Are Toyota owners really safe to be behind the wheel of their cars?
Toyota drivers are no worse than anybody else. It is a clear fact that their cars are historically among the safest and most reliable on the road. The current recalls are the worst that they have had but other makers have much worse records. Your suggestion is dangerous. Turning the engine off in moving vehicle, even if you leave the key in, is a very dangerous thing to do – at any speed. If you turn the engine off then you will lose your power steering (making the car almost impossible to steer unless you have Arnold Schwarzenegger shoulders) and you will lose the servo braking (so it will be almost impossible to stop anyway). Pressing in the clutch will cause the engine to race and probably do very expensive damage or even destroy itself. The safest thing is to dab at the brakes very hard, but releasing almost immediately so that they don’t overheat (and boil the fluid) or catch fire. This rapid “cadence braking” will slow the car enough for you to use the handbrake and gearbox to br
