Mitsubishi Faces Wrongful Death Suit After Rollover Crash

The parents of a 17-year-old boy who was killed in 2009 when the 2000 Mitsubishi Montero in which he was riding rolled over has filed a wrongful death suit against the automaker, reports The Salem News.

The Ipswich, MA, teen and a 16-year-old girl were thrown from the back seat when the young driver who was unfamiliar with the road, lost control and rolled over on a curve just north of Route 60 in Revere.  Both were killed.

The lawsuit claims the “unreasonably dangerous” design of the Montero is to blame and that Mitsubishi Motors North America is liable.  This lawsuit adds to the already numerous ones around the country filed against Mitsubishi which alleges the SUV is top heavy – thus making it more likely to roll – and the manufacturer should have put an electronic stability control on all of its models.  Claims of seat belts coming undone under stress and that the roof and pillars were more likely to collapse on Mitsubishi that on other vehicles have also been noted.

The lawsuit also claims the company has known about the problems from independent testing agencies and has had multiple lawsuits, yet has done nothing to correct the design flaws.

The parents have asked to settle the case for $7 million, but Mitsubishi refused and demanded a crash report so they could analyze the information in order to decide whether to “compromise on what they view as a doubtful and disputed claim.”

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