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丰田承认换踏板不一定能全部解决加速问题
$ K, R4 U4 k7 C( h% VBy LARRY MARGASAK and KEN THOMAS
+ O1 R# W: U1 r' k2 v& j1 \Washington (AP) -- The president of Toyota's U.S.2 d: u% m. B. v' w+ i. ?. t
operations acknowledged to skeptical lawmakers on Tuesday that" R4 @& Z: t" h1 |: w# {4 f* p
the company's recalls of millions of its cars may "not totally"
3 x* j$ p1 e6 Z3 w( Nsolve the problem of sudden and dangerous acceleration.5 t$ ~2 k& ^+ T2 \* g P) ]$ y
"We are vigilant and we continue to look for potential
) u5 |/ Q) M& pcauses," Toyota's James Lentz told a congressional panel.
0 O6 F- Q; y) ]However, he repeated his company's position that unexpected
% r. L( l) v$ m+ y aacceleration in some of the company's most popular cars and V) Q" t" g/ k4 L \
trucks was caused by one of two problems -- misplaced floor+ ]8 x1 A+ D6 y7 f3 l. o+ [. Y1 o F
mats and sticking accelerator pedals.6 O' i6 j+ M$ u# w, a; {2 @
He insisted electronic systems connected to the gas pedal
) H3 O; Y# b3 Iand fuel line did not contribute to the problem, drawing sharp
0 s' n- }6 ~! d/ acriticism from lawmakers who said such a possibility should be
- L* k6 R3 }! k" U' zfurther explored -- and from a tearful woman driver who could9 y* E, N% u) l8 X8 v0 u- K& }% @
not stop her runaway Lexus.
" V1 o) x# I+ K. V% s b"Shame on you, Toyota," Rhonda Smith, of Sevierville,
' C, o1 O! K# ^' j8 B6 ^Tenn., said at a congressional hearing. Then she added a second4 m+ b/ o8 N8 ^4 Y- j& |+ ~9 \
"shame on you" directed at federal highway safety regulators.
6 f* V) ]4 [% T6 OTexas Republican Rep. Joe Barton cautioned his colleagues' Q- y% M: q) O3 z' w% d
early in the hearing against conducting a "witch hunt" and said
# Q' [$ L7 g! \: z"We don't want to just assume automatically that Toyota has+ A2 |3 ?+ a& R/ A! Y
done something wrong and has tried to cover it up." But midway
6 L3 K0 U. Z' ^" k9 N7 Kthrough Lentz's testimony, Barton said of Toyota's
& @: \! q+ ?) j7 o* r5 y- jinvestigation of the problems: "In my opinion, it's a sham."
3 W! D+ U! M/ g4 y0 ^; tLentz said the company had not completely ruled out an
! Q% b" R8 d1 H5 R" D7 B8 Pelectronics malfunction and was still investigating causes of
# {3 f2 c) w2 y) W: a- H/ nthe sudden acceleration. Still, "We have not found a7 G: ?1 q' F# ]
malfunction" in the electronics of any of the cars at issue, he) t4 q! I; R3 @, _0 Y
said.2 p2 U: x0 t: E% @
As to Smith's harrowing story, "I'm embarrassed for what1 f+ M E1 q. K4 S4 a- _/ t
happened," Lentz said. "I want her and her husband to feel safe5 I- x9 \+ ?) M+ m4 z# W
about driving our products," Lentz said.( h' o, `, [ \' K
Three congressional panels are investigating Toyota's0 Q" f# e/ l( ]' i, b) s
problems, which affect a huge number of Americans. Toyota has5 c2 s' O: N8 s9 t5 i0 c- K4 U: |7 H
recalled some 8.5 million vehicles worldwide -- more than 6" R) ^7 y# ^' V" i5 P
million in the United States -- since last fall because of; N3 A# A9 O( c0 H( N" ~
unintended acceleration problems in multiple models and braking4 `% L. H- P: i( r0 b
issues in the Prius hybrid. It is also investigating steering
# R0 ^$ _! V9 h7 pconcerns in Corollas. People with Toyotas have complained of% F) g( n' B4 K S; w6 b7 }
their vehicles speeding out of control despite efforts to slow
# z% Q' K4 t3 r+ z7 U; d2 jdown, sometimes resulting in deadly crashes. The government has
$ f5 x$ K) V) L. e$ W) Jreceived complaints of 34 deaths linked to sudden acceleration
9 x+ e! o$ K0 N5 ?# {of Toyota vehicles since 2000.2 E4 m% r* b# T
Lentz, who choked up while discussing the death of his own) j% m9 u$ P$ U
brother more than 20 years ago in a car accident, said he
& S9 E5 U) i" }1 funderstood the pain.6 }. s7 A+ u2 i: \$ N( t9 @
"I know what those families go through," he said.
O7 G3 y2 K5 b& s8 v2 e# BLentz has said in the past that he was confident Toyota's
( e, S3 t; L1 k( ?( a. S+ i% Ufixes on the recalled vehicles would correct the problems.
) u' W) t, [ l" y8 w8 x% I" \But when pressed by Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman* a$ b: V- g* H8 g& w: A ^; K1 O% T) y
Henry Waxman, D-Calif., on whether the two recalls Toyota put+ m% V9 U: g) r& Q s B# S6 ~" l
in place to deal with the issue would completely solve it,8 W0 l$ t5 x1 |2 V7 D3 m7 w( x I
Lentz replied: "Not totally."+ g Z+ |; Z! T' ~
Still, he said chances of unintended accelerations were
* o0 n6 B8 J* c. c R$ z' J6 b"very, very slim" once the recall was complete. Lentz also said1 o+ w# H7 I5 X4 @) i
Toyota was putting in new brakes that can override the gas
' `9 a% g( n& Q4 d6 p6 z" Bpedal on almost all of its new vehicles and a majority of its" U) U% Z; Z0 {# p" }8 j. x% Q. w
vehicles already on the road.
9 ], D% s& m# Q/ fMeanwhile, Toyota president Akio Toyoda, who will testify$ ~6 {& q0 \* F
before a separate panel on Wednesday, said he took "full& o/ n2 x* C& l% Z3 ?. q
responsibility" for the uncertainty felt by Toyota owners and& }# t2 U% S/ `
offered his condolences to a San Diego, Calif., family who were
% H+ O9 a( S# g( Ckilled in late August, reigniting interest in the problems.. j* x) G! d" i* f4 X Y
"I will do everything in my power to ensure that such a
8 K% c9 N, b ]tragedy never happens again," Toyoda said in prepared testimony
+ B1 [; b, @9 s7 z. x1 y7 L6 cfor Wednesday's hearing to the House Government Oversight
3 I3 b, v8 ]: G* p, q- e3 S1 M3 RCommittee. "My name is on every car. You have my personal. W- a4 E5 ]% }/ A8 z6 C" U* B
commitment that Toyota will work vigorously and unceasingly to
6 _5 F R* U: R3 ? Hrestore the trust of our customers."# R2 [' L8 C( b
Lawmakers heard a brief, but riveting, deion from% F9 k- M* ?4 y! Z4 l
Smith, the Tennessee woman whose Toyota-made Lexus suddenly
' ^+ T* l1 ^! b4 K5 ezoomed to 100 miles per hour as she tried to get it to stop -- M1 M( ]4 }! V* x2 y
shifting to neutral, trying to throw the car into reverse and
. x- s/ _& d& G$ X3 ~+ L( ~hitting the emergency brake. Finally, her car slowed enough7 ?) i. Q4 Z& H: ]
that she was able to pull it off the road onto the median and) {5 F: Q$ ^, a- t7 {+ I
turn off the engine.1 y: H3 X; V" B
Fighting back tears, she described her nightmare ride of6 \* r. y2 m6 f: \2 A
October 2006, calling it "a near death experience."
/ W8 I0 V e% `% H"After six miles, God intervened" and slowed the car, she
9 J2 e$ T) K/ `said. She added that it took a long time for Toyota to respond5 J3 Q9 \! ?# n* T/ n) P5 n/ e( b0 e
to her complaints.* E; K; i: _% G+ O. t
In an often contentious full day of testimony, lawmakers
8 a% L( ]! w- [# z2 yreturned again and again to the question of whether electronic
U! c. m3 l. K( Y& l' emalfunctions may have contributed to the speeding cars." f& f5 r' W8 U
"We are confident that no problems exist with the electric( k- S7 ]" ^ {+ {8 n2 N
throttle control system in our vehicles," Lentz said. He cited2 Q9 x8 ?, {& P# m/ k- p
"fail-safe mechanisms" in the cars that were designed to shut5 K3 M2 Q1 _% n( N. V
off or reduce engine power "in the event of a system failure."6 c; ]! [/ d# E$ m' r- R
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told the panel in( g; F8 n) |! w, i8 s/ X
prepared testimony that possible electronics problems were# X! `1 h k: [; J* W1 q9 E
being looked into by his agency. He said the company's recalls
, i1 k1 T+ {5 H2 i8 }5 @were important steps but "we don't maintain that they answer
, H! r, ?; @: {1 j3 d8 ^every question."
7 O/ P1 [! G$ r4 g! qToyota hired a consulting firm to analyze whether
% s L F5 A; @% \$ B5 xelectronic problems could cause unintended acceleration. The: I# Q' \* B+ {' ^
firm, Exponent Inc., found no link between the two. But9 w% b6 l, O9 p4 N' H& |
committee investigators said the testing studied only a small. V9 X8 X6 z3 `
number of vehicles7 Z9 O5 F- _/ p% R) W0 I- g* Z# I
Tracking down an electrical problem can be far more+ P& J$ o' q( w/ _$ @ b7 w- e
difficult, expensive and time-consuming than finding a: D4 W% V, ]! s. C G
mechanical problem. Electrical problems can have more than one
& d5 h% z4 r: p$ S2 r2 i0 ^; |source, and they can come from inside or outside the car.
. G6 \; m7 ~$ M Y3 QMechanical problems often leave clues such as physical damage, r: H. E/ i' M$ o' u
where electronic troubles can be hidden in software or leave no, M1 f, i$ j; o) L
trace at all., ]2 H/ S5 P: r' W. q! Y
House investigators who reviewed Toyota's customer call# D: Z7 O% ?0 r& ]
database found that 70 percent of the complaints of sudden
( N( z. w* ?9 N+ o6 d2 s9 Lacceleration were for vehicles that are not subject to the7 f" m/ l9 ?+ o" o! h
recalls over floor mats or sticky pedals.* | k* f+ Q: M
Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., chairman of the subcommittee,# r& I( ]4 _3 U1 L* v& ^9 A
said Toyota "misled the American public by saying that they and
+ g1 C6 N" {( H0 t+ v! Sother independent sources had thoroughly analyzed the R% R' N) p7 f; f$ L
electronics systems and eliminated electronics as a possible Y7 E* Z, r C- } ]5 h8 L
cause of sudden unintended acceleration when, in fact, the only; R) m! [0 c( {- c9 `) Y: }
such review was a flawed study conducted by a company retained
3 S4 m; G- }) M, J: {/ cby Toyota's lawyers."$ n# v5 I; m$ D0 C' r
Lentz apologized anew for the company's slow handling of
! _; {9 Q1 a' o: O* u0 f) D4 G/ xproblems. "We have not lived up to the high standards our5 p, B+ m5 |7 I2 H
customers and the public have come to expect from Toyota," he& Y- z$ V; |- J
said.) d6 V/ {$ h2 @* t" _
"Put simply, it has taken us too long to come to grips with
. D. a5 x* C' ?. {a rare but serious set of safety issues, despite all of our
; n' ?) X P* V: u3 f- Wgood faith efforts," said Lentz, president and chief operating! C+ a Y4 {% g9 y1 R* \
officer of Toyota Motor Sales USA. Inc.7 C t6 d1 u& B0 V2 S" Z
Separately, among hundreds of Toyota dealers lobbying/ K( I7 _7 J+ V! M
members of Congress Tuesday, there seemed to be widespread+ P" w3 Z4 z# z p6 b
rancor toward a federal government they view as picking on the9 `) a% |. O' T; w3 {7 g) z7 u; [
automaker, at least in part because of the government's. O4 z. d# Y4 _) ] Y
investment of billions of dollars in General Motors and+ ~$ q8 M5 A) I% o! p7 r
Chrysler.
: E. F. h( `) C' H/ w; a7 m"That's hard for me as a citizen to understand why my tax
( o* X: w) [: `% qdollars are going in that direction," Paul Atkinson, a
5 u! [. M* r2 t9 u: s$ C* ?* L5 NHouston-area Toyota dealer, said at a news conference that also
' l$ V& G1 Q, g4 V& Jserved as a pep rally for the visiting dealers. "To compete8 \3 s5 W3 [ q9 L5 J9 ~7 y3 M
with the government as an individual entrepreneur is pretty0 ~) U3 X8 P4 Q- N7 N, ^% ^
tough.") {* w, G4 E+ F
---% {# T$ g( v) E2 ^4 l x! D
Associated Press writers Alan Fram, Stephen Manning and Tom5 k+ \4 `. l H( S7 A* q) @
Raum in Washington and Tom Krisher in Detroit contributed to& k" U8 ^, ~- X0 {3 q6 `' v
this story./ M; U. @% }7 D: }% ?7 N
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