As I understand it, nearly every new car and truck sold in the U.S. (I don't know about identical cars sold elsewhere having this feature) has had some kind of "event recorder", at least some time after the switch to OBDII smog regs. Toyota CLAIMS their cars have them, but the computers that interface with these recorders, at least for Toyotas and Lexus vehicles are few and far between.
I really do wish car manufacturers would do a better job of "policing" themselves so that we wouldn't wind up after "problems" crop up with "band aids" that are supposed to make our lives safer. Folks won't check the inflation pressures of the tires on their (overloaded) SUVs? We will make it so EVERY vehicle sold MUST have tire pressure monitors. 1 car company makes a number of cars that "get away" from their drivers? We will FORCE all car companies to come up with a fail safe for that, too.
I doubt folks on here now, remember how in the early '70s all the car companies came out with prototypes of "safe cars". Volvo produced a "safety car" that managed to be both boxier than the 240 series AND had no sharp corners. Every car company produced pretty much the same thing as Volvo....a 3 box sedan with extensive crush zones at each end. UGH. After what looks like a repeat of the horsepower wars of the '50s and '60s, it looks like we are doomed to re-live the auto equivalent of the '70s.
