The Center for Auto Safety, a consumer advocacy group whose mission is to warn consumers about motor vehicles sold in the United States that might be dangerous, announced recently that the 2017 and 2018 model-year Nissan Rogue sports utility vehicles equipped with an automatic braking system creates an unreasonable risk of crashing. The Center for […]
Auto-Braking Feature is Dangerous
The Center for Auto Safety, a consumer advocacy group whose mission is to warn consumers about motor vehicles sold in the United States that might be dangerous, announced recently that the 2017 and 2018 model-year Nissan Rogue sports utility vehicles equipped with an automatic braking system creates an unreasonable risk of crashing. The Center for Auto Safety argued in Forbes Magazine that Nissan should recall these vehicles immediately and repair the malfunction. Failing to do so, according to the Center for Auto Safety, places the lives of the occupants of the Rogue and the lives of other people on the road in jeopardy. The automaker has not recalled these models at this time.
Nissan’s automatic emergency braking system is designed to activate when the vehicle senses an object in the path of the car. However, the autonomous braking system misinterprets data and inadvertently stops the vehicle. The problem arises, naturally, when there is no threat, but the car stops anyway. The unanticipated stop could cause a chain reaction accident resulting in loss of life, infliction of serious injuries, and substantial property losses.
To date, the Center for Auto Safety is aware of 87 consumer complaints regarding automatic braking system engagement. Nissan has tried to repair the problem on an individualized basis. The Center for Auto Safety opines that trying to fix the vehicles individually instead of issuing a recall violates federal law. The consumer advocate group said that Nissan is treating the issue as a service problem rather than a safety issue. Defining the problem as a service issue instead of a safety issue allows Nissan to avoid issuing a costly recall.
The Center for Auto Safety filed a pleading with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration requesting a formal inquiry. Currently, about 800,000 2017 and 2018 Nissan Rogues SUVs are in circulation
