Here’s the list of terrifying vehicle manufacturing defects that jolted automotive world!!- Brought to you by PartsAvatar auto parts Toronto.
There have been various incidents that marred the automotive industry. The history has witnessed various defects that have triggered the auto giants to recall their vehicles. Let’s have a look at some of the manufacturing defects!
Toyota’s unintended acceleration
Toyota and Toyota auto parts are well known in auto market for its safety and reliability. But it caused terrific accidents when its speed suddenly increased on its own causing 31 incidents of death due to the same reason.
At first Toyota tried to blame it on drivers. But in 2012, after years of denial, Toyota agreed to pay U.S. Government $1.2 billion to avoid prosecution.
After blaming drivers, it suggested that floor mats were impeding the return of gas pedal. It also issued a recall in 2009, to fix the floor mats. But in reality company was hiding documents that showed issue with gas pedal.
Three years later, Toyota admitted that it mislead the public and recalled 9.3 million vehicles worldwide.
Ford Fire escape
In 2013, Ford Escape had fuel lines that were cracking and spilling gasoline onto the engine, which, eventually lead to engine misfiring.
That time, Ford Company had to recall Escape’s 11,500 models and luckily no one was hurt.
Firestone tires disaster
For tires, Ford partnered with Firestone which had been its preferred tire supplier for nearly a century. In 1990s, Firestone made a boatload of faulty tires with tread that separated from the steel belts. But it set off a nationwide panic and drove home just how prone to rollovers the high riding trucks really were.
Faced with responsibility of 100 deaths, Tire Company Firestone recalled 6.5 million tires, blaming heat, low tire pressure and Ford Explorer’s weight and handling characteristics for accidents.
After millions of dollars were paid out by both Ford and Firestone after cross accusations in lawsuits, neither company has taken full responsibility.
Ford’s cruise control conflagration
Ford made headlines when issued recall of Ford cruise control which included 14 million vehicles that made it company’s largest recall ever.
The cruise control deactivation switches were made by Texas instruments and can overheat; creating fire hazards even after vehicle has been switched off. Cruise control came forward as a major warning sign of failure along with other signs like unusual activation of brake lights and difficulty while parking.
GM’s engine- mounts meltdown
The engine mounts in a slew of GM cars with big, burly V8 engines would give way. So, the engine would twist under the hood, causing the car to accelerate when you really didn’t want it to.
This was one of the earliest recalls.
Ford Pinto Recall
One of the most famous recalls of all time involved the 1971 to 1975 Ford Pinto which was recalled in 1978 because the gas tank could rupture in the event of a rear end collision.
Pinto was designed to take on the rising tide of imports that had come to dominate the entry level market. But Pinto had a flaw in which the fuel tank could be pushed forward against an unprotected bolt, rupturing the tank and fuel filter neck could be pulled free of the tank hence spilling fuel in a rear end collision. Ford knew it all but did not take any step because it would have been too expensive to modify the system.
They crunched the numbers and realized it was cheaper to pay settlements to people who were injured or killed by the defect than it was to redesign the fuel tank and do a recall to replace it.
Chevy’s engine mount recall
In 1969, national highway traffic and safety administration (NHTSA) received a report that engine mounts used on 1965 to 1969 full size Chevrolets could collapse, engine torque causing the motor to rise up against the hood causing unintended acceleration.
It had received the report of 172 mount failure, 63 accidents and 18 injuries.
Audi Pioneer’s unintended acceleration
In 1986 was into its way before Toyota for unintended acceleration. CBS accused Audi 5000 to suddenly accelerate. The drivers would shift out of park and relax while suddenly the car will take off on its own.
Audi recalled the cars three times in 1982, 1983 and 1987. After selling more than 75000 cars in the U.S. in 1985, sales showed to 12000 cars in 1991.
Takata Airbags
The Takata airbag recall involved 10 of world’s biggest automakers and at least 17 million cars sold around the world, is undoubtedly the recall action with the largest scope.
Some of those airbags could deploy explosively, injuring or even killing car occupants. The issue lies in the airbag’s inflator, a metal cartridge loaded with propellant wafers, which in some cases has ignited with explosive force.
If the inflator ruptures in a crash, metal shards from the airbag can be sprayed throughout the passenger cabin – a potentially disastrous outcome from a supposedly life saving device.
According to the New York Times, Takata and Honda both new about the issue but failed to report it to NHTSA. The U.S. government fines Honda $70 million and Takata $14000 for not cooperating in the investigation.
Volkswagen diesel engine software scandal
In September, the environmental protection agency (EPA) found that many VW cars being sold in America had a defeat device or software in diesel engines that could detect when they were being tested, changing the performance accordingly to improve results.
The German car giant has already admitted cheating emissions tests in the U.S.
As a result, diesel cars ended up polluting far more than other competitors. The whole mess cost $14.7 billion in the U.S. alone.
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