We'll have to drop the tank one more time to finish hooking up our fuel system after the engine swap begins, so we're going to wait until that time to hook up the filler and vent as well as welding the nuts to the inside of the frame to make install and removal much easier. Then, we pulled the tank back out and finished drilling the holes and then bolted the tank back in. "The 1993-2004 Jeep Grand meets or exceeds federal safety standards and has an excellent safety record.Once it was up tight into place, we measured each side to make sure the tank was centered side to side and from the rear crossmember and then drilled eight small pilot holes through the frame at the center of each tank bracket. "It is important to note that the data you are attempting to analyze reflects real world operation over a 10-year period in which more than two and a half million 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees were on the road and many, many millions of miles of safe operation were experienced by our customers," said Chrysler in a statement. The automaker told WTVD it did that to make more room for storage space inside.Ĭhrysler spokesman Michael Palese said safety concerns about the gas tank's position did not play a part in the decision to move it.Ĭhrysler declined WTVD's requests for an on-camera interview.ĬLICK HERE to follow ABC News Chief Investigative Correspondent Brian Ross on Twitter. In 2005, Daimler-Chrysler redesigned the vehicle and moved the tank to the middle of the Grand Cherokee. Chrysler said this was to protect the tank against brush and small rocks that might be encountered in "light duty off road driving." Chrysler says the skid plate is intended for customers "who want to do more severe off-road driving" to protect the tanks from rocks and boulders.īeginning in 1999, a fuel tank brush guard was included as standard equipment in Cherokees that were not fitted with the skid plate. Since 1993, Chrysler has offered as an option for the Grand Cherokee a skid plate that provides some protection for the gas tank. analysis was "simplistic" and "invalid," and said it was "confident that a proper study which considered all factors in all fatal collisions…would show that the 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees perform as well as or better than other vehicles in their class." Quality Control Systems Corp., a statistical analysis firm contracted by WTVD, said that its analysis of NHTSA data showed that fatal rear accidents reported for Grand Cherokees made between 19 were three times more likely to involve fires than were fatal rear accidents involving comparable SUVs made during the same period.Ĭhrysler told WTVD in 2009 it rejected the Center for Auto Safety analysis of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data - saying it "does not contain all relevant accurate data that is needed to make a valid conclusion." It also said that the Quality Control Systems Corp. It says it found more than 60 deaths in accidents involving fires or explosions and Grand Cherokees manufactured between 19. At WTVD's request, the Center for Auto Safety analyzed data gathered by NHTSA. Kline's death is not the only one linked to a fiery Jeep Grand Cherokee accident. The group also said that the neck of the fuel tank could tear off in crashes. WTVD's reporting in 2009 was prompted by a claim by the Center for Auto Safety, an advocacy group founded by Ralph Nader, that the gas tank's position below the rear bumper and behind the rear axle could cause fuel to spill if the SUV were struck from behind. Ten of the crashes and 13 deaths were most likely associated with rear-end collisions, according to NHTSA.Ĭhrysler said that the Grand Cherokee has an excellent safety record and that the company is cooperating with the government investigation. The agency said its initial review shows that the Grand Cherokee did not have significantly more fires after crashes than other vehicles, and that the existence of post-crash fires "does not, by itself, establish a defect trend." NHTSA has found 44 Grand Cherokee crashes and 55 deaths since 1992 where fire was listed as the most harmful factor. Grand Cherokees made during that period had plastic gas tanks placed in the rear of the vehicle, a position that critics say made it vulnerable in certain types of accidents. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) inquiry will begin the process of determining whether a recall of Jeep Grand Cherokees from the model years 1993 to 2004 is necessary. The alleged problem was first highlighted in reports by the investigative team at WTVD in Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina, an ABC owned-and-operated station. 25, 2010 — - US officials have opened an investigation into 3 million Jeep Grand Cherokees because of claims that improperly located and poorly protected gas tanks could cause fires in some crashes.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |