So much for that toyota quality..
Well, I dont know why you think this is all an Government conspiracy... I admit I havent been following this too closely, however my impression is that Toyota initiated this recall all on its own.
Moreover, Toyota is now recalling cars in Japan, and it looks like they will announce for Europe soon as well. Additionally, to my knowlege there hasnt been a mandatory recall on this. So, I don't see how the government has anything to do with any of this.
I'll quote the NY Times:
DETROIT Toyota Motor has come up with a remedy to fix
the millions of cars it recalled because their accelerator pedals could become stuck, dealers and a federal official said Saturday.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/business/31toyota.html
SO, wanting to know a little more, I did some digging, and I found a USA Today timeline of events.
It seems the Govt only had a beef with the floormats until Toyota told the NTSA they may have an issue with sticking accelerator pedals, and then admits problems with brake software in 2010 Prius hybrids.
Design problems happen. While a huge problem for Toyota, I dont see this as politically driven. Im impressed with how Toyota is handling this actually. I also came across an article that says Toyota is giving dealerships up to $75k to help deal with the expenses of this and to advertise once the issue is fixed.