Random People Who Died from Catastrophic Car Malfunctions (16 items)

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  (#3) Paul Walker

  • Actor

  The "Fast and Furious" actor met an untimely death when he and friend, Roger Rodas, took a Porsche Carrera GT out for a drive in 2013. The vehicle smashed into a tree and a lamp post before bursting into flames.

  Both Walker's daughter (Meadow) and father filed separate wrongful death lawsuits against Porsche, claiming the car company failed to install certain safety features which would have helped to save the actor's life.

  Meadow's lawsuit claims her father survived the crash, but burned to death after being trapped due to Porsche defects. The lawsuit is still ongoing.  
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  (#14) Jeep Fire Deaths

  Remington Walden was only four years old when a car malfunction took his life. He was riding in the back of his aunt's 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee when it was struck from behind. The impact caused a gas tank explosion, setting the vehicle into flames.

  The Walden family was awarded $150 million from Fiat Chrysler. Two years prior to the lawsuit, Fiat recalled many older model Jeeps with rear-mounted gas tanks. The tanks were responsible for at least 75 post-crash fire deaths.
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  (#4) Defective Ignition Switch

  It took General Motors over 10 years to fix faulty ignition switches in their vehicles, which were responsible for at least 124 fatalities. GM eventually recalled over 30 million cars, which would shut off while driving and fail to deploy airbags.

  GM's failure to respond quickly to vehicle issues led to tragedy in 2010. On Brooke Melton's 29th birthday, the Chevy Cobalt she was driving stalled, spun out into another vehicle, and flipped 15 feet into a creek. Melton died from the crash.

  Melton's family sued GM over the defect, which led to the recall of millions of cars and ultimately saved the lives of other drivers.
  
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  (#5) Fatal Hayride

  Halloween is usually a night full of harmless fun, but for visitors at Harvest Hill Farms in Maine, a night in 2014 turned into a real life nightmare.

  The farm's Haunted Hayride took a horrifying turn when a mechanical issue caused the Jeep towing a tractor full of people to lose control. The ride was carrying 22 passengers when the Jeep sped down a hill and crashed into a tree. All passengers were thrown from the trailer, and one of them died.

  Cassidy Charette, 17, suffered fatal injuries from the accident, and her boyfriend was also seriously injured. 
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  (#7) Gas Tank Explosion

  Lily Gray was driving her Ford Pinto down the California Freeway when her car was hit from behind. The impact caused the Pinto's gas tank to explode, engulfing the car in flames. Gray died, and her passenger, Richard Grimshaw, was severely injured.

  Grimshaw filed a lawsuit against Ford Motor Company. He was awarded over $127 million in damages. 
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  (#15) Malfunctioning Gas Pedal

  Trina Harris's 2009 Toyota Corolla wouldn't brake as she approached a stop sign. Her vehicle sped through the intersection and smashed into a wall, killing her instantly.

  Harris's husband sued Toyota, claiming his wife's death was due to a malfunctioning gas pedal. The lawsuit stated that the company didn't act soon enough to fix the problem.

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