Fokker

Except that outside the few random possibilities of floormat/pedal interaction issues, the reported unintended acceleration was driver error. The floormat issue had already had recalls issued over it prior to the 2009 incident which sparked the media storm. Toyota should have never had to pay. The Frankenstein mess that engineers have to cobble together produce unintended acceleration events by bypassing the electronic safeties will never happen anywhere outside an experiment to achieve exactly that intended result. http://www.nhtsa.gov/UA and http://www.caranddriver.com/features...-scare-feature

It was a media witch hunt driven by ignorant people and people with an axe to grind. They stirred up a public panic over what was a non-existent issue. (shades of Corvair here) This issue is compounded and created by the severe lack of quality driver education that exists across the country.

GM is actively covering up found faults to protect a bottom line. Hopefully GM pays through the nose three fold.

dlq04

I agree. Toyota's deal was like Audi's many years back......... driver error blown way out of proportion. Not so with GM.

zeroptzero

Some of those keychains really looked a bit ridiculous. I'm not defending GM, but jeez the crap that some of those drivers had on their keychains were a bit over the top. I'm not saying anyone deserved to die and many young people just don't think about a heavy keychain causing issues. GM could have corrected the problem with a very small and cheap fix, it's a shame it went as far as it did. I still don't like seeing huge keychains on any ignition key, regardless of the design.

RedY2KS2k

Yeah, the Audi 5000 "unintended acceleration" brouhaha was a farce: owners claimed that their foot was on the brake rather than the accelerator while the car accelerated; no production car has ever had enough torque to overcome the brakes from a standstill. Bracket racers with highly modified engines (much more power/torque than stock) and automatic transmissions brake torque at the line, revving the engine with the brakes applied (foot on the pedal or "line lock") and the car doesn't move until the brakes are released. And remember, back in the 80s there was much less interaction between the engine and the brakes than on some cars today. "Unintended acceleration" was either simultaneous failure of two systems that weren't interconnected, that could never be duplicated; or it was driver error. Only a jury of composed of products of the American educational system could have concluded that it was Audi's fault.

Legal Bill

Just talked to my brother about this last night. He loves the VA. It really seems to depend on where you live. Here in Boston, the specialists you get are all people who are on staff with the leading big-name private hospitals in the area. My brother got his knee scoped by the same doctor that takes care of the Red Sox. As for wait time, he says it is very short here. There are three VA hospitals in the Boston area. In his view, even if he paid for a "cadillac" medical plan, he would be seeing the same doctors.

dlq04

Thats good to hear.

toekneer

The space shuttle had o-ring problems at low temperatures. Engineer reported it but he wasn't the go/abort decision maker. Corporate culture and decion makers willing to risk other people's lives should be criminally liable. Ford Pinto, Bhopal and an endless list of amoral unethical decision makers. If corporations are people shouldn't someone be charged and tried?

Sent by carrier pigeon

boltonblue

and from www.imgur.com

Jet sitter

Thats good to hear.
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We are in good shape with the VA in Kentucky. Both Lexington and Louisville VA's have <30 day wait for 98% of veterans. The VA in Louisville has contracts with several hospitals in the area and even some out of state for surgeries that they can't perform at their facility. I've even spoken with people who come from other states, to use the Louisville facility. I still use my civilian doctor for my yearly physical, but I have to say when I do go to the VA, they are prompt, professional, and courteous.

dlq04

Thats good to hear.
[/quote]


We are in good shape with the VA in Kentucky. Both Lexington and Louisville VA's have <30 day wait for 98% of veterans. The VA in Louisville has contracts with several hospitals in the area and even some out of state for surgeries that they can't perform at their facility. I've even spoken with people who come from other states, to use the Louisville facility. I still use my civilian doctor for my yearly physical, but I have to say when I do go to the VA, they are prompt, professional, and courteous.
[/quote]

Damn good hear, so it is a local or regional issue, rather than everywhere. I've got a cousin back in PA, an Annapolis grad, who really needs all the VA help he can get. We are not in touch with one another so I've no idea how his life is going. Last I knew he was bar tending at a VFW.