SUV Rollovers
The propensity of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) to rollover first came to light in 1980 when CBS’s 60 Minutes aired footage of an Insurance Institute of Highway Safety test in which a Jeep CJ rolled over while executing a “J” turn and during sudden quick turns. Since then the SUV has become one of the most popular vehicles in Florida and throughout the United States. Automakers have continued to disregard the safety of the public by ignoring SUV rollover problems. Drivers and passengers continue to die and be injured in SUV rollovers. According to the NHTSA 60 percent of SUV fatalities and 40 percent of SUV injuries are caused by rollover accidents.
Automakers have long known that even the most stable SUV is more likely to rollover that the least stable passenger car. The size, weight, and height of an SUV make it prone to rollover accidents. They have a high center of gravity and a narrow track which makes SUVs so unstable. We want to put a stop to the design, manufacture, and sale of SUVs by Ford, GM, Toyota, Nissan and other companies which are dangerous, unstable, and not crashworthy. We fight for compensation on behalf of innocent victims who have been harmed by the auto industry’s greed and negligence.
Design Defects Leading to SUV Rollover Accidents
The injury lawyers at our firm represent people in product liability claims in connection with SUV rollover accidents and SUV defects such as:
- High Center of Gravity
- Instability
- Lack of Roll Bar
- Engineering Design Flaws
- Steering Defects
- Defective Tires
- Lack of Side Air Bags
- Defective Air Bags
- Weak Roofs
- Failure of Safety Restraint Systems
- Failure to Include Electronic Stability Control
Model year 2005 Acura MDX, Ford Freestyle, and Jeep Grand Cherokee earned the top rating of 5-stars for all available seating positions in frontal and side crash tests announced the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in their SUV Crash Test Summary. All results are available at www.safercar.gov.
New 2005 ratings for frontal impact are available for the following SUVs: Acura MDX, Buick Rainier, Buick Rendezvous, Chevrolet Trailblazer, Ford Freestyle, GMC Envoy, Hyundai Santa Fe, Isuzu Ascender, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Nissan Murano, Nissan Pathfinder, Nissan Xterra and Saab 9-7x.
New 2005 ratings for side impact are available for the following SUVs: Honda Element, Hyundai Santa Fe with side air bags, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Nissan Murano with side air bags, Nissan Pathfinder and Nissan Xterra.
NHTSA crash test ratings apply to both 4×2 and 4×4 versions of the same make and model. Separate rollover testing is done for 4×2 and 4×4 versions of 2005 models selected for rollover testing.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a truck accident in Florida involving an SUV rollover, contact a personal injury attorney at the Shaked Law Firm today!