Yourlawyer.com (Defective Vehicle Parts News)

Toyota Accident Details Released

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0800

We’ve been following a tragedy involving the deaths of a family potentially linked to faulty Lexus floor mats. Now, the LATimes writes that a federal report has found that there exists a potential defect in the design of the car’s gas pedal. The debacle also involves an earlier recall, a serious government-issued warning, and 11 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) investigations. Last month, the Toyota Motor Corporation finally agreed to issue a massive recall—its largest ever—of nearly four million of its vehicles following the deaths of the off-duty California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor and members of his family.

The fatal crash involved Saylor (45); his wife, Cleofe (45); Mahala, their 13-year-old daughter; and Chris Lastrella (38), their brother-in-law; all four perished, said Detroit News previously. Details of the chilling accident that prompted the NHTSA to investigate the crash include the 2009 Lexus plummeting over an embankment and bursting into flames. The family was able to contact a 911 operator, saying they were unable to stop the ES 350; Lastrella advised the operator that the Lexus had no brakes. Most poignantly, the 911 tape, recently made public, included the family asking one another to pray at the recording’s end, just before their deaths, said Detroit News.

Federal highway safety inspectors recently released details of that deadly crash including a finding that, reports the LATimes, involves a gas pedal design in the Lexus ES 350 sedan that actually increases the likelihood of the pedal being “obstructed” by a car’s floor mat. Including the California fatalities, the NHTSA received 100 complaints involving 17 crashes and five deaths, said Detroit News previously. One-third involved the Lexus ES 350, the Free Press said earlier.

Toyota claimed the mat was not properly installed and could have trapped the gas pedal, reported the LATimes. The NHTSA report does not make any conclusion regarding he cause, but does reveal interesting new information, including that the brakes were “heavily damaged,” which appears to confirm Lastrella’s report on the 911 call in which he said, "There's no brakes," said the LATimes.

A Times review of NHTSA documents in an other Lexus investigation indicated that the agency “found that the Lexus ES braking system loses power-assist when the throttle is fully opened, increasing braking distance five-fold,” reported the LATimes. The recent report says, "Beyond the main pivot, the lever is not hinged and has no means for relieving forces caused by interferences," quoted the LATimes, citing investigators. The report also revealed that the gas pedal’s lower edge was "bonded" to the rubber floor mat that also reveals floor mat damage in the area surrounding the accelerator.

Saylor actually owned another Lexus that was being serviced at Bob Baker Lexus in El Cajon; he was given the car involved in the fatal crash as a loaner, said the LATimes. The carmaker claims that the auto dealer incorrectly installed the mats. The NHTSA reported that the Lexus had rubber all-weather floor mats for a Lexus RX400h—sport utility vehicle—which were not secured by retaining clips, said the LATimes.

NHTSA investigators said one of the two clips pulled out of the carpeting and was found under the mat; the other clip, while attached to the carpeting, was not hooked into the floor mat, said the LATimes. Also, the Lexus’ “brake surfaces” indicated wear through “heavy braking against the full force of the 272-horsepower Lexus engine,” reported the LATimes. "Rotors were discolored and heated, had very rough surfaces, had substantial deposits of brake pad material, and showed signs of bright orange oxidation on the cooling fins consistent with endured braking," the report said. NHTSA investigators wrote that directions on how to operate the car's keyless ignition—the Power button must be pressed for three full seconds to switch the engine off when in motion—were "not indicated on the dashboard," quoted the LATimes.

The recall affects the following Toyota models: 2007 to 2010 Camry, 2005 to 2010 Avalon, 2004 to 2009 Prius, 2005 to 2010 Tacoma, and 2007 to 2010 Tundra. It also affects the following Lexus models: 2007 to 2010 ES 350 and 2006 to 2010 IS 250 and IS 350.

Toyota Officially Launches Recall

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Toyota Motor Corp. has officially recalled nearly four million of its vehicles. The recall, said Detroit News, is being issued following a number of accidents and serious incidents—one involving the deaths of a California state trooper and three members of his family—over allegedly faulty floor mats. This is the second time since 2007 that Toyota has issued a recall over floor mats.

Including the California fatalities, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) received 100 complaints that involve 17 crashes and five deaths, said Detroit News. One-third of those incidents involved the Lexus ES 350, the Free Press said previously. But, Toyota argues it "has not determined that the vehicles ... contain a safety-related defect," quoted Detroit News, but agreed to initiate its largest United States recall saying it was "willing to identify this campaign as a safety recall," according to a quote from a letter the car giant wrote to the NHTSA.

The recall was made official following Akio Toyoda’s—Toyota’s recently placed president—abject apologies and seemingly heartfelt and emotional condolences last week. "Four precious lives have been lost. I offer my deepest condolences…. Customers bought our cars because they thought they were the safest. But now we have given them cause for grave concern. I can't begin to express my remorse," quoted Detroit News citing press reports from Toyoda’s announcement late last week. Just last week. the United States government issued a so-called “urgent” warning to consumers to remove the driver floor mats in certain vehicles, over safety issues in which the mats could jam and result in the accelerator pedal to remain open and cause a car to speed uncontrollably.

The fatal crash involved off-duty highway patrol officer Mark Saylor (45); his wife, Cleofe (45); Mahala, their 13-year-old daughter; and Chris Lastrella (38), their brother-in-law; all four family members perished, said Detroit News. Details of the chilling accident that prompted the NHTSA to investigate the crash include the 2009 Lexus plummeting over an embankment and bursting into flames. The family was able to contact a 911 operator, saying they were unable to stop the ES 350; Lastrella advised the operator that the Lexus had no brakes. Most poignantly, the 911 tape, just made public, included the family asking one another to pray at the recording’s end, just before their deaths, said Detroit News.

The recall announced today includes 2007-2010 model year Toyota Camry, 2005-2010 Toyota Avalon, 2004-2009 Toyota Prius, 2005-2010 Tacoma, 2007-2010 Toyota Tundra, 2007-2010 Lexus ES350 and 2006-2010 Lexus IS250/IS350.

Toyota spokesman, Brian Lyons, said the car maker is not planning on replacing the floor mats, but will make a “vehicle fix,” reported Detroit News. The fix could entail replacing the accelerator pedal or some other amendment to remove the chance of the mat jamming under the pedal, said Detroit News. Whatever the fix, Toyota is not certain when it will be in place. Lyons said, "It will not just be the floor mat," reported Detroit News. Lyons would not provide details, but said “engineering teams” in Japan and North America are involved.

The NHTSA said that issues related to the accidents involve unsecured mats, “accelerator pedal configuration” and some keyless ignition vehicle shut-off procedures, said the Detroit News.

As we reported previously, in 2007, the automaker recalled 55,000 Camrys and Lexus ES 350s in the U.S., replacing floor mats it said could slip forward and snag the gas pedal, causing uncontrolled acceleration. At that time, the problem was implicated in eight crashes that injured 12 people.

Had Toyota not agreed to the recall, the agency would have opened its own investigation.

Safety Group Wants Jeep Grand Cherokees Recalled, Cites Fuel Tank Fires

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

A consumer safety group has called for a recall of Jeep Grand Cherokees, claiming that the vehicles have defective fuel tanks that are prone to causing fires.

In a letter to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Center for Auto Safety said a search of the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System revealed that 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees were involved in 172 fatal fire crashes with 254 fatalities between 1992 and 2002. With an additional known fatal fire crash in 2009, there have been at least 44 crashes with 64 fatalities where the "Most Harmful Event" was a fire, the group said. Nearly all of the fires and fatalities occurred in Grand Cherokees made before the 2005 model year.

The Center for Auto Safety claims that the 1993-04 Grand Cherokee has a fatal crash fire occurrence rate that is about four times higher than SUVs made by other companies. The group is calling for a recall of all 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee with a fuel tank located behind the rear axle. According to the letter sent to the NHTSA, the fuel tank of the Grand Cherokee is plastic and extends below the rear bumper so there is nothing to protect the tank from a direct hit in a rollover or by a vehicle with a low front profile or one lowered by pre-impact braking. An optional Jeep skid plate to cover the gas tank and protect it during off-road driving reduces the danger, the letter said.

The letter points out that in 2005, after Chrysler merged with Mercedes, DaimlerChrysler moved the fuel tank in board of the rear axle in 2005 and shielded it. Since the relocation of the fuel tank in 2005 and later Grand Cherokees, there has only been one fatal fire crash in the redesigned vehicle, the group said. That fire occurred after both occupants had been ejected in a rollover of a 2008 Grand Cherokee, so that the deaths were not caused by fire. According to the letter, "the defective old Grand Cherokee has a fatal fire rate six times higher than the new Grand Cherokee."

The Center for Auto Safety letter alleges that the design is so bad that that Chrysler frequently settles lawsuits without extensive discovery and subject to confidentiality agreements. It also points out that when Chrysler filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year, the automaker tried "to escape liability for all future Grand Cherokee crashes occurring after the bankruptcy where the vehicle was sold before the bankruptcy." Under intense public pressure, Chrysler relented and agreed to cover future product liability losses. However, according to the letter, the automaker is still refusing to accept responsibility for fatal crashes that occurred prior t the bankruptcy.

Toyota Apologizes For Fatal Crash Linked To Floor Mats

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Toyota shocked businesses and consumers with a recent announcement it made regarding the death of a family in a fatal accident that led to a massive vehicle recall. Freep.com reported that the president of Toyota Motor Corporation—Akio Toyoda—who is also the grandson of Toyota’s founder, publicly apologized for the family’s death in a crash that was likely the result of faulty floor mats.

Toyoda said, quoted Freep.com, that Toyota is "grasping for salvation." The recall of 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles is the automaker’s largest in United States history and is being conducted to remove floor mats, said the Detroit Free Press last week. It is believed the floor mats jammed the car’s accelerator, which led to the fatal crash that killed a California family. Lexus is the automaker’s luxury brand.

Last month we reported that Toyota advised its Lexus and Toyota dealers to inspect the installation of floor mats in certain vehicles. The warning was issued following the fatal accident in San Diego, California that involved a Lexus ES 350 sedan. The accident killed a California state trooper and three of his family members.

Speaking in Tokyo, Toyoda said, "Four precious lives have been lost. I can't begin to express my remorse," quoted Freep.com. "We have to listen to our customers and make better cars," he added. Toyota is the largest automaker and Toyoda—53—became president at the carmaker this June, noted Freep.com.

Toyota and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood are urging owners of the seven vehicle lines involved—2007-2010 Camry, 2005-2010 Avalon, 004-2009 Prius, 2005-2010 Tacoma,2007-2010 Tundra, 2007-2010 ES 350, and 2006-2010 IS 250 and IS 350—to immediately remove driver side floor mats, particularly if they are unsecured.

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), it has, to date, received reports of 102 incidents in Toyota vehicles from 2004-09 model years involving floor mats interfering with pedals. One-third of those incidents involved the Lexus ES 350, the Free Press said previously.

This is not be the first time Toyota has recalled vehicles because of a floor mat issue. As we reported previously, in 2007, the automaker recalled 55,000 Camrys and Lexus ES 350s in the U.S., replacing floor mats it said could slip forward and snag the gas pedal, causing uncontrolled acceleration. At the time of the recall, there were some 40 complaints concerning all-weather floor-mats in certain vehicles not being secured and slipping under the acceleration pedal. The problem was implicated in eight crashes that injured 12 people.

According to the Free Press, the NHTSA has opened 11 investigations into sudden acceleration issues at Toyota since 2003.

Last month, Toyota requested a seal on a U.S. lawsuit filed by a former in-house attorney, said Freep.com. The attorney claimed Toyota allegedly crash data; a judge denied the request saying the lawsuit was already “irreversibly public,” reported Freep.com.

Toyota is expected to face record losses of $5 billion this fiscal year, said Freep.com, over and above a $4.4 billion loss from its last fiscal year.

Toyota Set to Issue Massive Recall Over Deadly Floor Mats

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Toyota is poised to recall 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles because of defective floor mats. According to the Detroit Free Press, the recall will be the automaker's largest ever U.S. safety recall.

Earlier this month, we reported that Toyota had advised its Lexus and Toyota dealers to inspect the installation of floor mats in certain vehicles. The warning was issued following a fatal accident in San Diego, California that may have occurred when a floor mat in a Lexus ES 350 sedan was caught in the vehicle's gas pedal, leading to an unintended acceleration. The accident killed a California state trooper and three of his family members.

According to the Free Press, Toyota will be issuing the massive recall once the automaker determines how best to implement it. But the company and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood are urging owners of seven vehicle lines to immediately remove driver side floor mats, particularly if they are unsecured. The vehicles affected by this issue are:

2007-2010 Camry
2005-2010 Avalon
2004-2009 Prius
2005-2010 Tacoma
2007-2010 Tundra
2007-2010 ES 350
2006-2010 IS 250 and IS 350

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), it has received reports of 102 incidents in Toyota vehicles from 2004-09 model years involving floor mats interfering with pedals. A third of those incidents involved the Lexus ES 350, the Free Press said.

This will not be the first time Toyota has recalled vehicles because of a floor mat issue. As we reported previously, in 2007, the automaker recalled 55,000 Camrys and Lexus ES 350s in the U.S., replacing floor mats it said could slip forward and snag the gas pedal, causing uncontrolled acceleration. At the time of the recall, there were some 40 complaints concerning all-weather floor-mats in certain vehicles not being secured and slipping under the acceleration pedal. The problem was implicated eight crashes that injured 12 people.

According to the Free Press, the NHTSA has opened 11 investigations into sudden acceleration issues at Toyota since 2003.

Chinese-Made Tires Often Dangerous

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

We have long been covering the issue of consumer products, foods, and medications imported to the United Sates from China that have made news for toxins, high lead levels, bogus ingredients, and general defectiveness. Now, MSNBC has reported that Chinese-made tires can be included in the mix.

The two countries are arguing over trade tariffs for the tires, but some consumers are also concerned about tires coming from a country that has shown an abysmal track record for product safety. MSNBC noted that tire imports from China have increased from 15 million in 2006 to 46 million in 2008, citing the United Steelworkers union. The union—which represents rubber industry workers—has accused China of unfair trade practices, saying tire imports from China have jumped this year by an astounding 57 percent based on the weight of tires brought into U.S. docks, said MSNBC.

President Barack Obama agreed with the union, ordering higher taxes on tires imported from China in the hopes of stemming some of the imports unions say have cost thousands of Americans jobs, reported MSNBC. President Obama met with President Hu Jintao of China this week to discuss a number of issues, including trade, at the United Nations for the General Assembly meeting.

We have long been writing about the myriad problems associated with imports entering the United States from China. In recent years, imports from China have been at the center of safety worries in the United States and other countries with Chinese-made products impacting everything from medications, to toys, to consumer products, to pet food, to tooth paste. Now, some consumers might be concerned tires imported from that country are defective, posing serious safety issues.

According to tests cited by MSNBC, there could be a significant difference between tires manufactured in China for prominent brands such as Goodyear or Michelin and Chinese-made and –labeled tires and private store labels. Tire manufacturers argue that “production techniques and materials” are no different and that Chinese-made tires are of the same quality as tires made elsewhere, said MSNBC. According to Roy Littlefield, executive vice president of the Tire Industry Association, “The Chinese tires coming into this country for the most part have been safe tires…. All the tires have to be tested before they come here," MSNBC quoted.

But, last year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) investigated defective tire valve stems produced by a subsidiary of Shanghai Baolong Automotive Corp., which sold 300 million valve stems linked to one death over the product’s susceptibility to cracking, which could deflate the tire, said MSNBC. Also, two deaths were linked to defective tires—due to tread separation—manufactured by Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co.; 450,000 tires were recalled for that issue, according to MSNBC.

Chinese-branded Ling Long tires, which were tested by Car and Driver magazine found that the braking distances and cornering grip were much worse for the Ling Long than other tires tested and required about 22 additional feet, similar to one and a-half car lengths, to stop from a speed of 50 miles per hour.

Toyota Urges Inspections Following Crash

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Another automobile accident linked to faulty floor mats has prompted action from carmaker, Toyota Motor Corporation. Bloomberg.com reported that Toyota advised its United States dealers to inspect how its floor mats are installed. The request followed the deaths of a California Highway Patrol officer and three family members when a floor mat in his Lexus sedan was likely caught in the gas pedal, said Bloomberg.com.

The accident took place near San Diego, reported Bloomberg.com, on August 28 when Officer Mark Saylor was driving a loaner from a Lexus dealership, according to Toyota. In 2007, the car giant recalled 55,000 Camrys and Lexus ES 350s in the U.S., replacing floor mats it said “could slip forward and snag the gas pedal, causing uncontrolled acceleration,” said Bloomberg.com. Preliminary investigation information “indicates the cause may have been an all-weather floor mat from a different Lexus model which, if installed incorrectly in the ES350, could cause it to interfere with the accelerator pedal,” said Toyota, quoted Bloomberg.com.

“We are instructing all of our Lexus and Toyota dealers to immediately inspect their new, used and loaner fleet vehicles and we urge all other automakers, dealers, vehicle owners and the independent service and car wash industries to assure that any floor mat, whether factory or aftermarket, is correct for the vehicle and properly installed and secured,” said Toyota company spokesman Brian Lyons, in an e-mailed statement, quoted Bloomberg.com.

In 2007, AutoUnleashed, reported that there were some 40 complaints concerning all-weather floor-mats in certain vehicles not being secured and slipping under the acceleration pedal. The problems caused eight crashes and injured 12 people at the time of the report, which noted the problem involved floor mats sold with the Lexus ES 350 and the 2007/08 Toyota Camry. The Lexus ES 350 poses a unique problem in that the vehicle is engaged via push-button ignition, said AutoUnleashed, which means it cannot be stopped by turning the key.

At the time, AutoUnleashed strongly suggested owners of the Toyota Prius, Avalon, RAV4, and Tacoma check those floor mats as well. AutoRecalls also reported that about 1,700 of certain models of the 2007 Mazda Speed 3 were recalled because certain vehicles were equipped with optional all-weather floor mats which provided “insufficient clearance between” the mat and the accelerator which might cause the pedal to became stuck behind the mat resulting in improper deceleration, increasing crash risk.

In December we wrote that, according to Newsday, at least one million vehicle recalls were linked to poorly designed or incorrectly used floor mats in the past 25 years. In a case late last year, Newsday also reported that a driver lost control of his car because a “bunched-up” floor mat sent his vehicle into a storefront holiday party on Long Island, injuring eight children—aged one through eight—and six adults. That accident involved a BMW.

Newsday previously explained that mat-related automobile accidents have resulted from a number of problems in mats made by a variety of makers, including pedals sticking to mats or mats “interfering” with one or more of the pedals. Newsday noted that, in 2006, a driver in Washington State was hurt when his car crashed into a ditch after the floor mat became wedged on the gas pedal. Also that year, a boy was hospitalized and his sister died in Canada after their mother lost control of the car, said Newsday, which reported that police said the mat was most likely to blame. In another mat-related accident, a truck—when the driver was attempting to back out of a parking spot—careened down a hill in Rhode Island and through a wall of a home, said Newsday.

Feds to Probe Ford Explorer, Mercury Mountaineer SUV Transmission Dangers

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Federal regulators have opened a probe into possibly faulty transmissions on Ford Explorers and Mercury Mountaineer SUVs. According to The Atlanta Constitution-Journal, some owners of these Ford SUVs have complained that they can unexpectedly slip out of park.

Consumers have filed scores of complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) regarding transmission problems with the Explorer, the Constitution-Journal said. Most involve a delayed engagement of the transmission when the SUV is shifted from park into reverse, or into reverse from another gear. Some complaints indicate problems with the vehicle slipping into gear from park.

The alleged transmission problem is also the focus of a lawsuit that started this week in Georgia's DeKalb County. According to the Constitution-Journal, the plaintiff claims she was paralyzed after her Ford Explorer SUV slipped out of park and into reverse. Her spine was fractured after the vehicle slipped into reverse and ran over her after she exited the SUV.

Ford has blamed the woman's accident on "operator error".

The woman's Explorer was one of several Ford vehicles covered by a transmission repair service bulletin issued by the automaker in January 2005, the Constitution-Journal said. The bulletin notified owners that the factory-installed transmission fluid may over time cause their vehicles to experience “delayed/harsh reverse engagements.” Ford told owners to take vehicles to dealers, who would install a transmission fluid additive to correct the existing fluid.

The Atlanta Constitution-Journal published its report on the Ford Explorer SUV's transmission problems on April 21. Two days later, the NHTSA said it would be looking into the issue. Regulators are looking at 2002 through 2005 model year Explorers and Mountaineers; about 1.4 million of these SUVs were produced, the Constitution-Journal said.

The NHTSA's defect investigation documents says the agency has received 11 complaints of vehicle rollaways after the driver shifted the vehicle into park. In addition, 61 other vehicle owners have alleged failure of the gear shift lever mechanism while shifting from or to the park position.

While Ford maintains that it does "not see a safety risk" with the SUV transmissions, the company said it would be cooperating with the NHTSA probe.

Toyota Issues Lexus Recall, as Quality Issues, Lawsuits Mount

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0800

Toyota is recalling more than a quarter million cars worldwide, including about 49,000 Lexus models because of defective fuel pipes. According to Toyota, the defective parts on the recalled vehicles could cause cracks and corrosion and lead to a fuel leak. The Toyota recall is just the latest problem for the Japanese automaker in recent months, which has seen its long-held reputation for reliability damaged over mounting quality control issues.

Toyota, once considered to be among the most reliable car makers in the market, has quickly fallen from grace over the past several years. Last month, Consumer Reports said Toyota "is showing cracks in its armor" and will no longer get automatic recommendations from the magazine for new or redesigned vehicles. It also removed several Toyota vehicles from its recommended list because of quality issues. While Toyota is poised to overtake General Motors as the world's biggest automaker by sales as soon as this year, the company recalled 766,000 vehicles in the United States last year, up from 210,000 in 2003.

In the United States, the latest Toyota recall involves 26,274 Lexus GS300, 5,429 Lexus IS250, and 2,640 Lexus IS350 vehicles. The recalled Toyota models were exported from Japan, and the same models are also being recalled in Canada, England, and Germany. There have been 39 cases of trouble involving recalled Toyotas in Japan but no reports of injuries. It was not immediately clear whether any problems have been reported elsewhere.

Just Tuesday, a civil trial opened in California in the case of a man who was killed when the seatbelt of his 2002 Toyota Corolla jammed, leaving him trapped in a burning car. Raminder Singh, a 60-year-old security guard, and his 19-year-old son were driving to a shoe shop when theirToyota Corolla was struck by another vehicle and veered off the road and smashed into a tree. The son was able to free himself from his seatbelt, but the elder Singh's seatbelt jammed. By the time the son crawled out of the car to seek help, the car's engine had caught fire, and he could do nothing but watch as his father burned to death inside the wreckage.

The Toyota Corolla involved in Singh's death was manufactured at the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI) facility in California. Toyota and General Motors embarked on the NUMMI joint venture in 1984, and the California plant produces the Corolla subcompact, Tacoma pickup truck and the Pontiac vibe wagon. The NUMMI plant is at the center of a second California lawsuit, in which a certified auditor at the plant accuses her superiors of deleting or downgrading defect reports from her vehicle reports. Those problems included defective parts like broken seat belts and bad headlights, as well as poor braking systems and steering wheel alignment problems. The Toyota and General Motors whistleblower lawsuit also claims that managers retaliated against the employee when she objected. According to the complaint against General Motors and Toyota, the plaintiff has been receiving medical treatment for stress, depression, fatigue, insomnia and panic attacks as a result of the poor treatment she was subjected to at NUMMI.

Mitsubishi Motors To Pay Damages To Family of Man Killed In Crash

Thu, 23 Dec 2004 00:00:00 -0800

Japanese automaker Mitsubishi dogged by scandals over its coverups of auto defects has reached a settlement with the family of a man who died in a crash caused by a design flaw, a company official said Thursday.

The agreement was reached with relatives of a 39-year-old driver killed in an accident triggered by a clutch-design defect in a Mitsubishi truck he drove, said Fumio Nishizaki, a spokesman for Mitsubishi Motors Corp.

The truck crashed into a concrete embankment in western Japan after its brakes failed on Oct. 19, 2002.

Nishizaki said he could not disclose terms of the settlement because of an agreement with the victim's family members.

The Yomiuri newspaper reported that Mitsubishi Motors agreed to pay the family an unidentified amount in damages, apologized, and promised to prevent a recurrence. The family, meanwhile, promised not to file a civil suit against the automaker, the newspaper said citing unnamed people involved in the talks.

"We keenly feel our responsibility for causing a painful accident of this," Mitsubishi Motors President Hideyasu Tagaya said in a statement released Wednesday.

Tagaya said the automaker will do its utmost to ensure the safety of its vehicles.

Two of four former Mitsubishi Motors officials charged with professional negligence in the same crash also reached settlements with the family members, Nishizaki said.

Earlier this year, the Tokyo-based automaker and a truck affiliate spun off from the company, Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp., said they had failed to disclose all the problems with their vehicles in 2000 when public apologies had been offered for previous cover-ups and continued to conceal design problems.

The revelation that the company hadn't come clean stunned the Japanese public and sent Mitsubishi vehicle sales plummeting.

In the last several months, after another investigation into systematic cover-ups extending back at least 25 years, Mitsubishi Motors has announced more than 40 recalls of its vehicles.

In an opening court session for the professional negligence trial at the Yokohama District Court on Oct. 5, Yuzo Murata, a former executive overseeing truck operations, and Tatsuro Nakagami, the former head of quality control, acknowledged they failed to take appropriate safety measures.

Two other executives - Katsuhiko Kawasoe, the former head of Mitsubishi Motors, and former Mitsubishi Fuso chairman, Takashi Usami - are still contesting professional negligence charges and did not settle with the victim's family, Nishizaki said.

Two other Mitsubishi Motors officials have been charged with professional negligence in another fatal accident in which a wheel flew off a truck and crushed a pedestrian in January 2002.

The charge of professional negligence resulting in death carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison or fines of 500,000 yen ($4,800 US) upon conviction.

Mitsubishi Motors is about 20 per cent owned by DaimlerChrysler AG of Germany. The automaker spun off its truck division in January 2003.

Four-Wheel Drive Dangers

Thu, 09 Dec 2004 00:00:00 -0800

Two of the most popular vehicles on the road could be dangerous, and now the government wants many of them recalled, reports CBS News Correspondent Mika Brzezinski.

Six hundred thousand popular vehicles could be recalled if DaimlerChrysler complies with the government's demand.

The recall order covers model years 2000 to 2003 of the 4x4 Dodge Durangos and the Dakota pick-up trucks with four-wheel drive.

The government action highlights a problem first uncovered by CBS News more than a year ago.

"Unfortunately, it could have been a really deadly situation," Monique Conrad, a former Dodge Durango owner, told Brzezinski

Back then, Monique Conrad's 2000 Durango had only 31,000 miles on it when the right front wheel suddenly flew off while she was driving.

"My tire, along with a piece of metal about a foot long, was bouncing across this four-lane road," Conrad said.

Her experience along with similar complaints prompted the government to investigate possible premature wear of Dodge Durango upper ball joints a ball and socket attaching the wheel assembly the vehicle.

Since our first report, CBS News received hundreds of e-mails, photos and calls from viewers around the country like Kate McGeehan-Sawyer from Maine.

"The wheel just flew out," McGeehan-Sawyer said.

Tina Czech, from Massachusetts, experienced a similar road trauma: "The wheel had completely fallen off," she said.

And Joyce and John Gosch, truck owners from Pennsylvania, pointed to the damage: "This just ripped off," John Gosch said.

As the complaints piled up, the government expanded its investigation to include the Dodge Dakota pick-up truck, which uses the same upper ball joints. Dakota owner John Cohron, said his truck looked the same as many others with similar tire trouble, after his wheel flew off.

"So you got out of your truck and what did you see?" Cohron said. "I saw the tire and the wheel underneath the front end of the truck."

According the government, a third of the nearly 2 million vehicles investigated had defective upper ball joints. And almost all were produced at an Indiana plant. Customers paid up to $1,200 dollars to replace these parts a recall could mean a huge financial hit for DaimlerChrysler.

"The cost is certainly going to run into hundreds of millions of dollars," said Clarence Ditlow, from the Center for Auto Safety.

DaimlerChrysler also faces mounting lawsuits like the one filed by David and Christina Shaffer. They were on the highway in their Durango with their four young children when suddenly they experienced a shock of their life.

"It seemed like we went into a frenzy of flipping," David Shaffer said.

Bodies went flying everywhere. Christina who was pregnant at the time suffered numerous injuries including a broken neck. Doctors were not optimistic.

About the baby, David Shaffer said, "there was no certainty. You know they actually came to me and recommended to me to take the baby's life."

Medical bills forced the family into bankruptcy. And while they consider their new baby girl a miracle, the Shaffers say they wish DaimlerChrysler had acted sooner.

"It could have been our whole family gone," Christina Shaffer said.

In a statement issued late Thursday, DaimlerChrysler maintained that the upper ball joints do not pose a safety concern and that owners have substantial warning of any problems like noise or tire wear that would be picked up during routine inspections.

The company says it is reviewing the governments order for a recall and will respond next Monday.

Product Liability Defective Vehicle Parts Injury Attorney

Thu, 09 Dec 2004 00:00:00 -0800

Defective Vehicle Parts

Defective vehicle parts are referred to as product liability cases. Generally there are two types of defects: manufacturing and design. A manufacturing defect exists if the product itself is different from the manufacturer’s intended result, or if the product is different from apparently identical products made by the same manufacturer. A design defect exists if the product fails to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used in an intended or reasonably foreseeable manner, or, if there is a risk of danger inherent in the design which outweighs the benefits of that design.

Defective vehicle parts result in approximately 42,000 passenger fatalities a year. The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act originally enacted in 1966 gives the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) the authority to issue vehicle safety standards and to require manufacturers to recall vehicles with safety-related defects. Since then, more than 215 million cars, trucks, buses, recreational vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds, as well as 24 million tires, have been recalled to correct safety defects.

Below are just some examples of defective vehicle parts:

Steering components that may break suddenly causing partial or complete loss of vehicle control.
Problems with fuel system components, particularly in their susceptibility to crash damage, that may result in leakage of fuel and possibly cause vehicle fires.
Improperly designed or constructed tires that may blow out unexpectedly.
Accelerator controls that may break or stick.
Wheels that may crack or break, resulting in loss of vehicle control.
Fuel system defects that can cause vehicle stalling or fires.
Wiring system problems that could result in a fire or loss of lighting.

If you or a loved one has been injured because of a defective vehicle part, please fill out the form at the right for a free case evaluation by a qualified product liability attorney.