What To Do If Your Car Accelerates Out Of Control

In late 2009 and early 2010, there was a lot of news about Toyota needing to do recalls of some of their cars, including the Prius, and some Lexus models, after numerous complains about unintended acceleration. They have claimed that this is a result of incorrectly-sized floor mats making the accelerator get stuck in the pressed position. Others have claimed that it might be a result of a fault in the drive-by-wire system, which provides no mechanical way to stop the vehicle in an emergency. If your car accelerates out of control and can't be stopped by pressing the brake pedal, what should you do?

Step one: Put your feet on the brakes as hard as possible

Though it might sound dangerous to make your car suddenly slow down, if you are accelerating out of control, it's best to slow down as soon as you possibly can. The danger of accelerating out of control is much worse than the danger of stopping suddenly, especially since your vehicle is probably leaving the cars behind you in the dust if it's out of control.

Use both feet to push down on the brake as hard as possible. DO NOT PUMP THE BRAKES as this will reduce the braking power, making you need to push harder to slow down more.

Step two: Put the car in neutral

Keep your feet on the brake and put the car into the neutral gear.

You can put a car into the neutral gear while it is moving. Doing so will prevent the engine from making the car move, even if the engine continues to rev, allowing you to slow down.

Read the instruction manual for your car to learn how to put your car in neutral while the car is moving at a high speed. For the Toyota Prius, pressing the Park button will put the car in neutral if it is driving at a speed above 9 km/h (6 mph). Also, holding the shifter in the neutral position for a few seconds will put the car into the neutral gear.

You should practice putting your car into neutral while it's moving. It could save your life. Find a low-traffic road where you can safely practice this.

Step three: Turn the car off

If all else fails, turn the engine off. Or, if you have come to a stop but the engine is still revving, turn the engine off. In a car that turns on with a key, turn the key to the ACC position but leave it in the ignition so that you can keep using the steering wheel in case you need to keep steering. In a car with an on/off switch, just hold down the on/off switch until the car goes into ACC mode.

Make yourself familiar with a car that you don't own

If you need to temporarily drive a car that doesn't belong to you, make yourself familiar with how to put it into neutral and how to turn off the engine in the event that you experience unintended acceleration.

Don't panic

Perhaps the most important piece of advice is not to panic. If you panic, you could be putting your life and the lives of your loved ones or innocent bystanders at risk. If you find yourself in an unintended acceleration situation, make your mind focus on the three steps above: apply brakes, go into neutral, turn engine off. Memorize those steps to make sure that you won't forget them, and imagine yourself in an unintended acceleration situation, performing those three steps. Get into your car and rehearse those steps, if need be, to ensure that you will remember. Because--I've said it before, and I'll say it again--it could save your life.