MITSUBISHI ROLLOVER ACCIDENT UPDATE:
MITSUBISHI MONTERO ROLLOVER ( MITSUBISHI PAJERO )
KUMHO TIRE (TYRE) TREAD SEPARATION
  
Kuhmo Radial Powerguard tire still inflated on the 1990 Mitsubishi Pajero 4WD " Station Wagon" after the rollover which claimed the lives of 2 of the passengers and seriously injured two others.
MITSUBISHI ROLLOVER
On September 13, 2000 in South Australia's outback a family of four experienced a sudden rollover of their 1990 Mitsubishi Pajero (a/k/a Mitsubishi Montero or the Mitsubishi Shogun) when the tread of the back left tire (tyre) separated causing a loss of control and ultimately a rollover. After a thorough investigation , Australian authorities concluded "that once the left rear tyre tread started separating, the rear of the vehicle would start to fishtail and would be hard to control." The front seat passenger was killed along with the passenger in the left rear of the Mitsubishi Pajero.
IS THE MITSUBISHI PAJERO or MITSUBISHI MONTERO ROLLOVER PRONE ?
(Mitsubishi Montero a/k/a Mitsubishi Pajero a/k/a Mitsubishi Shogun ) The Mitsubishi Pajero, Mitsubishi Montero and Shogun like many of the sports utilities vehicles have a higher center of gravity than passenger vehicles and therefore are somewhat unstable and more likely to roll over. Although SUVs are designed to be driven off the road and roll, very few have rollbars. And to make matters worse, few SUVs meet the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration roof safety standards for automobiles [as weak as those standards are].The chief hazard occurs when taking emergency action, such as sudden tire tread separation, after steering in one direction and then being forced to rapidly correct in the opposite direction. The result is a rollover. Rollover occurs because of the absence of a lower center of gravity and a wider track width, which allows automobiles to skid, spin and recover. But when taking a common evasive maneuver that car drivers safety complete every day, rapidly corrective action causes SUVs to trip and roll.
MITSUBISHI ROOF CRUSH INJURIES IN ROLLOVERS
The failure of the roof of the Mitsubishi Pajero, Montero and/or Shogun involved in a 'roll over' accident is the most likely cause of death or permanent injury to the vehicle occupants. The roof is the least crashworthy part of these vehicle. In fact, roofs on most Suv's are often so 'fragile' that when 'test dropped' upside-down for a fall of 12 inches, the result is frequently a 'total roof crush' that in a 'real life' accident is the primary cause of death, permanent brain and spinal cord injuries.Although all rollover death and injuries occur while vehicles are moving, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 216, issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration [NHTSA] in 1973, mandates a "standing" test. Officially called a "static" test this "safety" rule has been in place since the 1974 model year for cars and the 1995 model year for light trucks and vans. The standard provides that "a force of one and half times the empty weight of the vehicle or 5,000 pounds, whichever is less, be slowly loaded onto the roof over the A pillar, the front roof support that holds the windshield in place. Weight is added to a steel plate approximately 3 feet wide and six feet long that is placed at an angle over the roof line. A roof passes even if it collapses five inches. Additionally, it has been reported by Japan's government it was looking at criminal charges against Mitsubishi Motors Corp. after the firm admitted to covering up customer complaints about defective vehicles for decades.
THE TIRE (TYRE) TREAD SEPARATION AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS CAN RESULT IN A ROLLOVER
When a radial tire suddenly loses it's tread the driver often loses of control of the vehicle due to a blowout of the tire or rapid pressure decrease in the remaining core. When the blowout occurs to a rear tire, controlling the vehicle becomes very difficult, especially at highway speeds. This loss of control results in the rear of the vehicle swinging around to become perpendicular to the direction of travel ( yawing ). If the yawing is not immediately reversed in direction, then the sideways motion often leads to the bead of the tire separating from the rim, allowing the rim to dig into the pavement or surface, resulting is propelling the vehicle into a roll. Tripping of the vehicle can also result in a rollover if sufficient amount of sideway movement occurs in a grass or dirt median to actually trip the vehicle and launch it into a rollover.Tire manufacturers have known that a leading cause of tread separation is due to the design and placements of the belts and overlying tread. Tread and belt separations can occur due to poor adhesion of the components from the use of old and expired adhesives, improper temperatures, rust, unclean manufacturing facility, moisture, oxidation, grease, sawdust, gum wrappers and EVEN cigarette butts. While Firestone Tire company has been the main target of products liability actions in recent years, similar allegations against most of the major tire makers is well known.
Of all of the known problems resulting in tire tread and belt separation, the leading cause of belt separation is the failure of the metal to stick to rubber. The method used most often involves plating the metal with brass and apply a rubber compound containing sulfur. If the sulfur and other compounds are not to the correct mixture, then incomplete adhesion occurs. Also if the brass plating is allowed to oxidize, then adhesion will likely occur. If there is a shiny brass look to the belts, then most probably there was at least a deficiency in the tread bonding process, if not also compounded by other defects.
THE KUMHO TIRE COMPANY
The Kumho Tire companies consist of Kumho Tire Company or Kumho Tyre Company Limited (Korea) or Kumho Tyre of Australia, Kumho USA, KUMHO Tyre Europe, and others. Kumho Industrial Company Limited produces over 36,000,000 tyres annually in two manufacturing factories, the Kwang Ju factory (built 1974) and the Koksung factory (built 1989). Kumho sells tires (tyres) for all vehicles including high performance vehicles, passenger vehicles, sports utility vehicles (SUVs), recreational vehicles, light trucks, heavy truck and buses, industrial vehicles, agricultural vehicles, mining vehicles, construction vehicles and aircrafts
MITSUBISHI ROLLOVER, ROOF CRUSH & TIRE DEFECTS LAWSUIT
 If you or a loved one has been seriously injured or killed in a Mitsubishi rollover accident or any SUV roll over / accident and you like to know more about your legal rights in filing a rollover lawsuit or any other potential product liability or negligence legal action, then call and talk with Mr. Willis, a Board Certified Personal Injury Trial Lawyer with over 20+ years of product liability and rollover litigation experience. Call the Willis Law Firm at 1-800-883-9858 or Click Here for a Free SUV Rollover Lawsuit Evaluation
PLEASE NOTE: The statements and information provided on this web site are for the informational purposes only. This law firm is not affiliated in any way with any trademark owner. The use of any trademarks on this site is for product identification and information purposes only .This webpage is provided to you to assist in SUV Rollover accidents, passenger van rollovers, 15 passenger van rollover accidents, recalls, truck accidents & rollovers, tire tread defects, tire separations, roof crush and roof pillar collapse, seat belt failures, fuel fed fires and other related rollover accident issues, including rollover injuries and deaths.This site is not intended to provide legal advice to the reader and NO attorney-client relationship shall be deemed to arise from the receipt this page and/or its associated pages or any oral or e-mail communication to or from with the Willis Law Firm. There will be NO lawsuits filed, claims made, letters or phone calls made for a prospective client, until that person is represented by the firm. An attorney client relationship only arises after the attorney and client have signed a written attorney client contract.
Mr. Willis is licensed attorney in New York and Texas. He is a Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Lawyer, certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Read more about Board Certification, Click Here. Principle office is Houston, Texas.
Mr. Willis has represented clients in personal injury, auto accident, suv rollover, van & truck rollovers and other product liability and negligence cases from across the United States, including clients from Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin & West Virginia.
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