Cal Club Autocross Forums

Ms. Marseille said in an interview Tuesday that she was entering a parking space near a library when she heard the engine roar. "I looked down and my foot was still on the brake, so I did not have my foot on the gas pedal," she said.

Police in Sheboygan Falls, Wis., investigated and believe driver error was to blame, Chief Steven Riffel said Tuesday. He said surveillance video showed that the brake lights didn't illuminate until after the crash. But Mr. Riffel said that determination is preliminary and that his agency has turned over the investigation to NHTSA.

Based on the black box data, NHTSA investigators found that the brake was not engaged and the throttle was wide open, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Ms. Marseille sticks by her story. "It makes me very angry when someone tells me, 'She probably hit the gas pedal instead,' because I think it's a sexist comment, an ageist comment," she said.

Bob Beamesderfer wrote:I wouldn't say they're completely off the hook, but it changes the perspective.

Will Kalman wrote:This is easy to prove: look at the number of unintended acceleration incidents over time. If the graph follows along with the number of cars on the road that are believed to be affected (i.e. year and model) then it *could* be a car issue. If the number of incidents follows some other curve, say.... a huge bump of reports just as this was breaking news and an unexplained tapering off, then I call foul on car problems.

Leonard Cachola wrote:

Will Kalman wrote:This is easy to prove: look at the number of unintended acceleration incidents over time. If the graph follows along with the number of cars on the road that are believed to be affected (i.e. year and model) then it *could* be a car issue. If the number of incidents follows some other curve, say.... a huge bump of reports just as this was breaking news and an unexplained tapering off, then I call foul on car problems.

Looks like you got your wish:

http://tinyurl.com/29acods