Incident: Toyota's Global Vehicle Recall Crisis: Accelerator and Braking System Failures

Published Date: 2010-01-29

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident involving Toyota's Prius hybrid model, which could result in another recall, was reported on February 3, 2010 [37].
System 1. Accelerator pedals in Toyota vehicles [37, 37, 37] 2. Anti-lock braking system in third-generation Prius cars [37] 3. Brake-override system in future Toyota models [37]
Responsible Organization 1. Toyota - The software failure incidents, such as faulty accelerator pedals and braking issues in the Prius hybrid model, were caused by defects in Toyota's software systems [37].
Impacted Organization 1. Customers worldwide, including in the US, Europe, and China, who owned Toyota vehicles affected by the recalls due to accelerator pedal issues and braking problems [37, 37, 37]. 2. Toyota as a company faced significant financial losses and damage to its reputation due to the software failure incidents [37].
Software Causes 1. unknown
Non-software Causes 1. Economic crisis affecting Toyota's results [37] 2. Faulty seatbelts and exhaust systems in vehicles [37] 3. Faulty window switches in cars made in China [37] 4. Accelerator pedals becoming trapped in floormats [37] 5. Braking problems reported in new Prius models [37] 6. Delay in informing authorities about safety issues [37]
Impacts 1. Toyota suffered significant financial losses, admitting to $2bn in extra costs as a result of the global safety recall affecting millions of cars [37]. 2. Sales were negatively impacted, with Toyota's executive in charge of quality control stating that the recall operation was likely to have a bigger effect on sales than previous recalls and had already hit sales in January [37]. 3. Toyota faced a crisis in reputation and public trust, leading to the company's president, Akio Toyoda, issuing a public apology for the sticky accelerator problem and acknowledging the challenges ahead [37]. 4. The US government demanded documents from Toyota to show whether the company acted promptly with the safety issues in its cars, indicating potential regulatory scrutiny and legal implications [37]. 5. Toyota announced the installation of a brake-override system in all future models worldwide and considered a recall of the Corolla due to possible power-steering problems, indicating a need for significant corrective actions and changes in manufacturing processes [37].
Preventions 1. Implementing thorough software testing procedures to detect any potential issues before the vehicles are released to the market [37]. 2. Ensuring timely communication and collaboration between the company and relevant regulatory bodies to address safety concerns promptly [37]. 3. Conducting regular software quality assessments and audits to identify and rectify any software-related issues proactively [37]. 4. Prioritizing safety over cost-saving measures and ensuring that all safety-related concerns are addressed promptly and effectively [37].
Fixes 1. Implementing a software upgrade in the anti-lock braking system for all third-generation Prius cars manufactured before 27 January 2010 [37]. 2. Installing a brake-override system in all future Toyota models worldwide [37].
References 1. US Congressional investigators [Article 37] 2. US safety regulators [Article 37] 3. UK's Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (Vosa) [Article 37]

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring unknown The articles do not mention any specific software failure incidents related to either one_organization or multiple_organization. Therefore, the information regarding the recurrence of a software failure incident within the same organization or across multiple organizations is unknown based on the provided articles.
Phase (Design/Operation) operation (a) The articles do not mention any software failure incident related to the design phase, where contributing factors are introduced by system development, system updates, or procedures to operate or maintain the system. (b) The software failure incidents mentioned in the articles are more related to the operation phase, where contributing factors are introduced by the operation or misuse of the system. For example, there were reports of accelerator pedals becoming trapped in floormats, potentially leading to high vehicle speeds and difficulty in stopping the vehicle, which could cause crashes, serious injuries, or deaths [37]. Additionally, there were reports of a new defect in Toyota's Prius hybrid model that could result in a recall, with complaints of momentary loss of braking ability at low speeds on bumpy roads [37]. These incidents point towards failures related to the operation or use of the vehicles rather than issues stemming from the design phase.
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) within_system: - The software failure incidents reported in the articles are primarily related to issues within Toyota's vehicles, such as faulty accelerator pedals, braking problems, and defects in the anti-lock braking system [37]. - Toyota faced challenges with the global safety recall affecting millions of cars due to internal issues like sticky accelerator pedals and braking problems [37]. - The recall of all third-generation Prius cars for a software upgrade in the anti-lock braking system indicates an internal software issue within the vehicles [37]. (b) outside_system: - There is no specific mention in the articles of the software failure incidents being caused by contributing factors originating from outside the system. The failures primarily seem to stem from internal issues within Toyota's vehicles and systems [37].
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions, human_actions (a) The software failure incident occurring due to non-human actions: - The article mentions a defect reported in Toyota's Prius hybrid model that could result in yet another recall, with US authorities investigating complaints about momentary loss of braking ability at low speeds on bumpy roads [37]. - Toyota in the UK states that a 30-minute repair will be carried out at Toyota-approved service centers for the affected vehicles [37]. - Toyota confirms a global recall of all third-generation Prius cars manufactured before a certain date for a software upgrade in the anti-lock braking system, ensuring that the cars are safe to drive [37]. (b) The software failure incident occurring due to human actions: - It is revealed that Toyota treated the accelerator fault as a quality issue rather than a safety issue initially and failed to inform the UK's Vehicle and Operator Services Agency about the fault promptly [37]. - Toyota staff boasted about saving the company money by persuading American regulators that a full recall was not necessary over problems with floor mats, as shown in leaked emails [37].
Dimension (Hardware/Software) hardware, software (a) The software failure incident occurring due to hardware: - The incident involving Toyota's Prius hybrid model reported a defect that could result in a recall due to a momentary loss of braking ability at low speeds on bumpy roads, which could be attributed to hardware issues [37]. (b) The software failure incident occurring due to software: - The software failure incidents related to Toyota's accelerator pedals and the anti-lock braking system in the Prius were primarily due to software issues, leading to recalls and safety concerns [37].
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) non-malicious (a) In this case, the software failure incident related to the Toyota recalls is non-malicious. The failures were primarily due to issues with the accelerator pedals, floor mats, and braking systems in Toyota vehicles, which were not introduced with the intent to harm the system. The recalls were initiated to address safety concerns and prevent accidents, injuries, or fatalities caused by these defects. The failures were a result of design flaws and quality control issues rather than malicious actions by individuals [37].
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) unknown The articles do not mention any software failure incident related to poor_decisions or accidental_decisions.
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) unknown (a) The articles do not mention any software failure incident related to development incompetence. (b) The software failure incidents reported in the articles related to Toyota were not due to accidental factors but rather stemmed from design and manufacturing issues, particularly related to accelerator pedals and braking systems. These issues were not accidental but rather resulted from specific design flaws and quality control problems within the manufacturing process [37].
Duration permanent, temporary (a) The software failure incident related to the Toyota recalls can be considered as a permanent failure. The recalls initiated by Toyota due to various issues such as accelerator pedal entrapment risks, faulty window switches, and braking problems in the Prius hybrid model were significant and ongoing over a period of time. The recalls affected millions of vehicles worldwide, leading to substantial financial costs for Toyota [37]. (b) On the other hand, the software failure incident can also be seen as a temporary failure in some aspects. For example, the specific issues like the momentary loss of braking ability at low speeds on bumpy roads in the Prius hybrid model were reported as new defects that could result in yet another recall. In response to this, Toyota announced a global recall of all third-generation Prius cars manufactured before a certain date for a software upgrade in the anti-lock braking system, indicating a temporary fix to address the issue [37].
Behaviour omission, timing, value, other (a) crash: The articles do not mention any specific software crashes where the system lost state and did not perform any of its intended functions. (b) omission: The software failure incident related to omission can be seen in the delay in informing the UK's Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (Vosa) about the accelerator fault until 22 January 2010, after the government demanded information [Article 37]. (c) timing: The timing of the software failure incident is evident in the delay in informing authorities and the public about the accelerator fault, as well as the delay in recalling affected vehicles promptly after the issue was identified [Article 37]. (d) value: The software failure incident related to value can be observed in the reports of a new defect in Toyota's Prius hybrid model that could result in another recall, with Prius owners reporting momentary loss of braking ability at low speeds on bumpy roads [Article 37]. (e) byzantine: The articles do not mention any specific instances of the software behaving erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. (f) other: The software failure incident also involved a failure to treat the accelerator fault as a safety issue when it was first identified, leading to delays in addressing the problem promptly [Article 37].

IoT System Layer

Layer Option Rationale
Perception None None
Communication None None
Application None None

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence death, harm, property (a) death: People lost their lives due to the software failure - A man jailed after crashing his Toyota, killing three people, demands a retrial, and relatives of the victims support him [37]. (b) harm: People were physically harmed due to the software failure - Toyota owners in the UK and US are advised by lawyers to stop driving their cars immediately amid growing concern over the potentially lethal accelerator fault [37]. (d) property: People's material goods, money, or data was impacted due to the software failure - Toyota admits it will suffer $2bn in extra costs as a result of the global safety recall affecting millions of cars [37].
Domain transportation, manufacturing The software failure incident reported in the articles is related to the automotive industry, specifically affecting Toyota vehicles. The incidents involved various issues such as faulty accelerator pedals, potential braking problems, and defects in the Prius hybrid model. These failures led to a series of recalls, production halts, financial losses, and investigations by regulatory authorities [37].

Sources

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