Did Nissan get hosed or was justice served?

[AZhitman]

From http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2013/03/ ... 363906283/:

NEWARK, N.J., March 21 (UPI) -- An Essex County, N.J., jury has ordered Nissan to pay $4.2 million to a man who was injured after a tire fell off a pickup truck and hit the roof of his car.

Larry Clanton, 52, was driving a Nissan Altima in July 2006 when the tire, weighing 73 pounds, hit the roof of his car, which cracked and pushed his head forward. Clanton's lawyer, Cynthia Walters, said he had to re-learn how to walk and must exercise every day to keep his muscles from contracting and risk being hospitalized again, The (Newark, N.J.) Star-Ledger reported Thursday.

Walters argued the header panel that forms the front of the roof was designed differently in the Altima than in most other cars.

"Design engineers know how to design a good roof, it's not really a problem in American-made cars but what we found is it's a problem in these Altimas," she said.

Lawyers for Nissan argued that at the speed the tire and Clanton's car were moving, the roof would have been damaged and caused the injuries the plaintiff suffered regardless of design.

"I feel great that I won but I just feel as though I wish I could have my life back," Clanton said. "I hope this makes the manufacturers more responsible. I don't want anyone to go through what I've been through."

Nissan spokesman Steven Oldham said: "While we sympathize with the plaintiff, our vehicle was not the cause of this unfortunate accident. We are disappointed by the jury's findings and are exploring our options."
____________________________________________________________________

Nice to see that he decided to sue the manufacturer of his own car, instead of the owner / driver of the truck that LOST the damn tire.

Part of me wishes he'd been driving a Miata.

[krash]

Yea the first question I'd be asking is "why did a random tire come flying at me" not "why did my roof not hold up against a random tire flying at it"

Sucks for the guy, but I can't help but thing that he was just looking for the most money. Suing Nissan will give him more $$$ compared to suing some random truck driver.

[addicted4life]

"...in these Altimas"

Just looking for cash to compensate his injuries, nothing Nissan could have done for that as it could have happened to anyone in any car, what happens if it was a convertible?

In all rights it should have been a lawsuit against the escaped tires owner in the first place.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Something bad happened to me! There must be someone to blame!

People disgust me.

[AZhitman]

Something bad happened to me! There must be someone to blame!

People disgust me.

^ THIS.

Heads up, guys - DO NOT raise your kids with this mentality.

[Jesda]

Blood sucking lawyer, idiot jury.

[Rev_D21]

I poured hot coffee all over my lap...coudn't be my fault even though I did it.

[float_6969]

Blood sucking lawyer, idiot jury.

^this

[PapaSmurf2k3]

I wonder if Nissan didn't "bring the house" with their lawyers for it. Like they assumed they wouldn't have been found at fault.

I feel like they can appeal it, get a different jury, etc.

[Bubba1]

Blood sucking lawyer, idiot jury.

^ Pretty much sums it up. One can only hope this stupid verdict gets reversed by a higher court.

[mmkeller]

Lookout spoon makers, "that spoon made me fat" enough said

[sx moneypit]

Lookout spoon makers, "that spoon made me fat" enough said

[Hijacker]

I wonder if Nissan didn't "bring the house" with their lawyers for it. Like they assumed they wouldn't have been found at fault.

I feel like they can appeal it, get a different jury, etc.

They can. McDonalds had the hot coffee verdict over turned on appeals. All Nissan really needed to do was test a few popular cars with the same scenario to prove that it's not a manufacturing defect. Hell, hire the Mythbusters to do the tests. Juries love the Mythbusters.

[EW]

I was on a slip and fall jury one time. Some lady wanted to give the guy money just because the company could afford it. Hells no.

[WDRacing]

Frivolous lawsuits negatively effect every one of us, every day. I'm not sure how we can change our legal system and improve it, but something has got to give.

I'd also be happy if a vigilante started murdering lawyers that pursue this sort of case. The kind of murder that involves slowly lowering them into a woodchipper.

[AZhitman]

They'd just sue to force the woodchipper manufacturer to make the inlet smaller.

[WDRacing]

How about something like 15 wacks with a wiffle ball bat for every $1000 in requested funds? We could even sell PPV video feeds as a new source of revenue!

[Jmoore124]

Ridiculous, that's all I have to say. The judicial system in the united states is so backwards its not funny.

[LongBeachCoupe]

I wonder if Nissan didn't "bring the house" with their lawyers for it. Like they assumed they wouldn't have been found at fault.

I feel like they can appeal it, get a different jury, etc.

Companies like Nissan have staff lawyers for these types of things, I presume they brought their A game...
This will get turned over in appeal, without question.

"Design engineers know how to design a good roof, it's not really a problem in American-made cars but what we found is it's a problem in these Altimas," she said.

She is not qualified to make a statement like that and this was said outside of court, holds no value...

What type of tire weighs 70 pounds? A 18 wheeler tire?
Velocity when hitting the car?

$100,000 spent in testing will produce enough physical evidence to get this thrown out in appeal, without question it will go to appeal and will be overturned...

[MinisterofDOOM]

"Design engineers know how to design a good roof, it's not really a problem in American-made cars but what we found is it's a problem in these Altimas," she said.

She is not qualified to make a statement like that and this was said outside of court, holds no value...

Not only is she not qualified to make it, it's patent s***. Since when does the home nation of the corporation have ANYTHING TO DO with quality of engineering? Is this moron woman aware that the Altima is manufactured in Tennessee? And, unless I'm mistaken, the last couple Altimas (Along with more than one generation of Maxima) were very intentionally designed in America.

[Bubba1]

I was on a slip and fall jury one time. Some lady wanted to give the guy money just because the company could afford it. Hells no.

That's one of the few ways we can fight back. Get on a jury and deny these idiots their paydays. The problem is no one ever wants to do jury duty.

[AZhitman]

What type of tire weighs 70 pounds? A 18 wheeler tire?

A 20" rim / tire combo would do it.

[Dattebayo]

When you consider that there is no support bar in the center of the window, exactly how would this be different in this one car compared to the rest?

Also, I'm wondering what kind of research that his lawyers did to prove that the design was different enough to warrant such a payday... Do you think they actually smashed several cars' headliner panels with a 73-pound tire and use a dummy? I doubt it...

What I see here is a bunch of jury attendees just letting some guy have his way because they saw his condition rather than actually considered what was really going on. Hey, I personally think he should have gone after the other driver for vehicle negligence, it would have made more sense than this BS show...

[RicerX]

Here's an idea - why wasn't this guy able to see the tire coming? Could it be that he wasn't scanning far enough ahead on the highway for obstacles or hazards? Could it be that he was following far too closely to the vehicle with the questionable load?

Could it be that he was on the phone or otherwise distracted?

I understand that vehicles need to be designed to a safety standard, but if this guy got nailed by an RPG in his Altima, would it still have been Nissan's fault for not building armored body panels into it? The biggest dictator of safety in a vehicle is driver awareness. At some point, it matters not how many airbags or lane departure warnings or aerial view cameras or seat belt indicators or heads up displays or preemptive braking systems you have in your car. If you're driving like an idiot with your head up your a**, you're putting way too much faith in any sort of engineering and you're putting yourself and others in danger.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I understand that vehicles need to be designed to a safety standard, but if this guy got nailed by an RPG in his Altima, would it still have been Nissan's fault for not building armored body panels into it? The biggest dictator of safety in a vehicle is driver awareness. At some point, it matters not how many airbags or lane departure warnings or aerial view cameras or seat belt indicators or heads up displays or preemptive braking systems you have in your car. If you're driving like an idiot with your head up your a**, you're putting way too much faith in any sort of engineering and you're putting yourself and others in danger.

This is my favorite post on the internets.

[AZhitman]

...and sometimes, bad s*** just HAPPENS.

It doesn't always have to be "someone's fault".

[IanS]

...and sometimes, bad s*** just HAPPENS.

It doesn't always have to be "someone's fault".

Exactly. People make mistakes. As luck would have it, sometimes those mistakes have dire consiquences. Unless a person or company was being obviously neglegent, then you shouldn't get squat. Too large a portion of this country has a lawer on speed dial, just waiting for a reason to file a lawsuit.

I wonder what this guys situation was prior to the accident. Ugly single perma bachelor living in a crappy appartment?

Its our own fault really. Everybody is always searching for a way to make life easier/safer. By doing that we are negating the effects of darwinism. The idiots are breeding, and we're nearly helpless to stop them.

[jmann]

Nissan got hosed big time. I am sure whoever owned the tire that was thrown had an insurance policy limit that was paid, but was not enough to cover this guy's medical costs. The typical legal next step is to go after the manufacturer. It should have been the manufacturer of the vehicle that threw the tire, as that was the one that caused this. That lawsuit may have failed or may be next in line.

[RicerX]

...and sometimes, bad s*** just HAPPENS.

It doesn't always have to be "someone's fault".

Agreed upon.

[AZhitman]

It should have been the manufacturer of the vehicle that threw the tire, as that was the one that caused this. That lawsuit may have failed or may be next in line.

In fairness, we're not sure from the article whether it was a tire and wheel assembly, whether the vehicle simply threw its tread, whether it was a tire that fell off the back of a truck... I'd be curious to see the police report and subsequent accident investigation.