Car Accidents Caused by Defective Cruise Control

Cruise control is a modern convenience that allows us to enjoy our long drives and family car trips. But what happens when the cruise control is defective? In one case, the answer was tragic.

On a road trip, in a car, a family had the cruise control engaged. At length, the car began to accelerate on its own. Eventually, the car accelerated to over 90 miles per hour before crashing and rolling over. The crash and rollover ejected the occupants from the vehicle. The occupants, who did not suffer fatal head, neck, and spinal injuries, were left with a variety of ailments such as brain damage, spinal fractures, paraplegia, and quadriplegia.

After an investigation into the car accident was completed, it was discovered that the cruise control system was defective because it permitted electrical signals, which normally occur in a car, to effect the electrical functioning of the cruise control system. As a result, the system malfunctioned which led to the car’s rapid acceleration. If the wiring and speed control sensors been appropriately designed, this tragic cruise control accident would not have happened.

Examples of vehicles that have been known to be plagued with design problems that can lead to cruise control accidents include:

Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, Chevrolet Caprice, Toyota Corolla, Ford Aero Star mini van, Ford Explorer, Lincoln Town Car, Lincoln Mark VII, Mercedes Benz, Yamaha Motorcycles, Chevrolet Van, Ford Taurus, Ford F150 pickup truck, and Ford Crown Victoria.

If you or a loved one has been involved in a car accident where the cruise control was defective or malfunctioned, you might wish to consult an accident attorney who can effectively prosecute car/automobile part and component defects in a defective product liability lawsuit.

For further information on cruise control accidents and defective product liability lawsuits, contact the New Jersey and New York accident attorneys, Alan J. Konigsberg or Diane Paolicelli at (212) 605-6200.