0YV""" VllliAAi... ""'Vq said he invited the Institute to show its. 1I"'\r'"",1I"'Yl1CCl<C to American consumers." tute work

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1 ... """"...I.r...'Cfr more than $ billion in compensatory and from General Motors has been filed on behalf of more than.1 million consumers who 980 G M cars. The filed the law firm of Arnold and Porler with the U.S. District Court for the District of G with and breached its written and im ranties on the cars, a violation of the.a-v,&\.4.jliio,iiy...;'... AA '" ".".'"...,~"T Act. ~11 rro,y"ith1 on trial before the same court on the U.S. General of violated federal laws in connection with the X-cars. The cars Chevrolet Pontiac and Oldsmobile Vol. 8, No.2, 6, 983.) lsuzu crash. the Insurance Instifor released the results of its 5 crash tests of nine 1984 model cars. Rabbits with automatic seat a 14 percent lower overall insurance claim for occupant than Rabbits with manual belt C'UC'TO'rY1IC Loss Data Institute has ror,,,,",,rl Or! HLDI said that almost all the in claims involved cars for which a collision claim was filed in addition to the claim. "Such crashes are more to be " HLDI said. in cases where collision claims were associated claims were consislower for the Rabbits ClIr1l",.r'1I"'\l"'l,rl with automatic belts than for those with manual systems, HLDI said. 'd on page Sen. Jack the Missouri... '''''''... 'U'... A~'''' chairs the commerce committee's 0YV""" VllliAAi... ""'Vq said he invited the Institute to show its new test results because are "further evidence of the cost of of broken 1I"'\r'"",1I"'Yl1CCl<C to American consumers." tute work and Instithat Ad...,... "... " standard ror1l111r01l"'ylont to a 2.5 test. At that tillle the agency said the would save consumers money bewould be and the ofcars and 0""-'1"'1.1'1'11"'10 ~I"'I.'i4lCl111"'Yl1l"'\TlIAY"I ind~epe!n(le~nt. noflonjtlt. scientific and educational organizatiion. It is dedicated to the on the nation's Institute is by the Amerll:an Insurance ASSiociatlo~n, the Highway Safety Alliance, the Association Independent Insurers Safety ASSiOCI3t!C)n and several individual insurance companies.

2 No. 984

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4 4 - IIHS STatus ReporT, Vol. 19, No.6, April 14,1984 X-Car Owners File Billion Dollar Lawsuit Against General Motors (rampage duction and sale. In fact, said Arnold and Porter, GM advertised the cars as providing superior safety protection and said that it was the most tested car in the company's history. NHTSA has reported in excess of 2,100 consumer complaints and at least 15 deaths have been attributed to the problem. Jeff Davidson of the Washington law firm of Kirkland and Ellis which is representing G M in the class action suit, said GM has not had time to respond to the charges since its energies are now turned toward the government trial. Davidson said he expects the company to take the same position in the civil suit it has taken in the trial, which "'is that the systems are not defective." He said the company is facing a number of lawsuits involving X-cars around the country. r ~eciav, ronllsea In a months-overdue report, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration admits it has not developed its long-pledged crash test for rating bumpers. However, the agency may never be able to develop such a test, NHTSA sources have told Status Report, if the test's developers are required to design a test that is "representative of real world accident conditions," one ofthe stated goals ofthe program. Two years ago, when the agency scrapped the 5 mph bumper rule, then NHTSA head Raymond Peck committed the agency to develop a consumer information program to provide a rating system for bumpers. In September 1 the agency announced it would develop a test methodology to reflect real world crash conditions. (See STatus Report, Vol. 18, No. 13, Sept ) Sen John Danforth, in a press conference announcing the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's latest low speed crash test results, referred to the report, saying that it is further evidence of NHTSA's broken promises to consumers. Releases Results," Page.) In the recent report to the House Appropriations Transportation Subcomnlittee, NHTSA said it expects t to begin testing 15 production cars no sooner than May, and only then will begin the process of verifying whether the test method used is representative. However, developing a crash test that is representative of the ""real world" may well be both economically and technically unfeasible, a NHTSA official told Status ReporT. (As the agency has developed tests for new car standards, auto manufactuers frequently have complained that the tests were ""not representative of real world accident conditions.") A NHTSA source said he didn't know how long it would take the agency to develop a crash test. ""So far, we're not too successful," he said. Asked why the agency doesn't simply employ its old 5 mph pendulum test used to check whether bumpers met the agency's previous bumper rule, he said, "'I guess we could." But he added that the agency cannot demonstrate that the pendulum test is representative ofwhat happens in low speed impacts. (Cont'd on page 11) lai s "'The results...strongly suggest that the automatic belt system offered on VW Rabbits reduces the frequency ofinjuries in such cars... " HLDI said. The study was submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in support of reinstatement of the automatic restraint provisions of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208. (See Status Report, Vol. 19, No.2, Jan ) The report compares the frequency of insurance claims for injuries to occupants of 1981 and 1982 Rabbits, equipped either with automatic or manual seat belts. The claims were from Sept through Sept The study is based on 5 insured vehicle years of exposure for Rabbits equipped with manual belts and insured vehicle years ofexposure for Rabbits equipped with automatic belts. (See charts on Page 5.) The overall injury claim frequency for Rabbits with the manual systems was 16.9 per,000 insured vehicle years, contrasted with 14.5 claims per 1,000 insured vehicle years for those with automatic systems, said. Copies of the report, "Injury Claim Frequencies for Volkswagen Rabbits With Automatic and Manual Seat 1981 and 1982 Models," may be obtained by writing for "Automatic Belts," Communications Insurance Institute for Highway Safety,) Watergate 600, Washington, 20037

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9 IIHS Status Report, Vol. 19, No.6, April 14, I rs, rash r t White H... IIIL.JIII...::::::III~ -...-liljiiii-..jiiii-..jllllw.1il6rt of Physicians and car crash victims gathered in front of White House on March 24 to show their support for air bags. The group, sponsored by the Physicians for Automotive Safety, was headed by a California pediatrician, Robert S. Vinetz, and Mary McKnew, who was paralyzed as the result ofan automobile crash. Vinetz said the purpose of the gathering was to urge President Ronald Reagan to support an automatic restraint standard, and to kick off a national educational campaign on the importance ofair bags. Diane Huddle, executive director of the Virginia Head Injury Foundation, said, "For so many, life could have had a different ending had we installed air bags 14 years ago. Thirty-nine thousand people might be alive today and three million families not have known the horror ofincurable brain damage." If the driver of the car brakes suddenly or crashes, the child and the restraint system could pitch forward instead of restrained by the lap belt. Owners of cars with child restraints installed should check to see that the restraint is, in fact, securely in If it seems a little loose, NHTSA says, the short end of the strap can be twisted several times to allow it to be cinched perience the problem, NHTSA says, especially if the tether is correctly installed. NHTSA says that parents who continue to have difficulty securing their child's restraints should call the agency's toll-free hotline (800) Drivers assigned to traffic schools for drinking driving offenses have far worse recidivism rates than those whose licenses are suspended, a North Carolina study shows. In a study conducted by the Highway Safety Research Center at the University of North Carolina, researchers evaluated the driving records of 34,000 first offenders who attended traffic school in 1980 and The group was compared with 16,500 drivers who did not attend the schools, but whose licenses were suspended for 12 months. Those who participated in the traffic schools subsequently had a far higher rate of crash involvement and convictions for alcohol-related offenses ranging from 50 to 75 percent greaten than did the comparison group. During that period, North Carolina permitted judges to shorten license suspensions from a year to six months and allow a limited driving privilege to those people who attended traffic school. Those who did not attend received a 12-month suspension, and very few were allowed limited privileges, the researchers noted. The traffic schools actually "replac[ed] a relatively effective sanction rather than in addition to the the researchers reported. Two competent studies in California and New York the mid-1970s also showed that sus... 1I"'lIC'~r~...,. or revocation of drivers' licenses resulted in less recidivism than did rehabilitation programs. Status No.5, 198.) In, r r cncln~~eo the ing-

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