Vehicle Fires

NHTSA, automakers address fire risks

David Shepardson/ Detroit News Washington Bureau
Washington -The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, now investigating fire risks in the extended-range electric Chevrolet Volt, has long made fire hazards in gas-powered vehicles a priority.
Automakers have issued about a dozen recalls over the last year for fire risks in gasoline-powered vehicles.
NHTSA has also opened or upgraded a half-dozen investigations into fire problems this year. It also has an ongoing investigation into whether more than 3 million Jeep Grand Cherokees pose a fire hazard.

Man hurt in crash awarded $31.25M

News Tribune Online 06/12/07

By KEN SERRANO
STAFF WRITER

MIDDLESEX COUNTY  A $31.25 million settlement has been reached in the case of a former Cook College student who was severely disfigured in a fiery crash when a tow truck rear-ended his car on Route 1 in Woodbridge in September 2001.

Richard Douglas Cannon, now 27, was driving from his home in Rahway to the college when his 1984 Ford Mustang broke down in the middle lane of Route 1 on Sept. 6, 2001, said Cannon’s attorney, Alfred Dimiero of Summit.

Pinto Madness

A Mother Jones Classic: For seven years the Ford Motor Company sold cars in which it knew hundreds of people would needlessly burn to death.

Mark Dowie

September/October 1977 Issue

Honda SUV Fires Continue

Warning to Dealers Hasn’t Stopped Oil-Change Errors

By Greg SchneiderWashington
Post Staff WriterTuesday, September 7, 2004; Page E01

Owners
of new Honda CR-V sport-utility vehicles continue to report vehicle
fires shortly after initial oil changes, and a federal agency is
keeping an eye o­n the problem two months after closing an
investigation.