Detroit Free Press, "U.S. keeping crash data secret"

Federal auto safety officials are backtracking on a pledge to give consumers access to detailed data on which cars and trucks may be linked to deaths, injuries and property damage. The reason: Tire makers have sued to prevent its release. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says it will hold off indefinitely on releasing the information while the lawsuit by the country's largest tire makers is argued and decided, which could take months, if not years. Consumer advocates have been clamoring for the release of such data since the 2000 Ford-Firestone rollover debacle.

Auto experts say these data on vehicle deaths, injuries, property damage and what specific parts may have caused the problem would be of great interest to car and truck shoppers, who often make their buying decisions based on a vehicle's safety records and reliability. "If you own a car or truck and have a problem with it, or are shopping for a new car or truck, you'd want to see if there were a number of deaths or injuries with that vehicle. It's really disheartening to see NHTSA opting for secrecy in the area of vehicle safety," said Sally Greenberg, senior product safety counsel for Consumers Union, which publishes Consumer Reports magazine.