A day after a California man said his Toyota Prius raced out of control on a freeway, a woman in New York reported that her Prius experienced uncontrollable acceleration as she pulled out of a driveway.
According to police, the 56-year-old Westchester County driver sustained injuries, though none life threatening, after her 2005 Prius sped across a busy street before knocking large boulders from a stone wall.
Harrison, New York, Police Chief Captain Anthony Marraccini told Reuters that “Toyota has expressed interest in taking the vehicle” for an investigation of the acceleration and crash.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Transportation confirmed that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is already looking into the matter.
Reports said the woman was driving the Prius on a long, curved driveway when the car suddenly accelerated out of control, shot across a two-lane street, and traveled 150 to 200 feet before ramming the stone wall with its front end, Marraccini said. The car knocked boulders weighing 500 to 1,000 pounds up to 15 feet away.
Recently, on a Southern California highway, James Sikes felt his Prius inexplicably accelerate. When he tried to slow it, the car wouldn’t respond. Sikes snatched his phone, dialed 911 and, while talking to an emergency dispatcher, kept his car –going 94 mph — under control.
California Highway Patrol officers soon instructed Sikes on how to slow the vehicle before they sped in front of him and he brought his car to a halt.
Sikes told CBS News that he’d brought his Prius to a Toyota dealer two weeks earlier, clutching his recall notice, but was turned away without getting his vehicle inspected.
More Toyota news
Toyota recalled more vehicles on Wednesday, March 10, announcing that all of its 2000 to 2003 model-year Tundra pick-ups need repairs to address a risk of frame rust.
Late last year, the Japanese automaker recalled 110,000 Tundras in cold-weather states. Toyota said at the time that corrosion from salted winter roads could cause spare tires and gas tanks to drop from the vehicle onto streets.
A Toyota spokesperson was unable to say how many Tundra trucks will be involved in this expanded recall.
Toyota’s recalls total more than eight million vehicles worldwide. Problems include issues with accelerator assemblies, floor mats that cause accelerators to stick and braking systems troubles.