|
How
many times have drivers momentarily exited their
vehicles while the car is in park, just to get an
item out of the trunk, open a garage door or secure
a toddler in a child seat?
Of course people do this all the time, without any
thought or concern for safety. After all, the car
is in park, and therefore it will not move. Or so
one would think.
However, if you own a Jeep Cherokee in the model
years 1995 to 1999, you should be aware that the
vehicle can shift on its own from park into reverse,
causing serious injury to the driver, passengers,
or anyone standing behind the vehicle when this
occurs.
Due to a design flaw in the transmission and the
gear shift mechanism, the gear shift gives the illusion
of being in park, when in fact it may be “in limbo”
between park and reverse.
|
Because the gear shift indicates that the car is
in park, the driver feels safe exiting the vehicle
to perform a quick task. Then disaster strikes.
The gear shift slips into reverse, and the large
SUV is propelled backwards, wreaking havoc upon
the driver, passersby, or anything else in its way.
Daimler Chrysler last year instituted a recall on
1991 to 1992 Dodge Dakota Pick-Ups, which had the
same type of gear shift mechanism, but has yet to
recall the affected Jeep Cherokees.
This is despite scores of complaints and accidents
involving what the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration has referred to as “inadvertent roll
away in reverse.”
Although
Chrysler has not yet instituted a recall, they did
change the design on the gear shift mechanism in
the
|
2000 and 2001 models, essentially
admitting that the safer design was feasible on
the earlier models.
At Bonina & Bonina, P.C., we have already begun
litigation against Daimler Chrysler, on behalf of
individuals whose lives have been torn apart by
this design flaw.
If you or someone you know has been affected or
injured by a Jeep Cherokee, please contact us at
1-888-MEDLAW-1. For more information about our firm,
or for a link to the NHTSA website, please visit
our links page.
|
