by MSI » Tue Apr 20, 2010 5:54 pm
Q: I've read (but have no solid source) that there are no reported cases of unintended acceleration in cars with manual transmission. If this is true, I certainly hope that brake override will not be required for stick shift cars--because it would prevent heel-toe and the fun of matching engine speed on downshifts. Also, there are plenty of cases where throttle and brake at the same time are useful on slippery surfaces, or even on hard surfaces to change the effective brake balance. We (USA society) are in a mad rush to dumb everything down and this is one case where there is utility for the trained driver -- to be able to use throttle and brake at the same time. Some of us actually enjoy driving and the required skills! (
Q received via email)
A: From the Audi 'unintended acceleration' days there were no problems with manual transmission vehicles nor any drivers who were two footed drivers (left for brake, right for accelerator). The conclusion was there was no 'defect'
(For additional information on the Audi, see
Will Toyota encounter a press created Audi 5000 type fiasco?). The only 'defect' was pedal misidentification and driver reaction.
Also see our thread
How Real are the Defects in Toyota's Cars? where you’d have to believe that Toyota is out to get elderly drivers!
From that thread
"Mega McArdle of the Atlantic taking a detailed look at the incidents were highly correlated with three things:
- being elderly,
being short,
parking (or leaving a parking space).
and just starting up the vehicles!
NHTSA and the lawyers will run fast and loose with
Toyota's paying the $16M fine as 'proof' that there is a defect. Interesting defect that somehow identifies elderly short people parking or starting up?! (maybe something in pacemakers or Metamucil that causes an electromagnetic anomaly to set off a WOT chain reaction!!? (who knows, maybe the crazies will also try to pass this theory like the power line theory of electromagnetic interference which was recently
rejected as junk science!)
So one would hope the changes in the vehicles to placate the rabid lawyers and lawmakers will not change vehicles to ALL have brake overrides.
Q: I've read (but have no solid source) that there are no reported cases of unintended acceleration in cars with manual transmission. If this is true, I certainly hope that brake override will not be required for stick shift cars--because it would prevent heel-toe and the fun of matching engine speed on downshifts. Also, there are plenty of cases where throttle and brake at the same time are useful on slippery surfaces, or even on hard surfaces to change the effective brake balance. We (USA society) are in a mad rush to dumb everything down and this is one case where there is utility for the trained driver -- to be able to use throttle and brake at the same time. Some of us actually enjoy driving and the required skills! ([i]Q received via email[/i])
A: From the Audi 'unintended acceleration' days there were no problems with manual transmission vehicles nor any drivers who were two footed drivers (left for brake, right for accelerator). The conclusion was there was no 'defect'
(For additional information on the Audi, see [url=http://www.mchenrysoftware.com/board/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=166&sid=e0acdc56321661dcef057622a9aaf6ab&sid=4778ca73c019162f60079ffa4fc209de#p258]Will Toyota encounter a press created Audi 5000 type fiasco?[/url]). The only 'defect' was pedal misidentification and driver reaction.
Also see our thread [url=http://www.mchenrysoftware.com/board/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=278&start=0&sid=4778ca73c019162f60079ffa4fc209de]How Real are the Defects in Toyota's Cars?[/url] where you’d have to believe that Toyota is out to get elderly drivers!
From that thread
[i]"Mega McArdle of the Atlantic taking a detailed look at the incidents were highly correlated with three things:
[list]being elderly,
being short,
parking (or leaving a parking space).
and just starting up the vehicles! [/list][/i]NHTSA and the lawyers will run fast and loose with [url=http://www.mchenrysoftware.com/board/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=300&sid=e0acdc56321661dcef057622a9aaf6ab&sid=4778ca73c019162f60079ffa4fc209de#p578]Toyota's paying the $16M fine[/url] as 'proof' that there is a defect. Interesting defect that somehow identifies elderly short people parking or starting up?! (maybe something in pacemakers or Metamucil that causes an electromagnetic anomaly to set off a WOT chain reaction!!? (who knows, maybe the crazies will also try to pass this theory like the power line theory of electromagnetic interference which was recently [url=http://www.mchenrysoftware.com/board/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=280&p=513&hilit=junk&sid=e0acdc56321661dcef057622a9aaf6ab&sid=4778ca73c019162f60079ffa4fc209de#p513]rejected as junk science![/url])
So one would hope the changes in the vehicles to placate the rabid lawyers and lawmakers will not change vehicles to ALL have brake overrides.