WASHINGTON — Scores of Toyota owners filed formal complaints with the U.S. government about mysterious problems with gas pedals, brakes and steering in recent years, sometimes after terrifying accidents. The complaints, often described in remarkable detail, exist inside an enormous database intended to alert federal investigators to early signs of looming safety problems.
But these issues — reflecting serious threats that merit full investigation — were needles in a haystack of gripes by thousands of other drivers complaining to the government about much less meaningful matters, according to a comprehensive review by The Associated Press of more than 750,000 complaints filed over more than 15 years.
They include complaints about slick pavement during snow, inconsiderate mechanics, paint chips, sloshing gasoline during fill-ups, potholes, dim headlights, bright headlights, inaccurate dashboard clocks and windshield wipers that streak.
The government’s complaint files represent its principal barometer to detect approaching storms, such as recent claims by some Toyota owners about unintended acceleration, unreliable brakes and awkward steering. But the ability of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to foresee widespread safety problems — comparing new complaints to old ones, identifying trends and disregarding aberrations — is a central issue for two oversight hearings on Capitol Hill this week as Congress considers whether the government acted quickly and aggressively enough toward Toyota to protect consumers.
