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October 31, 2006

FORD WANTS TO ‘LEAD’ IN SAFETY, EXEC SAYS

With its safety image tarnished over time by such setbacks as Pinto fuel tank failures, rollover-prone Explorer SUVs, and stalling hazards from thick-film ignition defects, Ford now claims itself ready to “lead in safety,” starting with the introduction of its new Edge crossover. In a Detroit Free Press article the president of the company’s North and South American operations is reported as saying that from now on he “wants Ford to lead in safety - especially with safety pioneer Volvo in the company's brand portfolio. I don't want us having debates about whether it's going to be five-star or four-star,” he is quoted as saying, referring to government crash-test ratings. “Our intent as we go forward is to make sure we lead in safety.”

The Edge offers side-curtain airbags and other safety features as standard. “During a test drive around San Francisco on Monday, Stephen Kozak, Ford's chief safety engineer, boasted that standard safety features will give the Edge a competitive advantage in the marketplace. He emphasized that the Edge will now offer more standard safety features than even luxury crossovers,” the Free Press reported

In a related development, Ford recently announced that it is carrying out research into “new” safety belt designs, including four-point safety belts and inflatable safety belts.” As far back as the 1960s, four-point belts were found by researchers to be substantially superior even to three-point belts in controlling occupant crash forces and thus reducing the likelihood of injury. A Detroit News article noted this response to the Ford announcement:

"The first issue when it comes to seat belts is making today's seat belts better than what they are with known technology," said Clarence Ditlow, the executive director of the Center for Auto Safety. "The inflatable seat belt has been known since the 1970s," when it was used on some research vehicles, Ditlow said. "There's no reason why that shouldn't be in cars right now."

"Our goal at Ford Motor Company is to keep finding ways to enhance the safety systems in our vehicles," a Ford spokesperson told the newspaper. "We plan on continuing our pioneering work to make our vehicles even safer in the future."

Posted by MVHAP at October 31, 2006 05:25 AM