Family suing Honda because minivan wasn't tornadoproof
08-15-2009 | 04:16 PM
#1
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Family suing Honda because minivan wasn't tornadoproof
http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/0...in_Tornado.htm
A family demands $10 million from Honda, claiming a side window shattered and injured them when a tornado picked up their Honda Odyssey, which "remained airborne for a few seconds before plummeting to the ground and landing on all four wheels. Upon impact, the driver's side passenger window shattered and glass flew into the car."
Two girls suffered eye injuries from the glass and three other family members suffered face, chest and head lacerations, the family says in Prince George's County Court. One girl lost her left eye and another one needed eye surgery.
The father says he warned his wife - a defendant - not to go to the "back to school night" because there was a tornado warning, but she "was upset at the program for not properly caring for her child and decided it was necessary to drive her children to the program. ... A few minutes after her departure, defendant Achumba felt a shove from the rear of the Odyssey, and it was lifted into the air."
The Achumba family says the tempered glass Honda uses in side windows to reduce costs is not strong enough. They say Honda should use laminated glass, as it does for windshields.
A family demands $10 million from Honda, claiming a side window shattered and injured them when a tornado picked up their Honda Odyssey, which "remained airborne for a few seconds before plummeting to the ground and landing on all four wheels. Upon impact, the driver's side passenger window shattered and glass flew into the car."
Two girls suffered eye injuries from the glass and three other family members suffered face, chest and head lacerations, the family says in Prince George's County Court. One girl lost her left eye and another one needed eye surgery.
The father says he warned his wife - a defendant - not to go to the "back to school night" because there was a tornado warning, but she "was upset at the program for not properly caring for her child and decided it was necessary to drive her children to the program. ... A few minutes after her departure, defendant Achumba felt a shove from the rear of the Odyssey, and it was lifted into the air."
The Achumba family says the tempered glass Honda uses in side windows to reduce costs is not strong enough. They say Honda should use laminated glass, as it does for windshields.
08-15-2009 | 04:32 PM
#2
Do other automakers use laminated glass for the side windows? If so, they might have a little bit of a case (not a $10M case though). But if Honda is just doing what everyone else is doing... they shouldn't get jack ____ and someone should make throw glass at this lady so she knows to stay away from tornadoes next time.
08-15-2009 | 05:20 PM
#5
You should always be able to pull the glass out as a whole though. So the laminated part is really just to keep all of the glass together (and for it be a bit stronger). But you would still be able to put a whole through it and pull the sheet out.
08-15-2009 | 05:31 PM
#6
lesus does use a "type" of laminated glass in all windows of the car making it stronger and reduces wind noise..im sorry for what happened but i dont think these people have a case...
08-15-2009 | 05:46 PM
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the windshield has to be laminated so that if a rock hits it while driving down the highway going 70 mph, it doesn't shatter into a wave of glass into their faces.
the side and rear windows are only tempered cuz that is all you need. and as stated before, how could you get out of a disabled vehicle if all the windows were laminated? that is why safety hammers are for breaking glass and such. people need to be sterilized.
the side and rear windows are only tempered cuz that is all you need. and as stated before, how could you get out of a disabled vehicle if all the windows were laminated? that is why safety hammers are for breaking glass and such. people need to be sterilized.
08-15-2009 | 08:48 PM
#9
This should have been a Darwin award, instead of a lawsuit.
She shouldn't even have been out on the road with a Tornado warning in effect... more living proof that you can't fix stupid.
P.S. See my signature.
She shouldn't even have been out on the road with a Tornado warning in effect... more living proof that you can't fix stupid.
P.S. See my signature.
08-18-2009 | 06:53 AM
#10
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From: Mountain View, CA
In a stunning recent development, the offending tornado from the original incident is suing Honda, all other carmakers, and humanity in general for causing global warming thus reducing the likelihood of future tornadoes being formed.
The tornado is also suing the family in the minivan for getting in its way and "extreme emotional distress" due to the trauma to the family that the tornado was forced to cause and witness.
The tornado is also suing the family in the minivan for getting in its way and "extreme emotional distress" due to the trauma to the family that the tornado was forced to cause and witness.
08-18-2009 | 07:43 PM
#15
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This is the dumbest thing I've heard in a while. I used to be a full-time EMT and I was certified in vehicle rescue. The only glass that is usually laminated is the windshield. Rescue crews can pop a side window out with a sharp-pointed hammer or a spring-loaded center punch in a few seconds. A laminated windshield often has to be cut out with a special saw and then peeled back. It takes much longer. If the side windows were laminated, forget about ever saving someone from a sinking car if the doors are stuck.
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