And some vehicles (my Nissan Frontier, for example) will not lock the steering until the key is actually pulled out of the column. Putting the key back in does not unlock it, it must be turned before it unlocks. I used this feature when I pulled it behind my old motorhome with all wheels on the ground. Turning the key all the way off killed all power to everything so the battery would not drain. On some cars, the key had to be on (either ignition or accessories position) and one or more fuses had to be pulled to kill power. Mine is a straight-shift. However, if the WOT situation ever happened, I would turn the key off but leave the transmission and clutch engaged. Reason? With the engine still turning over, you still have power steering and power brakes. If you have ever tried braking without the vacuum boost (I have) you would fully understand what I mean. Bob R.
--- On Wed, 2/17/10, [email protected] <[email protected]> wrote: The steering lockout is still not a problem on the modern cars I have driven. On those with automatic transmission (runaway is hardly a problem on a car with manual transmission--just depress the clutch pedal to disengage power), there has always been an ignition off position before steering lockout is hit, and the key won't rotate to the steering lockout position until the transmission is in "park". So it is a simple matter to turn off the engine and not lock the steering wheel, even in a panic. I have not had any such problem so far (and don't have a Toyota), but I have practiced rotating the key to ignition off, as well as putting the transmission in neutral while under power, just in case runaway should ever happen. I guess I must be some sort of strange bird.... I recently read that my car has brake override for the throttle, so I tried that too (it works!). As far as getting a car home but needing to rev the engine to keep it running, one can always use a lower gear to keep the speed down to maintain some safety. Donald Borowski Schweitzer Engineering Labs Pullman, Washington, USA - This message is from the IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society emc-pstc discussion list. To post a message to the list, send your e-mail to <[email protected]> All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at http://www.ieeecommunities.org/emc-pstc Graphics (in well-used formats), large files, etc. can be posted to that URL. Website: http://www.ieee-pses.org/ Instructions: http://listserv.ieee.org/request/user-guide.html List rules: http://www.ieee-pses.org/listrules.html For help, send mail to the list administrators: Scott Douglas <[email protected]> Mike Cantwell <[email protected]> For policy questions, send mail to: Jim Bacher <[email protected]> David Heald <[email protected]>
