Some auto experts think that all 15-passenger vans are defectively designed because they have a propensity to roll over. This quote raised my eyebrow:
"The rollover rate for fully loaded or nearly loaded 15-passenger vans is about three times the rollover ratio of vans with fewer than five passengers," the report said.
Now, bringing a defective design lawsuit like this would be incredibly expensive, and may require the plaintiff to show a safer alternative design exists. In theory, it wouldn't be terribly expensive to add a second set of wheels to the back of one of these vans. I'll keep an eye out for any lawsuits over these designs.
It's no exaggeration to say that the entire product liability bar is dying to know what is in the Biller documents:
An arbitrator has ruled that a former Toyota Motor Corp. attorney can use internal company documents to press hisclaim that he was hired to "plan and carry out discovery fraud" on behalf of the company.
The ruling, which comes over objections from the automaker that the documents were privileged, did not determine whether Toyota committed such fraud. Instead, the decision found that former Toyota attorney Dimitrios Biller could use internal e-mails, test reports, memos and other documents as evidence in the case.
If what Biller claims is true - that Toyota commited discovery fraud to win cases - the fallout will be enormous. For one thing, all of the cases Toyota won might be reopened. The sanctions could run into the many millions of dollars. Attorneys could be disbarred. I hope these documents see the light of day so we can all decide for ourselves just how damning they really are.
My understanding is that one of the reasons Ford is killing the Crown Vic is because of the placement of the gas tank. I was told that by a mechanic who works on a lot of fleet Crown Vics, so please don't take that as gospel.
The widow of a Florida Highway Patrol trooper from Miramar who died in a fiery crash on Florida's Turnpike is suing Ford Motor Co. and others for damages.
Patrick Ambroise, 35, died when his parked Ford Crown Victoria cruiser was rear-ended and burst into flames on May 15.
According to the lawsuit, Ford negligently sells poorly designed vehicles with improperly placed gas tanks that are prone to rupture and explode in rear-end collisions.
I used to own a Crown Vic, and it was one of the most comfortable cars I've ever driven. Mine was an ex undercover-police car, and it had warnings all over the trunk about drilling into the gas tank.
I've often wondered why car manufacturers don't just replace gas tanks with NASCAR-style fuel cells, since they practically eliminate the risk of fire.
