2005 Toyota Avalon: jerking or lurching

Filed Dec 31, 2018 · Acceleration, Airbags · 136,000 miles · NC · crash · 1 injury

On 10/25/18 I was involved in a head on collision when my gas pedal hung and lurched forward while I was pulling into a parking space at a doctor's office. I had slowed down to park when my car jumped the curb and hit the building head on. It was 3:50 in the afternoon and a clear visibility day. The police report has my speed at about 20 MPH. My airbag didn't deploy, I did have my seatbelt on. It was straight front end damage to my car. As a result of the impact I am suffering from whiplash and possible (traumatic brain injury), also neck and back pain. I believe that the cause of this accident was the gas pedal 'sticking' and as a result of no airbag deployment causing more motion on my head, neck, and back.

Filed Aug 31, 2018 · Fuel system, Transmission · 20 miles · MN

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 toyota avalon. While driving various speeds, the vehicle shifted into neutral without warning. The contact also stated that the vehicle jerked and the gears shifted without warning. The contact further stated that the vehicle lost power. Toyota of bowie (16700 governor bridge rd, bowie, md 20716, 301‑867‑1600) was unable to duplicate the failures. The contact cited the fuel system as a possible defect. The manufacturer was made aware of the failures and stated that there was no recall on the vehicle. The failure mileage was 20.

Filed Mar 10, 2012 · Engine · 99,750 miles · MD

My check engine light came on while I was driving,and then the vsc light came on,car hesitates when gas pedal is applied then jerks and takes off almost ran in the back of a few people,went to dealer they said it was a ecu computer 1350$ had car for 8mo. Only put 8000 miles on it,was very dangerous driving this car

Filed Jul 26, 2010 · Transmission · 600 miles · AZ

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 toyota avalon. While driving at approximately 4 MPH, the vehicle began to independently change gears and jerk violently. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer for unrelated maintenance and advised the dealer of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired for the failure. The failure persisted and became progressively worse. He contacted the dealer and secured an appointment for diagnostic testing and possible repairs. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 600 and the current mileage was 21,500.

Filed Mar 4, 2010 · Acceleration · CA

I took my 2005 toyota avalon to the dealer to get fixed for its recall and when I got it back it was worse then before it accelerated funny it would make the car jerk all crazy I felt more unsafe in my car then before ....now the car is back in the dealership they said they need to reset the computer but lets see if it will work ....hopefully because I want to be able to know that I am safe in my car I would of rather had it not fixed I felt more safe then....and they said they test drove it well they should of know that it shouldn't be doing that it would jerk at 25 MPH then at 40 then after 60 it would ride smoothly....very scary experience took it back right away.

Filed Jan 20, 2008 · Acceleration · 34,900 miles · MD · crash

Weather: sunny. Engine warm - driven about 10 miles on the way to small shopping center. I'm in no hurry, stopping to browse in a favorite boutique. Looking for a parking space, slowed vehicle to a crawl while scanning the lot & then turned slowly about 45 degrees to drift into an available space when suddenly the vehicle lurched forward out of control ramming the parked vehicle facing the space I was in. I remember a loud noise - which was the engine accelerating: an unfamiliar sound when the vehicle was just about stopped. Then, the noise of the crash - about 6 ft in front of the avalon at the time of the noise & lurch. The impact stopped the car. I put it in reverse & backed away, then turned off the ignition. My foot was not on the accelerator by mistake as it had been on the brake while drifting down the aisle toward the open space - there had been no acceleration while in that aisle. To come to a complete stop in the space I would have had to apply only the slightest pressure to the brake ; therefore, if I had touched the accelerator by mistake I would have not done so with enough pressure to cause the wild acceleration. With my foot above the brake in that instant when I touched the brake to stop the lurch it didn't affect the speed of the car before impact: there was not any hesitation in the engine. No damage to the other vehicle. The avalon sustained some bumper damage and a bent hood - drivable, but I refused to drive it. While waiting for a tow truck I drove to the empty lot behind the stores and tried to repeat the event, unsuccessfully. I discovered that in order to accelerate that quickly, I would have had to have pushed the accelerator to the floor - an impossibility at the 0 miles per hour I was drifting into position in the parking space. The car accelerated suddenly and unintentional through no action on my part. The toyota dealer found nothing wrong with the car.

Filed May 1, 2006 · Acceleration · 8,450 miles · UT

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 40mph through a residential area, the vehicle operated at a reduced speed and suddenly lurched forward. The vehicle was inspected by a dealer who determined the vehicle was operating as designed and was unable to duplicate the problem. Additionally, while driving 75mph the front tire blew out without warning. Upon initial inspection, there was complete tread separation. The tire was a bridgestone, tire line size of p215/55/r17.

Filed Apr 4, 2006 · Brakes, Steering · 200 miles · UT

Transmission lags then jumps forward, transmission slips at low speeds never seems to find a gear. Steering at speeds below 40 will jerk left or right depending on the road.(scares you to death) brakes have grabbed and jerked the car from day one the dealership ground the rotors to fix this but it has not resolved the problem. The car has had the power steering hose replaced because it leaked and it still does. The cd player skip while your parked, the steering wheel needed to be replaced. We have had this car in to the dealer 5 times with none of the problems to the brakes, transmission, or steering resolved.

Filed May 9, 2005 · Transmission · 60 miles · VA

I have had repeated problems with the automatic electronic transmission in my toyota avalon 2005 limited over the past month. I have had the car to the dealership to have diagnostics done. The dealership told me there is nothing wrong with my car and I would have to "train" my car computer to drive. I have over 1500 miles on the car and I continue to have the same problems. I drive the car and make starts and stops several times without issue, then at the next stop I start out and the car seems to shift immediately to a higher gear and I have to hit the brakes to avoid hitting other cars. Other times, I will press the gas pedal and have no response for several seconds before the car takes off. It makes it very difficult to merge into traffic as I never know when the car will go or not go. There are yet other times that it will start off normally and then seem to get stuck in what seems like second gear and rev for several seconds before shifting. Previously, I have pressed the gas pedal and ended up lurching forward when the shift finally occurred. Now I let it rev until it shifts itself with no additional gas pedal depression. While this has stopped the lurching, it has left me venerable in that I can not depend on when the car will accelerate so I can avoid accidents with other vehicles, people, and objects. This has been quite frustrating. I consider it a matter of my life and death because I take coumadin and if I am in an accident, it could and quite possible would cost me my life. Please let me know what can be done to encourage toyota to deal with this problem.