Toyota wants dealers to educate customers, as large number ignore floor mat warning

Japanese automaker Toyota wants its dealers to educate buyers on model features to make sure that they are paying attention to safety flaws after a large number of owners ignored warnings not to stack floor mats beneath the accelerator pedals.

According to Jim Lentz, president of Toyota’s U.S. unit, the automaker has discussed unintended acceleration issues with as many as 7,000 owners in the past months following a record vehicle recall for floor mats that could slip and jam accelerators. He said that in some cases many people weren’t familiar with how automatic cruise control worked and didn’t know that having the AC on could boost engine revving.

“A large number, I don’t know the exact result, but I’m going to peg it at 15 percent, of vehicles we’re seeing have multiple numbers of stacked floor mats, even now,” Lentz said. “Six months ago we talked to customers about taking the floor mat out, and six months later it’s still there.”

Toyota has recalled more than 10.8 million vehicles worldwide in 11 months.

-By: Omar Rana

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)