Imagine getting out of your car to toss trash and returning to find it rolling into the ocean. A Toyota bZ4X drove itself off a pier and crashed into the ocean just north of Boston after the driver forgot to put the EV in park Wednesday.
Toyota bZ4X plunges off pier and crashes into the ocean
It’s all fun and games until your new EV ends up in the ocean. According to local reports, a white Toyota bZ4X began rolling off the pier around 2 PM Wednesday with two passengers inside.
The incident happened as they were trying to eat lunch. After the driver got out to throw away his trash, he forgot to put the car in park.
Gerry, Cardona, the other passenger, was still inside and escaped through a window, he told NBC Boston.
“We came over here to have some lunch,” Cardona said. After he started to feel the car begin to roll, he “grabbed a snow brush to try to stop it” but was unsuccessful.
“Next thing you know, I did everything I could, rolled down the window, and I climbed out and jumped in the water,” Cardona explained.
The Lynn fire and police departments responded to the call at the Blossom Street Pier Ferry Terminal, saying there were no injuries.
Meanwhile, the Toyota bZ4X was a total loss after crashing into the ocean. The bZ4X is Toyota’s first mass-produced 100% electric vehicle.
Top comment by EUC
Tesla automatically engages its brakes the minute there is no buckle and there is not enough weight on the drivers seat. And frankly, a "dead man switch" feature like this should be very easy for all car companies to implement right now since they all already contain the sensors to detect if a driver is in the driver seat or not. You would have thought there would be a bigger push for this safety feature after high profile deaths that have occurred with Jeep and whatnot, but yet here we are with stories like this still happening.
Toyota revealed the updated 2024 bZ4X last month with new features, including a dual-voltage (Level 1 and 2) charging cable. New info, including estimated charge time, state of charge, and estimated range, are now shown in the MID.
Perhaps a warning for when you get out and the vehicle is not in park should be next on Toyota’s list.
The new 2024 Toyota bZ4X starts at $43,070 (not including destination) with up to 252 miles range. Toyota is also offering one year of free charging through EVgo if you buy or lease the new model.
If you’re looking for deals on Toyota’s all-electric SUV, we can help you get started today. You can use our link to score great deals on the 2023 and 2024 Toyota bZ4X at a dealer near you.
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