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Recall On Driver Side Floor Mat


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Has anybody here experienced any problems with the driverside floor mat getting caught on the accelerator pedal? I haven't although I have the Lexus customized clear mats on top so maybe they are holding the carpet mats down. The recommendation is to remove the mat. Just wondering if anyone in the LOC is having problems and what Lexus plans to do to rectify the problem.

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Has anybody here experienced any problems with the driverside floor mat getting caught on the accelerator pedal? I haven't although I have the Lexus customized clear mats on top so maybe they are holding the carpet mats down. The recommendation is to remove the mat. Just wondering if anyone in the LOC is having problems and what Lexus plans to do to rectify the problem.

The carpet mats are held in place by hooks. As I understand it the accessory mats that to over those are not held down. There have been valid reports of those sliding and mashing the accelerator resulting in unintended acceleration. It's also been reported in other Lexus models. If it were me, I'd remove them.

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I have the rubber all weather mats....held in place with the hook.

Dunno if they are supposedly causing a problem also.

3.8 Million Toyota, Lexus Recalled Over Floor Mats

The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration issued a wide-ranging recall late today for 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles. The recall stems from faulty floormats that can become stuck under the accelerator pedal causing unexpected acceleration. The defect is suspected to be the cause of one recent fatal accident.

The recall includes the following models:

2007-2010 Camry

2005-2010 Avalon

2004-2009 Prius

2005-2010 Tacoma

2007-2010 Tundra

2007-2010 ES 350

2006-2010 IS 250 and IS350

NHTSA suggests all owners remove the driver-side floormat from these cars immediately and not replace them with anything. Toyota has released a warning for owners including steps to take in case of an accelerator issue. We've posted the notice below.

Toyota Notice

Should the vehicle continue to accelerate rapidly after releasing the accelerator pedal, this could be an indication of floor mat interference. If this occurs, Toyota recommends the driver take the following actions:

First, if it is possible and safe to do so, pull back the floor mat and dislodge it from the accelerator pedal; then pull over and stop the vehicle.

If the floor mat cannot be dislodged, then firmly and steadily step on the brake pedal with both feet. Do NOT pump the brake pedal repeatedly as this will increase the effort required to slow the vehicle.

Shift the transmission gear selector to the Neutral (N) position and use the brakes to make a controlled stop at the side of the road and turn off the engine.

If unable to put the vehicle in Neutral, turn the engine OFF, or to ACC. This will not cause loss of steering or braking control, but the power assist to these systems will be lost.

-If the vehicle is equipped with an Engine Start/Stop button, firmly and steadily push the button for at least three seconds to turn off the engine. Do NOT tap the Engine Start/Stop button.

-If the vehicle is equipped with a conventional key-ignition, turn the ignition key to the ACC position to turn off the engine. Do NOT remove the key from the ignition as this will lock the steering wheel.

In the event owners choose not to remove their floor mat, Toyota strongly recommends that they ensure that the correct floor mat is being used, that it is properly installed and secured, that it is not flipped over with bottom-side up, and that one floor mat is not stacked over another. Information on proper floor mat installation can be found on http://www.toyota.com and http://www.lexus.com.

Owners with questions or concerns, are asked to please contact the Toyota Customer Experience Center (1 800 331-4331) or Lexus Customer Assistance Center (1 800 255¬3987), or consult the information posted at http://www.toyota.com and http://www.lexus.com.

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This discussion is happening in another thread as well. So I'll ask the same thing here:

So are they designing or offering a replacement floor mat then?

I have to say I'm a bit confused here. I think NHTSA is folding to some public demands for accountability. Don't we all know that floor mats that don't hook in slide up to the front of the foot wells? Are they recalling all the aftermarket floor mats that don't offer the hook in feature also? No matter what make or model? I know Toyota/Lexus is going to bear the heat for this no matter, I guess I just don't understand why they are recalling the floor mats in all those models. They can't all be the same floor mat that caused this accident? Are they saying the floor mat was hooked in and can easily unhook and slide to the front and under the accelerator? I really think this recall is going to cause even more issues as people who want floor mats in thier car are now going to take them out, and buy some aftermarket floor mats that are even more dangerous as they aren't "fitted" now. And for those who spend the money to get custom fitted floor mats are going to attach them the exact same way the mat that just came out was. How did that solve anything? It just seems like more politics then answer.

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Has anybody here experienced any problems with the driverside floor mat getting caught on the accelerator pedal? I haven't although I have the Lexus customized clear mats on top so maybe they are holding the carpet mats down. The recommendation is to remove the mat. Just wondering if anyone in the LOC is having problems and what Lexus plans to do to rectify the problem.

We occasionally get people in complaining "vehicle accelerates by itself." In most cases it's been that they put the all weather mats on top of the carpet mats. If you have clear plastic mats they aren't made by Lexus. As of right now the only redesigned mat is the ES350 all weather. That one has been out for about a year now. I haven't received any notice from Lexus about the IS. Usually they want us to send stock back and then they put a "stop sale" on them.

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You would think the recall would be more specific as to what type of mats are causing the problem. As mentioned earlier, the Lexus Custom carpeted mats with the grommets that go over the hooks should be good to go but only if they are properly installed. I have an 92 Accord that I bought new and the mats in that car have always slid. My IS has just under 33,000 miles and I've never experienced a sliding problem; even with the clear protective mats that I purchased from the Lexus dealer as they aren't going anywhere with all the cleats on the bottom that are biting & gripping into the carpeted mats. Personnally, I'd recommend that everyone physically attempt to get their mats to slide no matter what type and then make an educated decision on whether to pull them or not. If they move, I'd err on the side of caution and remove them.

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What worries is me is that this is an attempt by Toyota to make it look like they are doing something, and deflecting attention away from the California incident, that may signal a much more troublesome underlying problem.

If you're talking about the state trooper, has any definitive cause been decided on that?

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Some people are idiots. NHTSA and Toyota have to try to protect them from themselves. Even if all weather mats have grommets they aren't gong to go in the hooks if you put them on top of the carpet mats. :(

But that would not be a problem unique to Toyota. Either the gov put lots of pressure on Toyota because of the family that was killed in the Lexus crash, or Toyota does believe that there is somthing about the design that makes them more prone to riding over the gas pedal.

My other car is a Honda, and my prior car was an Acura. Honda doesn't use chintzy plastic hooks like in my IS that feel like they are about to come loose from the carpet to hold their mats in place--they use metal ones that are much more secure. Maybe this is the problem?

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What worries is me is that this is an attempt by Toyota to make it look like they are doing something, and deflecting attention away from the California incident, that may signal a much more troublesome underlying problem.

If you're talking about the state trooper, has any definitive cause been decided on that?

the news reports have only speculated, but one report also said that it had the wrong mats, I think. My local dealer puts cheap mats in their loaners with the name of the dealer on them--possible it's the same situation?

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I was thinking the same thing about the dealership mats. I just bought an 06 IS 250 last weekend...yep, I'm a newbie and loving it so far. But the dealership did have a flimsy mat with their logo on it right on top of the factory mat...same color and all. I took it out right away but that was just because I do not like promoting a dealership all over my car. I would not be surprised if that was the case too...

On a side note, I have the dealership logo emblem on the back trunk, I have removed these before but I have read about the sensitive paint on a Lexus. Has anyone had issues with removing one from their car?

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Some people are idiots. NHTSA and Toyota have to try to protect them from themselves. Even if all weather mats have grommets they aren't gong to go in the hooks if you put them on top of the carpet mats. :(

But that would not be a problem unique to Toyota. Either the gov put lots of pressure on Toyota because of the family that was killed in the Lexus crash, or Toyota does believe that there is somthing about the design that makes them more prone to riding over the gas pedal.

My other car is a Honda, and my prior car was an Acura. Honda doesn't use chintzy plastic hooks like in my IS that feel like they are about to come loose from the carpet to hold their mats in place--they use metal ones that are much more secure. Maybe this is the problem?

Some pressures and perhaps some PR reaction from Toyota. I think also the regular mats can be improperly put in without engaging the hooks or maybe having the hooks turned backwards.

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I'm thinking that Toyota/Lexus agreed to the mat recall for acouple different reasons. One would be that it will keep the NHTSA happy that something was done, Two, it informs everyone by "suggestion" that this was just a floor mat incident, and not an issue with the make and build quality of Toyota/Lexus right away. And act as collateral damage control right away. No car mfgr can afford to lose sales right now. The authorities are going to spend weeks going over every inch of that car. When they finish and report thier final results is when we will know what happened here. And in the mean time we have this stupid floor mat recall that really doesn't make sense, but offers the dealerships some explaniation in the meantime to keep sales going.

I do know this, I would really hate to be the owner of that dealership right now. The guilt alone I would feel would be horrible, and the lawsuits coming will keep Hammermill busy for years!

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Has anybody here experienced any problems with the driverside floor mat getting caught on the accelerator pedal? I haven't although I have the Lexus customized clear mats on top so maybe they are holding the carpet mats down. The recommendation is to remove the mat. Just wondering if anyone in the LOC is having problems and what Lexus plans to do to rectify the problem.

Yeah for sure you need to remove the mat from underneath. That is what is causing the problem. Every car I have owned and even the rubber all weather mats from Lexus I got came with instructions that stated to remove any other mats first or else the mat could get shoved up to the gas pedal. Lexus has already done something but YOU need to be careful and read the instructions.

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Has anybody here experienced any problems with the driverside floor mat getting caught on the accelerator pedal? I haven't although I have the Lexus customized clear mats on top so maybe they are holding the carpet mats down. The recommendation is to remove the mat. Just wondering if anyone in the LOC is having problems and what Lexus plans to do to rectify the problem.

Yeah for sure you need to remove the mat from underneath. That is what is causing the problem. Every car I have owned and even the rubber all weather mats from Lexus I got came with instructions that stated to remove any other mats first or else the mat could get shoved up to the gas pedal. Lexus has already done something but YOU need to be careful and read the instructions.

Some folks just don't read instructions. People come here and ask questions that are quite plainly answered in the owner's manual. Then we put the manual as a sticky and still need to refer folks to the top of the page. At work when we got something new, I'd read the instructions and figure it out. Some others would just stand and look at a new piece of equipment so I'd give them informal training. It's just human nature I guess.

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FWIW, my 07 Subaru has all weather mats on top of the carpet mat. Both mats have holes/grommets for the little hook to go through. It's easily tall enough to go through both mats to keep them in place. Never had a problem with it.

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This is the paper that came inside the box with my floor mats.

http://pressroom.toyota.com/pr/tms/toyota/....pdf?ncid=12040

LOL! I can just hear the response to that now.

" Yeah, like I'm supposed to know to read that stupid piece of paper in the package! how come they didn't just spell it out and text it to me? They know I only ever read my phone while I drive!" LOL!!!!

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What worries is me is that this is an attempt by Toyota to make it look like they are doing something, and deflecting attention away from the California incident, that may signal a much more troublesome underlying problem.

If you're talking about the state trooper, has any definitive cause been decided on that?

What I heard on the radio was that the dealership had given a loaner car with a car mat that didn't belong to the ES. I heard the 911 call, very haunting. Not much you can do at 120 mph, brakes blown, going through a busy intersection.

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From this picture, I can see a very real potential problem - not sure if the photo is Lexus or Toyota but pedals look like my '05 - from Autoblog.com. Also not sure what floor mat this is - mine is aftermarket clear with clips.

667708637_S69TV-X2.jpg

Well--it definitely looks like an IS mat. But, if so, it's not clipped down. There's a posting of this same picture on the Club Lexus [Car Chat] forum, placed next to a properly placed mat, which is no where even close to the gas pedal.

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From this picture, I can see a very real potential problem - not sure if the photo is Lexus or Toyota but pedals look like my '05 - from Autoblog.com. Also not sure what floor mat this is - mine is aftermarket clear with clips.

667708637_S69TV-X2.jpg

Well--it definitely looks like an IS mat. But, if so, it's not clipped down. There's a posting of this same picture on the Club Lexus [Car Chat] forum, placed next to a properly placed mat, which is no where even close to the gas pedal.

Yeah that is a genuine Lexus rubber mat. And both the pedals and carpeting look identical to my 09 IS350. But mine are properly placed and like mentioned above it is no where near the pedal....as it should be.

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