NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Defect Petition DP08-001: SUDDEN AND UNCONTROLLED ACCELERATION
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Defect Petition DP08-001 on January 31, 2008 and closed it on August 27, 2008. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2006–2007 Toyota Tacoma for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- DP08-001 (also written DP08001)
- Investigation type
- Defect Petition A petition asking NHTSA to open a defect investigation; NHTSA grants or denies it, and granting one opens an investigation.
- Status
- Closed August 27, 2008
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Toyota Motor Corporation
- Components
- Vehicle Speed Control; Vehicle Speed Control — Accelerator Pedal; Vehicle Speed Control — Cruise Control
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2006–2007 Toyota Tacoma
A recall appears here only when NHTSA's investigations file links one to the investigation; NHTSA's summary or record can name others.
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Defect Petition DP08-001.
THE PETITIONER OWNS A MODEL YEAR (MY) 2006 TOYOTA TACOMA EQUIPPED WITH A V6 ENGINE AND AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION.IN A PETITION SENT TO NHTSA'S OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) DATED JANUARY 10, 2008, HE ALLEGES HE EXPERIENCED TWO INCIDENTS OF UNWANTED ACCELERATION WHILE DRIVING HIS TACOMA.THE PETITIONER REPORTED THAT DURING BOTH INCIDENTS, WHILE APPLYING THE BRAKE, THE ENGINE SPEED INCREASED OF ITS OWN ACCORD (WITHOUT ACCELERATOR APPLICATION), CAUSING SUDDEN AND UNCONTROLLED ACCELERATION.THE PETITIONER REQUESTED THAT THE AGENCY COMMENCE A PROCEEDING TO DETERMINE THE EXISTENCE OF A DEFECT RELATED TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY INVOLVING THE ELECTRONICALLY ACTUATED THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM.ODI REVIEWED THE PETITION, ASSESSED VOQS, INTERVIEWED PERSONS WHO FILED VOQS, TESTED THE VEHICLE, AND REVIEWED TOYOTA'S RESPONSE TO AN AGENCY INFORMATION REQUEST.THE COMPLAINTS FELL INTO THREE GROUPS.A MAJORITY OF THE COMPLAINTS MAY HAVE INVOLVED THE TACOMA'S THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM.SOME COMPLAINTS DID NOT INVOLVE A FAILURE OF THE THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM.FOR THE REMAINING REPORTS, ALTHOUGH THERE MAY HAVE BEEN AN ISSUE WITH THE THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM AS ONE POSSIBLE EXPLANATION, WE HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO DETERMINE A CAUSE RELATED TO THROTTLE CONTROL OR ANY UNDERLYING CAUSE THAT GAVE RISE TO THE COMPLAINT.FOR THOSE VEHICLES WHERE THE THROTTLE CONTROL SYSTEM DID NOT PERFORM AS THE OWNER BELIEVES IT SHOULD HAVE, THE INFORMATION SUGGESTING A POSSIBLE DEFECT RELATED TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY IS QUITE LIMITED.ADDITIONAL INVESTIGATION IS UNLIKELY TO RESULT IN A FINDING THAT A DEFECT RELATED TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY EXISTS OR A NHTSA ORDER FOR THE NOTIFICATION AND REMEDY OF A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT AS REQUESTED BY THE PETITIONER.THEREFORE, IN VIEW OF THE NEED TO ALLOCATE AND PRIORITIZE NHTSA'S LIMITED RESOURCES TO BEST ACCOMPLISH THE AGENCY'S SAFETY MISSION, THE PETITION IS DENIED.PLEASE SEE THEFEDERAL REGISTER NOTICE FOR FURTHER DETAILS.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Defect Petition DP08-001. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to that page's NHTSA investigations section.
Toyota
All Toyota recallsWhat an NHTSA investigation is
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) looks into possible safety defects in vehicles and equipment, often after owner complaints. An investigation usually starts as a Preliminary Evaluation, or as a Recall Query when it concerns whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or fixes the problem, and ODI can upgrade it to a more detailed Engineering Analysis. A Defect Petition asks NHTSA to open an investigation, and Audit and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations into whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules.
An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.
To see whether a specific vehicle has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Toyota VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for DP08-001
Investigation details come from NHTSA's investigations file, which try.vin imports once a day. The investigation types are described from the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General's May 2023 report on NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation, NHTSA's petition rules (49 CFR Parts 552 and 557) and NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation procedures. How try.vin reads NHTSA investigations.