Toyota's solution for troublesome floormats: Tie them down
Good news for those of you who happen to own a Toyota or Lexus vehicle sans floormats, as the Japanese automaker has reportedly come up with a solution to the 3.8 million-vehicle recall announced last week. We haven't reviewed the documentation ourselves, but it sounds as if the answer is to zip tie the driver's side floormat to the seat rails.
Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons tells Automotive News that dealers all around the country should have gotten the instructions on the so-called "semipermanent floormat installation process," which means they can continue to sell new and used vehicles with floormats in place.
Plus, dealerships are being instructed to attach a note to the nylon wire-tie instructing dealers and customers to ensure the mats are properly affixed. The warning also notes that owners should never stack multiple mats on top of one another(!). Apparently, this bit of discount MacGyvery satisfies the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. If you own one of the recalled models, perhaps it's time to visit your dealership to get the fix taken care of.
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
zamafir 2:08PM (10/08/2009)
visit the dealer to have my mats tied down with zip ties? pass.
Reply
l.i.dave 3:08PM (10/08/2009)
I think if you wait a little bit, the floor will rust out so the mats should naturally sink down and give you more pedal clearance.
Chazz 3:21PM (10/08/2009)
If I were Toyota, I would instruct Drivers to depress the front of the accelerators rather than to accelerate the full peddle so that the rear to the peddle avoids getting caught in the floormat. Hey... I used to do techincal writing for dummies. LOL.
Leclerc 3:59PM (10/08/2009)
l.i. You must be a genious, rotting floorboards...stupid fanboy mentality. I bet you gotta mullet.
KaiserM715 4:48PM (10/08/2009)
Chazz-
Then you should know that it is pedal, not peddle
peddle = to travel about with wares for sale
pedal = a lever pressed by the foot in the playing of a musical instrument
Chazz 6:32PM (10/08/2009)
KaiserM715 - Long daye. Reelly tyred. Chip
Randy 12:24PM (10/09/2009)
@KaiserM715
And you forgot;
Petal: One of the component parts of the corolla of a flower. Found on flowers which are given to the runner up in a spelling bee as a consolation prize.
DJ 2:10PM (10/08/2009)
Note to Toyota: It's the damn gas pedal design more than the mat!
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the4thheat 11:57PM (10/08/2009)
Yeah in the ES it's kind of a problem, although frankly with most of their other models the pedal is no different than 99% of the cars on the road. And if you google for people getting their floor mats stuck on the accelerator you'd see people with all kinds of cars get it. Toyota just went and recalled all their cars so they could put a sticker there telling people not to be idiots, since the zip tie crap is obviously just a temporary thing unless you plan on never taking your floor mats out for cleaning ever.
But the stupid wedge shaped accelerator should definitely go. Then again it's pretty hard to work the floor mat far enough up even the wedge accelerator unless you've been stacking floormats.
ah_m45 2:11PM (10/08/2009)
I dont get it, why cant they just replace the gas pedal with one that has a little more ground clearance then the present ones, its a better solution than this cheap 'zip-tie' solution.
And then when you visit the car wash, they can't even get the mat out and clean it properly... wow.
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Jared 2:29PM (10/08/2009)
Thats why you follow rule #1 and never let anyone else wash your car. Unless they are a pro exotic detailer.
DayShifter 2:43PM (10/08/2009)
@Jared
LOL!! I hope you're kidding... ;-)
Mikeeeeeeee 8:17PM (10/08/2009)
It's the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
A 2cent fix or a $7 dollar fix!!!!!!!!!!
If this would have happened to GM, Ford or Chrysler and they proposed that kind of a fix, the headlines would not fit on the front page.
Das Borgen 7:27PM (10/08/2009)
BUY STOCK IN ZIP TIES
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Jabs130 2:16PM (10/08/2009)
Or if Toyota had pedals that go all the way to the floor like a proper car this wouldn't be a problem!
Also this only affect women and wimps who drive automatics...
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Commander Cool 2:28PM (10/08/2009)
yes, true
Although I will say this, some guy driving a Camry isn't going to be any more macho because it has a third pedal
daleam 3:24AM (10/09/2009)
No. If Toyota got the damn pedal OFF the floor like a proper car, this would not happen.
mrsmooth17 2:19PM (10/08/2009)
Well at least they came up with a solution. I hope it works and it seems like it should. Maybe a higher gas pedal would help but just think if the cars had those gas pedals like on Infiniti's and BMWs that don't hang from the console but have a base on the ground. I don't think it would slip with those.....at least not in our FX35 our mats don't slip and it's base is on the ground. Maybe they should think of that......
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Raffi 2:36PM (10/08/2009)
Why don't they just hinge the bottom of the pedal on the floor so you can't jam things under it?
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verdegrrl 4:14PM (10/08/2009)
Mats can ride up onto floor mounted pedals. Better to have hanging pedals with more clearance.