Toyota drivers waver on loyalty

Every time Glenda Simpson gets into her Toyota Camry, she thinks about the steps she should take if the car were to accelerate out of control.

"I just go through it in my mind," said Simpson, 72, "that I would put it in neutral and put on the brake."

Simpson is a Chesapeake resident who has owned five Toyotas and now has an appointment for her dealership to fix the sticky gas pedal that prompted the automaker to recall her 2008 Camry and several other models. The repair, however, won't mend her damaged confidence in the company.

"It really bothers me, because we have loved our Toyotas," Simpson said. "I'm angry at them. I feel like they didn't do everything that they should have done."

Other area Toyota owners share Simpson's sentiments. Some have grown more concerned as the Japanese automaker addresses questions from Congress about the recalls of millions of vehicles and other potential safety issues.

Problems continue to surface, including Toyota's recall of the Prius' braking system and its new investigation of the Corolla's steering system. This week, a Senate committee asked Toyota executives about independent research into the accelerator problem that indicates it could stem from electronic systems. Toyota officials said they stand by their contention that it is a mechanical, not electronic, issue.

Ann Byrum's feelings about driving her 2010 Camry have escalated from nervousness to fear, the Edenton, N.C., resident said. She bought her car in July from Checkered Flag Toyota in Virginia Beach and plans to take it to the dealership Monday to fix the gas pedal and floor mats, which the automaker also has cited as a source of problems in some vehicles.

"This may not be the real repair," Byrum said, considering the electronic findings. "I'm thinking of trading it out to get another car. I want something I can have confidence in and not be afraid of, even though it's going to cost me money."

As worried as she is, Byrum acknowledged that she has experienced no problem with her Camry.

"I'm just afraid I'm going to get in mine and it's going to run away with me," she said.

That's what Beaulah Moore said happened to her on Dec. 29, 2008, as she was headed to a water aerobics class at the Greenbrier YMCA in Chesapeake in her 2007 Camry. When she put her foot on the brake before shifting into park, the car lunged forward and drove straight into the YMCA building's brick wall, Moore recalled Thursday.

She wasn't hurt but has frightening flashbacks, imagining that she could have hit a child in the parking lot, she said. Two weeks ago, Priority Toyota fixed her gas pedal, though she hadn't yet received a recall notice from Toyota, she said.

Moore said she still believes Toyota builds good vehicles but cannot shake a bit of unease when she gets in her car.

"I feel OK," she said, "but not as OK as I could feel."

Some drivers with cars on Toyota's recall list have yet to receive notification to get the repair because the company is rolling out its notices in phases, said Steve Snyder, senior vice president of the Checkered Flag dealerships. Checkered Flag's technicians are fixing about 200 of the recalled vehicles a day by putting a steel bar inside the pedal. Based on comments from Toyota executives, Snyder said, he has no reason to believe the problem is an electronic one.

Checkered Flag has received calls from worried Toyota owners, he said. He encouraged concerned drivers to call their dealership to get information about their vehicles.

"I would say, 'If you feel unsafe in the car, bring it in,' " he said. "Let us address it."

The intensive publicity about Toyota's problems has heightened some owners' sensitivity, he said. He compared it to the barrage of news coverage of swine flu, which caused anyone with a fever to suspect they had the illness, he said.

"A lot of people start having the symptoms," Snyder said.

In this case, though, the pain for Toyota might last beyond the symptoms. Glenda Simpson and her husband have considered buying a new vehicle - not necessarily a Toyota, she said.

"I was thinking we might get a Honda this time."

Carolyn Shapiro, (757) 446-2270, carolyn.shapiro@pilotonline.com