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Mitsubishi Rollover Danger

In 2005, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety issued a report finding that the Mitsubishi Montero Sport made between 1999 and 2002 had the fifth highest driver death rate of the midsize two-wheel drive SUVs that were part of the study. The Mitsubishi Endeavor was designed to update the Montero Sport which was discontinued in North America in 2004.

Accident investigators studying rollover accidents involving Mitsubishi SUVs have alleged that the Mitsubishi Montero and Montero Sport are too narrow and too tall, which makes them susceptible to untripped rollover. Other vehicles in their same class have track widths several inches wider without any loss of function or utility. The relatively narrow track found on the Mitsubishi SUVs lead to a less stable vehicle, prone to rollover.

In addition to the propensity for rollover, Mitsubishi has been criticized for alleged weaknesses in the roof structure of its Montero, Montero Sport, Endeavor and Outlander SUVs. During a rollover accident, passengers are placed in danger of serious injury or death if the vehicle's roof collapses.

Lawsuits Against Mitsubishi Motors

Around the nation, lawsuits have been filed against Mitsubishi for defects in Montero, Montero Sport, Endeavor and Outlander.

Background: Consumer Reports Ratings for Mitsubishi SUVs

In 2001, Consumer’s Union, the non-profit advocacy group that publishes Consumer Reports, ran field tests of six different SUVs including the Mitsubishi Montero Limited.

The study was designed to test handling in emergency avoidance maneuvers as well as at high speeds. In 8 out of 9 runs at speeds of 36.7 mph or greater, the Mitsubishi Montero tipped on to two wheels during sharp right turns. Consumer Reports interpreted this data to show that Montero had a high propensity to rollover and gave the vehicle a “NOT ACCEPTABLE” rating. At the time, this was only one of three vehicles to ever receive this rating in the 13 year history of Consumer Union’s roadtests.

In April 2006, Consumer Reports published its automobile ratings. For the 2003 model of the Mitsubishi Montero it concluded that though it performed better than the 2001 Montero Limited now that it was equipped with standard ESC, it was still “clumsy and disconcerting” in handling. It earned a "Poor Rating" for emergency handling.

According to Consumer Reports, the Mitsubishi Outlander is less nimble than some of the other vehicles in its class because of "overly light steering" and a "pronounced body lean".

Background: Government Rating System for SUVs

Under pressure from consumer groups, the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration instituted a 5-star rating system for vehicles in 2001. This rating system is based on a vehicles's Static Stability Factor [SSF] and uses a mathematical formula to determine the center of gravity of the vehicle. The higher the center of gravity, the greater the risk for rollover in emergency avoidance maneuvers.

However, the National Academy of Sciences [NAS] came out with a report in February 2002 that concluded that dynamic on-road testing of vehicles was a necessary addition to the SSF system used by NHTSA to evaluate rollover propensity. In October 2003, NHTSA released a dynamic rollover resistance test in each vehicle is loaded with the equivalent of five adult-size passengers and subjected to a reverse-steer driving maneuver designed to provoke a possible tip-up in a severe but real world steering scenario.

In 2004, no sport-utility vehicles won the government's highest safety rating of 5-stars in the round of rollover tests. In the NHTSA released rollover ratings for 14 SUVs from the 2003 model year, while most SUVs received three out of five stars, the Mitsubishi Montero Sport received two-star ratings.

Submit Your Case

The national law firm of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP, represents victims of rollover accidents and other vehicle crashes in personal injury lawsuits. If you or a family member have been injured in a Mitsubishi SUV rollover accident, please click here to contact a Lieff Cabraser injury attorney for a free, prompt, no-obligation review of your case.