VW’S 2018 TIGUAN UNDER INVESTIGATION: SEAT BELT WEBBING SEPARATES DURING CRASH TESTS
Federal regulators are undergoing an intense investigation after the driver’s seat belt webbing of the 2018 MY Volkswagen Tiguan completely separated during two crash tests. The investigation will determine whether the automaker will be required to recall approximately 110,000 2018 Tiguan model vehicles currently on the road.
New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) frontal crash tests, conducted by NHTSA in December 2017, showed that the seat belt webbing completely separated during two crash tests. According to the report, both tests were 35 mph, full frontal impacts into a rigid barrier with a male dummy fastened in the driver’s seat and a female dummy belted in the passenger seat. On both occasions, the driver’s seat webbing “completely separated in tension where it looped through the seat belt latch tongue.”
After the investigation, Volkswagen continued to deny the seat belt defect by arguing that the tension from the dummy’s umbilical cord caused cuts or abrasion to the seat belts. VW conducted several sled tests in an attempt to prove their theory and submitted the data to the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) and NCAP for review. After the sled test data was analyzed, it was determined the seat belts failed in tension and not due to cuts or abrasion related to the crash dummy umbilical cord.
The investigation is ongoing and will be undergoing Engineering Analysis to “further examine seat belt behavior in the subject vehicles and to determine, among other things, a root cause for the seat belt separation.
VW SEAT BELT DEFECT LAWYERS
As defective automobile lawyers, we see many accidents involving seat belts that do not work as they were intended. Even if you caused a car accident, like running off the road and hitting an object, your vehicle is supposed to protect you and your loved ones in the event of a crash. If you or a loved one have been involved in a serious accident where your seat belt did not function properly, contact the seat belt defect attorneys at The Potts Law Firm to determine if you have a case against your vehicle manufacturer.