2006 Toyota Avalon

(1) HEAVY BRAKING TO AVOID A COLLISION LEADS UP TO THE ONGOING FAILURES (2) FAILURE IS THE FRICTION LOCK FOR THE TELESCOPING STEERING WHEEL SLOWLY RELEASES DURING NORMAL STOP AND GO DRIVING AND AFTER A PERIOD OF TIME, A HEAVY APPLICATION OF THE BRAKES WILL CAUSE THE STEERING WHEEL TO COLLAPSE INWARD RESULTING IN NEAR LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE AUTOMOBILE. (3) THE CAR HAS BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALER TWICE. THE FIRST TIME THE DEALER COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND INDICATED THAT THE DRIVER WAS IMPROPERLY LOCKING THE STEERING WHEEL TELESCOPE LOCK. THE SECOND TIME THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER, THE DEALER AGAIN COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND AFTER THE OWNER OF THE CAR SHOWED THEM WHAT CAUSES THE LOCK TO COME UNDONE THEY REFUSED TO REPAIR STATING THAT THE PROBLEM IS "YOU ARE DRIVING WITH THE STEERING FULLY TELESCOPED AND EVEN A BRAND NEW AVALON WOULD DO THE SAME THING". THE DEALER SAID "THIS MUST NOT BE THE CAR FOR YOU SINCE YOU MUST DRIVE WITH THE STEERING FULLY EXTENDED". WE HAVE APPROXIMATELY 24,000 MILES. THE PROBLEM FIRST BEGAN APPEARING AT ABOUT 19,000 MILES. *JB

DRIVING ON A TWO LANE HIGHWAY, USING THE IR LASER CRUISE CONTROL, AND FOLLOWING A PICKUP TRUCK AT A SPEED BELOW THE "SET" SPEED OF THE CRUISE SYSTEM. AS WE APPROACHED A TRAFFIC SIGNAL THE TRUCK SLOWED AND MY CRUISE APPLIED THE BRAKES ON MY 2006 TOYOTA AVALON AS IT SHOULD. I APPLIED THE BRAKE TO DISENGAGE THE CRUISE AND TO BRING THE CAR TO A STOP BEHIND THE PICKUP. AT THAT POINT, EVERYTHING APPEARED TO BE TOTALLY NORMAL. BUT AT A SPEED OF APPROXIMATELY 30 MPH THE BRAKE PETAL SUDDENLY WENT TO THE FLOOR AND THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE OF ANY BRAKES. (TOTAL BRAKE FAILURE). I MANAGED TO FIND A HOLE THRU THE TRAFFIC, BY ENTERING THE ONCOMING LANE, AND RAN THRU THE INTERSECTION (AGAINST THE RED LIGHT), AND MANAGED TO AVOID VEHICLES AT THE LIGHT BY TURNING LEFT 90 DEGREES. FORTUNATELY, OTHER DRIVERS AT THE INTERSECTION APPARENTLY SAW ME COMING AND HELD THEIR POSITIONS. THE CAR FINALLY STOPPED ROLLING ABOUT 100 YARDS BEYOND THE INTERSECTION. I SHIFTED INTO "PARK" AND TRIED TO ASSESS THE SITUATION. THE ENGINE CONTINUED TO RUN, AND WHEN I STEPPED ON THE BRAKES AGAIN, THE PEDAL RESPONDED AS NORMAL. THE LIGHT ON THE DASH INDICATED THAT THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS DISENGAGED, AND THERE WAS NO OTHER WARNING LIGHT NOTICED. I HAD THE VEHICLE TRANSPORTED TO SCOTTSBORO, AL BY FLATBED TRUCK. IT HAS BEEN AT THE TOYOTA DEALERS FOR THE PAST SIX DAYS. THEY CHECKED THE COMPUTER FOR CODES, AND TELL ME THAT NO CODES WERE STORED. THEY ALSO SAID THEY CALLED TOYOTA TO SEE IF THEY HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE WITH A FAILURE OF THIS NATURE, AND TOYOTA APPARENTLY TOLD THEM THEY DID NOT. INSPECTION OF THE VEHICLE DID TURN UP A PROBLEM WITH THE IR LASER SENSOR, WHICH WAS MISALIGNED, BUT THE DEALER TOLD ME THAT WOULD NOT CAUSE A BRAKE FAILURE. INABILITY TO STOP A VEHICLE IS A SIGNIFICANT SAFETY ISSUE. HAD THE TRAFFIC PULLED INTO THE INTERSECTION AS THEY SHOULD HAVE, I WOULD HAVE HAD NO PLACE TO GO, AND AN SERIOUS ACCIDENT WOULD HAVE OCCURRED. *TR

LASER CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM: WHEN THE SYSTEM DETECTS A VEHICLE/OBJECT WITHIN THE PROGRAMMED FOLLOWING DISTANCE IT SLOWS THE VEHICLE AS DESIGNED. WHEN THE VEHICLE/OBJECT THEN LEAVES THE DETECTION ZONE THE VEHICLE WILL, IF IT HAS SLOWED SIGNIFICANTLY, SUDDENLY DOWN SHIFT AND ACCELERATE VERY QUICKLY. THIS COULD LEAD TO LOSS OF CONTROL AND POSSIBLY CAUSE A COLLISION WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE IF YOU HAVE CHANGED LANES TO OVERTAKE THE VEHICLE THAT CAUSED YOU TO SLOW. I CANNOT THINK THAT THE MANUFACTURER INTENDED THE SYSTEM TO WORK IN THIS MANNER , BUT IT SEEMS TO BE COMMON ACROSS ALL OF THESE VEHICLES AND NOT A FAILURE. *AK

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE REAR MIDDLE SEAT BURNED. THE CAUSE COULD HAVE POSSIBLY STEMMED FROM A PIECE OF METAL ATTACHED TO A PURSE RESTING ON THE SEAT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT SMOKE BEGAN TO RISE FROM BETWEEN HER CHILD'S LEGS WHERE THE PURSE WAS LOCATED. SHE LOOKED AT THE BACK SEAT, AND DISCOVERED THREE BURNED HOLES ON THE REAR MIDDLE SEAT. THE LOCAL DEALER TOOK PICTURES OF THE FAILURE AND SENT THEM TO THEIR CORPORATE OFFICE. THE ORIGIN OF THE FIRE WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT MILEAGE IS 45,000, AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 44,445.*AK THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE WAS TO BE INSPECTED ON MAY 15, 2007. UPDATED 05/23/07. *JB UPDATED 06/08/07 *TR UPDATED 02/01/08 *LJ

I' HAD CONTINUOUS PROBLEMS SINCE THE FIRST DAY OF OWNERSHIP, APRIL 2006 WITH THE TRANSMISSION/LINKAGE SLIPPING/NOT ENGAGING AT SLOW SPEEDS. IT WAS PARTICULARLY NOTICEABLE WHEN MAKING TURNS, BUT ALSO OCCURS WHEN SLOWING DOWN, AND THEN ATTEMPTING TO SPEED UP. ATTEMPTS TO HAVE THE PROBLEM REPAIRED BY THE DEALERSHIP HAVE BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL; THEY REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE IS EVEN A PROBLEM!*AK

MY WIFE LEFT WORK AND EXPERIENCED BRAKING PROBLEMS, HAD TO PUMP BRAKES TO STOP. A FEW HUNDRED FEET LATER SHE CAME TO AN INTERSECTION AND APPLIED THE BRAKES, WHICH DID NOT WORK. SHE ROLLED INTO THE INTERSECTION WITH ONCOMING TRAFFIC. TO AVOID BEING T - BONED SHE ACCELERATED AND RAN OFF AN AJACENT ROADWAY STRIKING TREES. THE CAR WAS TOTALLED, AND SHE AND MY TWO SONS HAD TO BE EXTRICATED FROM THE VEHICLE, SUFFERING ONLY MINOR INJURIES. HER ACTIONS TO PROTECT HERSELF AND MY CHILDREN RESULTED IN THE COLLISION, AVOIDING A RIVER WITH HIGH RAPID RUNNING WATER. *AK

TL*- THE CONTACT STATED THAT EVERY TIME HE COMPLETED A TURN IN THE 2006 TOYOTA AVALON ( WITH FAILURE MILEAGE: 5 MILES AT SLOW RATE OF SPEED UNDER 20 MPH, WITH THE FOOT ON THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. THEN, WITHOUT ANY WARNING ,THE TRANSMISSION ENGAGED AND THE VEHICLE JERKED. THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALER, WHO STATED THAT THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE AND COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 22,109.*AK