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Recalls like the infamous GM ignition switch op are no laughing matter. While GM manned up and took responsibility for those who died or were injured in ignition switch-related accidents, FCA fails to do it.
Compared to GM, FCA US LLC’s most dramatic safety recall is “the recall Chrysler never wanted to do,” as Clarence Ditlow, head of the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety, declared last month.
If you don’t know Clarence, she petitioned back in 2009, prompting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to investigate Chrysler for rear-mounted gas tanks that easily go kaboom.
To make a long story short, millions of Jeep-branded SUVs were called back over a glitch with the placement of the fuel tank. Mounted behind the rear axle with little protection if the vehicle is struck from behind, these Jeeps are susceptible to tank punctures and vehicle fire.
FCA US LLC fixed the problem by installing trailer hitches on the rear of the recalled SUVs, but did that work? Not quite. Government tests assessed that the hitches protecting the fuel tanks are sufficient in crash scenarios up to 40 mph (64 km/h). Above that speed, puncturing and vehicle fire is a possibility.
Regarding today’s drama, a jury in Georgia was awarded $150 millionfor
Decatur County Jurors ruled that Chrysler acted “with reckless disregard for human life in selling the family of Remington "Remi" Walden a 1999 Jeep with a gas tank mounted behind the rear axle.”
As U.S. News reports, after nine days of trial, could you guess what an FCA spokesman declared about the jury’s ruling? “The vehicles are not defective.” LOL, and what about those federal documents according to which at least 75 people have died in vehicle fires caused by the previously mentioned rear-mounted tanks?
In a statement regarding the Walden vs. FCA US verdict, the American manufacturer says that it’s “disappointed and will consider an appeal of this verdict. It is unfortunate that under Georgia Law the jury was prevented from taking into account extensive data submitted to NHTSA during a three-year investigation, which included more than 20 years of rear impact accident data for tens of millions of vehicles.”
If General Motors could pay $1.2 billion (yes, it starts with a b) for a Malibu that burst into flames, injuring four children, then it’s a damn shame Chrysler resorted to putting the blame on the customer.
If you don’t know Clarence, she petitioned back in 2009, prompting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to investigate Chrysler for rear-mounted gas tanks that easily go kaboom.
To make a long story short, millions of Jeep-branded SUVs were called back over a glitch with the placement of the fuel tank. Mounted behind the rear axle with little protection if the vehicle is struck from behind, these Jeeps are susceptible to tank punctures and vehicle fire.
FCA US LLC fixed the problem by installing trailer hitches on the rear of the recalled SUVs, but did that work? Not quite. Government tests assessed that the hitches protecting the fuel tanks are sufficient in crash scenarios up to 40 mph (64 km/h). Above that speed, puncturing and vehicle fire is a possibility.
Regarding today’s drama, a jury in Georgia was awarded $150 million
Decatur County Jurors ruled that Chrysler acted “with reckless disregard for human life in selling the family of Remington "Remi" Walden a 1999 Jeep with a gas tank mounted behind the rear axle.”
As U.S. News reports, after nine days of trial, could you guess what an FCA spokesman declared about the jury’s ruling? “The vehicles are not defective.” LOL, and what about those federal documents according to which at least 75 people have died in vehicle fires caused by the previously mentioned rear-mounted tanks?
In a statement regarding the Walden vs. FCA US verdict, the American manufacturer says that it’s “disappointed and will consider an appeal of this verdict. It is unfortunate that under Georgia Law the jury was prevented from taking into account extensive data submitted to NHTSA during a three-year investigation, which included more than 20 years of rear impact accident data for tens of millions of vehicles.”
If General Motors could pay $1.2 billion (yes, it starts with a b) for a Malibu that burst into flames, injuring four children, then it’s a damn shame Chrysler resorted to putting the blame on the customer.
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