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Chrysler Loses Freak NJ Lawsuit

November 27, 2001

Sacramento - The Chrysler Group took a real hit in a New Jersey court yesterday when a jury handed down a verdict ordering Chrysler to pay $20 million to the family of a woman that was killed while at the wheel of a Plymouth Voyager minivan. The freak accident occurred when a wheel on car (also a Chrysler-made Jeep) passing in the opposite direction on I-280 came loose, crossed the median, bounced and hit the victim's car just above the windshield, pushing the roof into the 38-year old mother of three boys. She was killed and pronounced dead at the scene in front of the three children who were passengers and suffered only minor injuries from broken glass.

The tires on the Jeep had been rotated a week earlier and police inspectors surmised that the lugs for the left-front wheel were not properly tightened, causing it to part company with the vehicle.

The victim's family reached confidential settlements with the driver of the Jeep, the owner of the garage that performed the work and allegedly left the wheel untightened, and the franchiser of the garage - ExxonMobil. This left DaimlerChrysler as the only defendant.

Chrysler officials demonstrated in court that the Plymouth Voyager's roof system is 50% stronger than government specifications require and stronger than all minivans tested by NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). Ken Gluckman, a Chrysler attorney told the jury that, "The tire hit with such force, any vehicle's roof would have deformed."

Nevertheless, the fickle jury ruled in favor of the victim's family. DCX will appeal the case.