Seven problems related to vehicle speed control have been reported for the 1998 Toyota Avalon. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Electrical system shut down in traffic at the light, alternator was tested. Battery light stay on, lights dimmed out, lost speed. Had to get pushed out the road at a busy intersection in atlanta georgia on cleveland avenue. . Bought a second alternator, same exact incident . Once headlights are turned on at night, car looses total power. I had to drive five blocks at night without lights on ralph david abernathy blvd, atlanta georgia, even the hazard lights drained a brand new battery purchased 12/02/2018.
The contact owns a 1998 Toyota Avalon. The contact drove onto the emergency lane and put the vehicle in the park position. When the contact proceeded to drive, the vehicle's speed suddenly and independently increased up to 45 mph causing the vehicle to hit the curb and flip over. The contact suffered a broken arm and a shoulder and head injury as well as injuries to her knees. The contact was transported to the emergency room. The manufacturer was not notified. The contact was concerned that an investigation was not open on late model Toyotas. The failure mileage was 150,000.
My daughter purchased a 1998 Toyota Avalon from a private individual. My daughter's friend drove the car home because she could not drive the standard vehicle my daughter used to get the Avalon. My daughter followed in the vehicle that had standard shift. Suddenly, the Avalon began accelerating to a speed of over 90 mph while on a secondary road. My daughter's friend put both feet on the brake and the emergency brake was used, but the car did not slow down. My daughter called her friend on her cell phone to ask her why she was driving so fast. Her friend was hysterical and said the car would not stop. My daughter immediately called 911. Just before a sharp curve where she was sure she would be killed, the car stopped. Her friend got out of the car and collapsed on the ground. The police called a tow truck and assured witnesses that she just had a little scare. The car was towed to a garage in sayre, pennsylvania. Reluctant to believe that this happened as described, the mechanic decided to take the car for a drive himself. The same thing happened to him, however he used some method to get the car to stop. He told us that there was something wrong with the throttle. We contacted are local Toyota dealership about the problem; we were told that they had never heard of this happening with a Toyota. In January 2009, I was on the phone with my daughter, who now resides in tennessee. Suddenly she yelled, "my god!" after a short silence that seemed like an eternity, she said she was at a stop light behind another car. Her foot was on the brake, but the motor started revving loudly. The car then lurched forward. Before hitting the car in front of her, she put the car in park while at the same time shutting the ignition off. She told me that this has happened a couple other times recently. We called our local Toyota dealership again to inquire about the problem. They would not admit to any problems of this nature.
On or about September 19, 2005. I pulled into a parking spot aside of a shoe shop and applied my brake to stop. The 1998 Toyota Avalon which I was driving refused to stop and continued on into the side of the building at maybe 30 mph. I was sure that I had applied extreme pressure to the brake but could not stop the car. I was so distraught that I assumed that my foot slid off the brake onto the accelerator. As I think back I am sure that I was on the brake and not on the accelerator. If I was on the accelerator I would have had a jolt forward with extreme acceleration. It was like I was in a slow motion dream world and the Avalon was under its own control. I reported it to my insurance company as being my fault since I had no other reasonable explanation. I am now sure that the Avalon was under its own control and not mine. Updated 03/24/10.
When driving at low speeds the vehicle surged forward.
When applying brakes, the vehicle accelerated without warning. Dealer stated they were unable to duplicate the problem. Three times when almost completely stopped, the car suddenly lunged forward. The vehicle went over the cement and scrapped the bottom of the car, the tires had to be replaced. The consumer has a very dangerous uncontrollable vehicle.
The contact owns a 1998 Toyota Avalon. Whenever the contact attempted to accelerate or reverse at a low speed the contact noticed that the vehicle suddenly surged forward without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealership where the contact was informed that the failure could not be reproduced. The contact has noticed the failure since the day he purchased the vehicle. The VIN was not available. The current and failure mileages were 27000. Updated 03/19/10. The consumer stated there was hesitation from the vehicle when she attempted to accelerate. Updated 09/27/10.