EDITORIAL: Toyota drivers need some clarity

Confusion about the recall of millions of Toyotas has now been compounded by questions about the Prius, the automaker's top-selling hybrid. Does anybody really have a handle on this fiasco? Toyota owners need to know, and the automaker has been too slow off the mark.

The Transportation Department has now launched an investigation into possible brake problems on the 2010 Prius, which has not been recalled at this point. And while fixes for the accelerators of the recalled models have been announced, they aren't available yet at most dealers. With 8 million cars affected, an awful lot of drivers just want to know if theirs is safe. A job for government officials, right?

Not Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. In an epic blunder Wednesday, he advised that anyone with a recalled Toyota "stop driving it. And take it to a Toyota dealer." He backtracked within hours, taking back the "don't drive it" part. LaHood needs to test drive his message before he takes it on the road. hN