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2003 TOYOTA SEQUOIA SR5 — STEERING

crash2 injured · 973201 · 2013-04-10

Vehicle

Make
TOYOTA
Model
SEQUOIA SR5
Year
2003
Manufacturer
Toyota Motor Corporation
Component
STEERING
Miles at failure
139,000
Speed
45 mph

Severity

Deaths
0
Injured
2
Fire
No
Crash
Yes
Police report
No
Medical attention
No
Vehicle towed
No

Narrative

WHILE DRIVING DOWN A FAMILIAR TWO LANE ROAD WITH MANY CURVES AND NOT REACHING A SPEED ABOVE 45 MPH, I CAME UPON A CURVE, BRAKED, AND STEERED MY SEQUOIA APPROPRIATELY. I WAS DRIVING ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE CURVE, BUT WHEN I TRIED TO TURN WITH THE CURVE, MY SEQUOIA HEADED TOWARD THE ONCOMING LANE OF TRAFFIC. AS IT VEERED TOWARD THE FENCE POSTS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROAD, I COULD NOT SLOW IT DOWN OR STEER IT BACK TO MY LANE. NO MATTER HOW I PRESSED THE BRAKES, IT WOULD NOT SLOW DOWN BUT INSTEAD SPED UP. THE LAST I REMEMBER IS THE REALIZATION THAT I COULD DO NOTHING TO STOP OR STEER MY SEQUOIA. I ROLLED IT 3 1/2 TIMES (THROUGH THE FENCE AND THEN BACK THROUGH IT AGAIN IN ANOTHER SPOT). MANY THANKS TO GOD, MY 3 YEAR OLD MADE IT OUT WITH BUT ONE SMALL SCRATCH ON HIS ARM AND A HUGE FEAR. HOWEVER, IT TOOK THEM 1 1/2 HOURS TO GET ME OUT AND THEN I HAD TO BE CARE-FLIGHTED DUE TO FACIAL INJURIES, HEAD TRAUMA, AND DISFIGURED LEFT ARM. ALTHOUGH MY SEQUOIA WAS SUPPOSED TO BE EQUIPPED WITH SIDE IMPACT AIRBAGS ALONG WITH FRONT AIRBAGS NOT A SINGLE AIRBAG DEPLOYED. I KNOW CERTAIN SENSORS HAVE TO BE ACTIVATED TO INFLATE AN AIRBAG SO I FEEL I NEED TO MENTION THAT THIS VEHICLE NO LONGER RESEMBLED A SEQUOIA. NO HEADLIGHTS REMAINED, ALL WINDOWS WERE GONE, THE DASH, HOOD AND ROOF COLLAPSED IN ON ME. IT TOOK ME FIVE WEEKS TO GET BEHIND THE WHEEL AGAIN AFTER FEELING SUCH HELPLESSNESS. LAST WEEK I RECEIVED A POST CARD ABOUT TOYOTA RECALLS THAT INVOLVED MY SEQUOIA SO I DECIDED TO LOOK IT UP. I GOT VER

Source

Authoritative
NHTSA ODI Flat-File Downloads
ODI Number
10505821
Machine
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