The PR nightmare continues unabated for Toyota (TM). As they continue to deny that electronics malfunctions are playing a role in the runaway acceleration issue comes news that another Toyoto Prius sent its owner on anything but a Sunday afternoon joy ride.
James Sikes of San Diego said that his 2008 Toyota Prius hybrid accelerated to nearly 100MPH on its own. He said the mat wasn’t propping up the accelerator and that he tried to pull the accelerator back to no avail. Toyota has sent a team to investigate.
Sikes took the vehicle to the dealership just two weeks ago for repairs after receiving a recall notice but was turned away because the vehicle was only covered by the floor mat recall, not the sticky accelerator recall.
For a company that is under intense scrutiny, it’s another embarrassment in a long string of embarrassments that seem endless. As for the stock price, it appears most of the negative news has been priced in with strong support around that 70 level. A return to that level may offer a great long term opportunity.
Toyota has always hidden its defects including roll over problems even with their sedans.If they think they will lose a lawsuit and have to verify the true imformation about the number of accidents they just settle out of court!