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

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  (#1) Anton Yelchin

  • Actor

  Twenty-seven-year-old Star Trek actor Anton Yelchin died at his home in Los Angeles in 2016 after being struck by his own car. He was standing behind his Jeep Grand Cherokee when it suddenly rolled backward down his steep driveway and pinned him to his brick mailbox and security gate. Investigators said that the car was in neutral when the accident occurred, although they weren't sure why he got out of the car. It turns out, the Grand Cherokee was the subject of a recall. Other owners filed complaints and cited injuries, though Yelchin's death was the first fatality.
  
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  (#2) 911 Call for Malfunctioning Toyota

  In 2009, the Saylor family was driving along the San Diego Highway when they lost control of their rental car. Moments before the 2009 Lexus E350 crashed, the family contacted 911 reporting that the accelerator was stuck. The vehicle reached speeds of 120mph before smashing into another car and landing in a ravine. All four passengers were killed in the crash.

  The haunting 911 call made national news, shining a spotlight on Toyota defects. The fatality prompted the car company to issue two separate recalls. Over 5 million vehicles were recalled for floor mat issues, while more than 4 million more cars were recalled for other defects. Toyota was fined over $16 million for failing to recall their vehicles sooner.

  In 2010, Toyota rewarded the Saylor family an undisclosed amount in damages.

   

   
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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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  (#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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  (#6) Church Festival Fatality

  Attendees at a church festival in Westchester County, NY, were left reeling from the death of a young girl in 2014. Kalie Gill, 15, was walking along the sidewalk with her sister when a car plowed through an intersection and killed her.

  Gill was hit by a person driving a 2002 Jeep, which had reportedly suffered a brake malfunction. 
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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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  (#8) Takata Airbag Malfunction

  In March 2016, Huma Hanif, 17, of Texas, was driving her 2002 Honda Civic when she rear-ended a car in front of her. The airbag deployed, sending shrapnel flying into the young girl's neck. The teen died from her injuries.

  Honda released a statement to Buzzfeed after the accident that read, "Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the family of the driver during this difficult time."

  The motor company has recalled millions of vehicles over the airbag issue, however, Hanif's family claims they never received a notice prior to the fatal accident. 
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  (#9) Locked in a Death Trap

  James Rogers, 72, had just finished breakfast when he got into his dream car: a 2007 Corvette. Suddenly, the car lost power and the automatic locks wouldn't work. Rogers couldn't get out of the car, and ultimately died due to heat exhaustion.

  Authorities explained a cable became loose in the Corvette, which caused the lock to malfunction. Corvette has a manual lock release on the driver's side floorboard, but Rogers was unaware of it.
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  (#10) Carbon Monoxide Deaths

  Pasquale and Rina Fontanini were unaware of the danger accumulating in their garage as they slept. The pair had a 2013 Lincoln MKS, which included a key-less ignition common in newer vehicles. Unfortunately, the ignition was triggered and turned the car on.

  Carbon monoxide filled the garage and made its way into the couple's home. The pair died from poisoning. The tragedy brought attention to an alarming rise in key-less entry malfunction deaths - at least 12 have been counted.

  Sean Kane, founder of Safety Research & Strategies, told the Chicago Tribune, "Keyless ignition has upended the relationship between the driver and the car... It's created a scenario where you can easily leave a vehicle running and not know it."
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  (#11) Airbags That Fail to Deploy

  On New Year's Eve in 2009, Hasaya Chansuthus, 25, was driving her Chevy Cobalt in the rain. She accidentally side-swiped another vehicle, crashing head-on into a tree at 70 miles per hour. Her Cobalt's airbags failed to deploy, killing her on impact.

  The preventable tragedy was another in a list of 13 airbag malfunction fatalities in GM vehicles. 
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  (#12) Teens Died After Faulty Ignition

  While the Chevy Cobalt's ignition switch issue has been the cause of many deaths, this case stood out due to GM's response to the accident. 

  In 2006, Natasha Weigel, 18, and Amy Rademaker, 15, both died when their Chevy Cobalt hit a tree. Amy was in the passenger seat, while Natasha was sitting in the back. The accident was caused by an ignition switch failure, compounded by the fact that the airbags did not deploy,

  While the accident killed both teens, GM only recognized Amy's death in a lawsuit, claiming that Natasha's wouldn't have been affected by the airbag issue. Amy's mother, Margie Besaku, told CNN Money, "GM is trying to pass this off as an airbag problem, and it's not."
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  (#13) Fatal Fender Bender

  Carlos Solis, 35, of Houston, was leaving his residence when the front end of his car was struck by another vehicle. The impact set off the airbag of his 2002 Honda Accord, sending shrapnel flying into his neck.

  Solis bled to death as family attempted to save him. His family field a lawsuit against airbag company Takata.
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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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  (#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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  (#16) Homocide by Airbag

  Hien Tran's death was originally believed to be a homicide due to extensive stab wounds all over her body. Upon further investigation, authorities realized that Tran's wounds were caused when the airbags in her 2001 Honda Accord ruptured after a collision. Tran's family sued Takata and Honda for her death.

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