Word: toyotas
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...Despite preliminary findings that Toyota's software did not play a role in the Prius acceleration, suspicion will likely linger as long as no other cause is positively identified. To put suspicions to rest, Toyota asked Exponent's experts to test the engine's software thoroughly with electromagnetic waves and electric shocks to see if they can force the engine-control modules to send the wrong signal to the throttle. Says Michels: "We haven't put any limits on them, and it could take them several months to come back with a [final] report...
...Toyota's software does have a problem, it would be a serious issue, because the computer module has gradually taken over many functions once controlled by mechanical cables. In fact, electronic controls now handle all the engine functions of modern automobiles, including the opening and closing of the throttle, the injection of fuel, the firing of spark plugs, even the operation of the catalyst limiting the engine's pollution. The same software also controls electronic stability by modulating the vehicle's throttle to help keep the car under control on slippery surfaces without any kind of input from the driver...
...electronic controls used by automakers today have helped make cars dramatically safer, notes Chris Gerdes, a Stanford University expert in automotive engineering, who has volunteered to defend Toyota. But engine software codes are closely guarded secrets, even within a company. "It's the vehicle's DNA," says Michels, echoing a sentiment expressed by other automakers. "But it's more like a calculator than the software in your PC. You are not going to get a [blank] blue screen," he says, adding that the computer inside a vehicle is a secure, sealed system that can't be contaminated from the outside...
...While it might take Toyota a while to win back its reputation for unrivaled quality, the company's long history of quality seems to be helping it through the crisis. New sales incentives offered by Toyota have helped drive up sales 40% during the first part of March...
...Mexican citizen whose wife works for the U.S. consulate, was killed at the wheel of his Honda; his two young children were wounded in the gun attack and were rushed to a hospital. Minutes later, say police, gunmen in another part of the city chased down the Toyota SUV driven by Lesley Enriquez, 25, who also worked for the consulate, and her husband Arthur Redelf, 30, both U.S. citizens who lived across the border in El Paso, Texas, and shot her in the head and him in the neck as their baby watched from an infant car seat...