NHTSA Complaint #749137 — 1998 SUBARU FORESTER

YESTERDAY AFT. MY CAR DROVE ITSELF INTO A STORE WINDOW WITH ME AT THE WHEEL. FORTUNATELY NO ONE WAS HURT BUT IT COULD HAVE BEEN A REAL DISASTER. I WAS ALREADY PARKED THERE, PUT THE CAR IN REVERSE AND IT TOOK OFF WITHOUT MY TOUCHING THE ACCELERATOR. IN FACT, MY FOOT WAS ON THE BRAKE THE WHOLE TIME (AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION). MY BRAKING WOULDN'T STOP IT, SO I MANAGED TO GET IT INTO A FORWARD GEAR. HAD I NOT, THE CAR MIGHT WELL HAVE DRIVEN FURTHER INTO THE STORE AND HURT THE SEVERAL SHOPPERS. ONCE IN A FORWARD GEAR, THE CAR THEN IT TOOK OFF FORWARD ON A WILD RIDE; AGAIN, I WAS MERELY THE PASSENGER. I MANAGED TO STEER THE CAR FOR A SHORT DISTANCE BEFORE IT DECELERATED, MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE ALL THIS TIME, WHILE I CLEARED A LIGHT POST AND TWO CARS ON EITHER SIDE, AS WELL AS TRAFFIC IN THE ROAD. *AK