(U.S. Department of Transportation: Washington, DC) -- The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) released results from an unprecedented 10-month study of potential electronic causes of unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) launched the study last spring at the request of Congress, and enlisted NASA engineers with expertise in areas such as computer-controlled electronic systems, electromagnetic interference, and software integrity to conduct new research into whether electronic systems or electromagnetic interference played a role in incidents of unintended acceleration.

NASA engineers found no electronic flaws in Toyota vehicles capable of producing the large throttle openings required to create dangerous high-speed unintended acceleration incidents. The two mechanical safety defects identified by NHTSA more than a year ago—“sticking” accelerator pedals and a design flaw that enabled accelerator pedals to become trapped by floor mats—remain the only known causes for these kinds of unsafe unintended acceleration incidents. Toyota has recalled nearly eight million vehicles in the United States for these two defects.

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