFT. IT FELT LIKE IT WAS IN CRUISE CONTROL, AND IT WAS NOT. I HIT THE CRUISE CONTROL BUTTON TO MAKE SURE I HAD NOT HIT IT BY MISTAKE. I HAD NOT. I DOWN SHIFTED INTO LOW GEAR THAT DID NOT STOP THE ENGINE FROM RACING. I PUT IT IN NEUTRAL THAT DIDN'T HELP. I MANAGED NOT TO HIT ANY CARS. I PUT THE CAR IN A SNOW BANK NEAR A GUARD RAIL. THERE WAS NO CRASH BECAUSE I MIRACULOUSLY KEPT THE CAR UNDER MY CONTROL AND THE SNOW/ICE KEPT ME FROM HITTING THE GUARD RAIL. (I FELT LIKE I WAS GLIDING.) AT SOME POINT WHEN I WAS IN THE SNOW BANK, I HEARD THE ENGINE FINALLY KICK ITSELF DOWN. I CALLED THE LOCAL POLICE FOR A TOW TO MY DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP TRIED TO BLAME ME, BUT I TOLD THEM IT WAS MECHANICAL FAILURE. I WAS INFORMED THAT THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN OVERRIDES. THERE WERE NOT. THE CAR WAS REPAIRED. I WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS A HIGH AND LOW VOLTAGE READING TO THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL, AND POSSIBLE THROTTLE ISSUE. BATTERY REPLACED, PEDAL REPLACED, AND THROTTLE BODY SERVICE PERFORMED. I WAS TOLD THAT THIS WAS "A PERFECT STORM." LATER I WAS TOLD BY AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC THAT THE FLY BY WIRE SYSTEM WAS THE ISSUE. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. I WAS AT RISK AND SO WAS EVERYONE ELSE. I DO NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE DRIVING KNOWING THAT AT ANY TIME THIS COULD OCCUR AGAIN TO ME OR TO ANY OTHER CAR ON THE ROAD THAT HAS A FLY BY WIRE SYSTEM. I MAINTAIN MY VEHICLE BY REGULAR VISITS TO DEALERSHIP MECHANICS, AND THERE WERE LESS THAN 100,000 MILES ON MY CAR. *TR