2008 Toyota Yaris: sudden unintended acceleration

8 of the 218 complaints about the 2008 Toyota Yaris describe sudden unintended acceleration.

owner complaints: 8
of this car's complaints: 4%
recalls: 0

Is there a fix? 2 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below

Sudden unintended acceleration by model year

2015
2
2012
1
2010
1
2009
4
2008
8
2007
6

What owners say

Filed Aug 10, 2017 · Acceleration · MA · crash · 1 injury

Tl* the contact owned a 2008 toyota yaris. The contact stated that while driving at 45 MPH, the vehicle accelerated without warning. The contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to stop. As a result, the vehicle crashed into a tree. The contact stated that when the vehicle hit the tree her head went through the driver's side window as well as suffering injuries to her ribs, broken collar bone, broken shoulder, punctured lung, and a ruptured spleen that required medical attention. The air bags did deploy. The contact stated that to her knowledge a police report was not filed. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and stated that the contact had a different vehicle. The failure mileage was unavailable.

Filed May 13, 2011 · Acceleration, Electrical · 39,500 miles · VA

I was driving my yaris and attempted to pass another vehicle on a 4-lane road. I pressed on the accelerator pedal as I entered the left lane and nothing happened. The pedal went halfway down, but the engine did not respond. As I quickly tried to decide what to do as a car in the left lane behind me came up fast, the engine responded unexpectedly and I surged forward. The next time I depressed the pedal, it responded normally at the top of its travel. However, it happened again about 3 weeks later when I was stopped at a red light. The light changed and I pressed on the accelerator. Again, no response. This happened on and off until last week when it started to become more common than the normal response. Since I didn't want to pay toyota for an expensive fix only a few thousand miles after my warranty ran out, I resolved to get used to it. I adjusted my actions so I didn't expect an immediate response from the car until the pedal got part way down to the floor and, though I'm sure it affected my gas mileage, I could deal with it. Then yesterday, as I pulled into my garage, the pedal response suddenly went back to normal and I almost went through the back of the garage. I bought this car (and one for my wife as well) because of toyota's reputation for reliability and its fuel economy. Now I don't know what to expect. I have read that lexus owners have reported the same problem. This is annoying, reduces gas mileage, and could be very dangerous.

Filed Feb 18, 2011 · Brakes, Engine · 17,125 miles · OH · crash

Stopped to place a fast food order-moved up to pay-truck in front waiting to pay-had foot on break--car lunged forward and hit the truck in front-the engine revved up while I had my foot on the break-I even pushed down harder on the break.

Filed Jun 2, 2010 · Acceleration · NY

2008 toyota yaris. Consumer states sudden unintended acceleration *tgw the consumer stated while driving, the vehicle suddenly accelerated and swerved to the right in the direction of a wall at a very rapid speed. The consumer tried to steer the vehicle back into her lane, but then it made a rapid 360-degree turn and stopped in the opposite direction, with three lanes of traffic in front of her. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for an inspection, however they were unable to find any mechanical issues.

Filed May 6, 2010 · Acceleration · CA · crash · 1 injury

2008 toyota yaris. Consumer states unintended acceleration which resulted in an accident. *tgw the consumer stated the pedal became stuck and would not release. *jb the consumers brother was driving the vehicle at the time of the accident. Updated 07/09/10.

Filed Mar 23, 2010 · Acceleration · 14,200 miles · OH

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 toyota yaris. While driving at speeds of 55 MPH, the vehicle abnormally accelerated without warning. After depressing the brake pedal several times, the contact was able to stop the unintended acceleration. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for further inspection. The contact confirmed that he experienced the failure on at least two occasions. The failure mileage was 14200. The current mileage was 14,400. Updated 06/25/10. *lj updated 06/29/10.

Filed Jan 28, 2010 · Acceleration · FL · crash · 1 injury

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 toyota yaris. While driving approximately 5 MPH into a parking space applying pressure to the brake pedal the vehicle began to lunge forward forcefully. The driver placed the gear shift into the "reverse" position and suddenly, there was an unintended increase in acceleration. The vehicle failed to slow down and traveled over a curb into some bushes. The gear shift was placed into the "neutral" position before the vehicle came to a complete stop. The ambulance and police were called to the scene. There were injuries. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer. The body damage repair cost was $4,523.94. The cause of failure has not been determined at this time. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Nov 4, 2009 · Acceleration · 3,500 miles · NY · crash

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 toyota yaris. After shifting into neutral gear and exiting the car wash, the vehicle accelerated without warning. As a consequence he crashed into a fence. The front end of the vehicle and the windshield were damaged. There were no injuries. His license was suspended, and his insurance increase twice the amount because of the crash. The vehicle was repaired. Report number [xxx] was filed with the manufacturer. An authorized investigator inspected the failure and concluded that nothing was wrong with the vehicle. The failure mileage was 3,500 and the current mileage was 6,000. The vehicle identification number was unavailable. Updated 11/23/09. *lj