Toyota halts sales of new Lexus SUV over 'safety risk'

[Satch]

Toyota halts sales of new Lexus SUV over 'safety risk' - Telegraph

Hm. This is the Lexus GX460 which is sold in Europe and elsewhere as the Toyota Land Cruiser.

Now I have the preceding model which is 2.5 tonnes of ladder chassis long travel suspension off roadyness and not terribly different bar styling. So why is this one deemed "unsafe"?

Well, because if you stick on a track (not the natural environment for such vehicles) hoon it into a corner way too fast and then suddenly lift off mid corner (presumably to simulate the utter lack of common sense and totally crap driving skills of some US owners) the back end "slid out until the vehicle was almost sideways before the electronic stability-control system was able to regain control".

Did it roll over? No.

Did it crash? No.

Did the ESP, given the laws of physics, large rotational forces, a high mass high centre of gravity off road vehicle being driven as if a moron was at the wheel, actually recover the situation? Yes.

Essentially this consumer group is saying that any vehicle without ESP must automatically be deemed wholly unsafe. Brilliant.

 

[coupe deville]

toyota are a bit paranoid at the moment
lots of ambulance chasing lawyers champing at the bit

 

[Stratman]

toyota are a bit paranoid at the moment
lots of ambulance chasing lawyers champing at the bit

.........is the correct answer.




What do you call 100 lawyers at the bottom of the sea?

A good start.

 

[martin_a]

If it passes the Moose test which the A-Class famously failed first time out then I can't see how it can't be a safe car?

Their research may as well have said "we drove the car at a tree and it failed to take easive action"

m.

 

[npuk]

Even the moose test the a-class failed was OTT.

 

[Satch]

Even the moose test the a-class failed was OTT.

Not that it matters but it is an Elk test.

Any just to extend the trivia theme, it only exists because a managing director at SAAB was killed when his car collided with an Elk. And it gets called the Moose test because Americans do not know what am Elk is

 

[Satch]

Watch the video. And your entire problem is that you can actually get the back end to let go if you try hard enough??

What world do these people live in?

BBC News - Toyota halts Lexus GX 460 sales in US

 

[stevieb15]

Not that it matters but it is an Elk test.

Any just to extend the trivia theme, it only exists because a managing director at SAAB was killed when his car collided with an Elk. And it gets called the Moose test because Americans do not know what am Elk is

same thing different country

 

[neilrr]

Isn't that what's usually known as "oversteer"?

 

[renault12ts]

...drifting... Could any SUV go round that corner at that speed without drifting?

 

[martin_a]

Isn't that what's usually known as "oversteer"?

Correct. Perhaps they should try ... oooh any rear drive sports car!

The issue is that for an off roader it isn't 'predictable' behaviour. You'd expect it to understeer off the road not oversteer on you.

A few cars have come up against this as an issue in the past. The Pug 205 GTi was famous for lift off oversteer, Great if you knew how to drive, trouble is, many didn't which is why so many were put into trees backwards!

Likewise the Mitsubishi FTO will oversteer, rare for a front engined front wheel drive car and again has caught out a number of unsuspecting owners. Finally the Impreza used to do it. The classic shape, up to about 2000 i think will over steer.

With the 'newage' models, Subaru deliberately softened the rear suspension over the front to make the car understeer and as a result be more predictable when it finally loses traction. Quickly sorted with a new ARB right enough but still, it shows the perception by manufacturers.

I think the 'Elk' test is a good one, a sudden swerve out and back again could be a child or anything in the road so if it passes that it must be driven like a loon to actually come to grief.

m.