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1995 SAAB 900 — VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:LINKAGES

crash1 injured · 549010 · 2005-08-11

Vehicle

Make
SAAB
Model
900
Year
1995
Manufacturer
SAAB CARS USA, INC.
Component
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:LINKAGES
Miles at failure
125,000
Speed
70 mph

Severity

Deaths
0
Injured
1
Fire
No
Crash
Yes
Police report
Yes
Medical attention
No
Vehicle towed
No

Narrative

ON JULY 22, 2005 I WAS DRIVING MY '95 SAAB ON THE A1 MOTORWAY IN UNITED KINGDOM. I WAS USING THE CRUISE CONTROL AT 70 MPH (POSTED SPEED LIMIT) I HAD NEVER USED THE CRUISE CONTROL IN THIS VEHICLE BEFORE. (MANUAL TRANSMISSION) THE INCIDENT HAPPENED DURING RUSH HOUR HEADING TOWARD LONDON. AS I HAD TO SLOW DOWN, I HAD ABSOLUTELY NO BRAKES! I NEVER HAD ANY ISSUE WITH THE BRAKES PRIOR. DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL DID NOT DISENGAGE THE CRUISE CONTROL AND I WAS HEADING TOWARD THE REAR END OF A CAR AT 70 MPH. I QUICKLY SWERVED TO THE LEFT LANE, THEN OFF THE ROAD TO AVOID HITTING VEHICLES AND CAUSING A MULTI-CAR PILE UP AND POTENTIALLY MANY DEATHS. I FLEW OFF THE ROAD, THROUGH A 5" STEEL SIGN POST AND ROLLED SEVERAL TIMES IN A FIELD. AMAZINGLY, I WAS ONLY BRUISED AND BATTERED, BUT OF COURSE THE CAR IS TOTALED. THIS IS A POTENTIAL SERIOUS DEFECT! EVEN IF THE CAR IS 10 YEARS OLD, IF THERE IS SOME TYPE OF CORROSION THAT HAPPENS TO CAUSE A FAILURE OF BRAKES TO DISENGAGE THE CRUISE CONTROL, MANY LIVES WILL BE LOST. IRONICALLY, IT WAS SAAB ENGINEERING THAT ALLOWED ME TO WALK OUT OF THE VEHICLE, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME CAUSED THE ACCIDENT. POLICE AND WITNESSES WERE ON SCENE WHO SAW MY BRAKE LIGHTS COME ON, YET NOT SLOW DOWN. AS I SAID, THE BRAKES WERE FINE AND I CAN ONLY ASSUME THIS HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL. THE CAR WILL BE INSPECTED BY UK'S VOSA. PLEASE ADVISE. THANK YOU CHARLES EARHART. *JB

Source

Authoritative
NHTSA ODI Flat-File Downloads
ODI Number
10132332
Machine
JSON-LD · Markdown