Drivers to Blame

So the Center for Auto Safety is focusing its fuddy-duddy and quite myopic views on the Suzuki Samurai (Feb. 29, “Suzuki Lashes Out Against Charges Samurai Is Unsafe: Popular Vehicle Rolls Over Easily, Consumer Group Says”). It might be dangerous, bleats Director Clarence Ditlow. Does the center have a definition for safety? I don’t think so; I don’t think it could. There are no unsafe new vehicles that I know of, but there are a lot of unsafe drivers.

The Samurai is an inexpensive, entertaining, four-wheel-drive vehicle. It has a perfectly sound design. Lots of sensible people greatly enjoy the Samurai. Now, if some foolish people choose to do blatantly stupid things with it, why blame the vehicle? We seem to forget that these are inert objects--until the moment the driver turns the key.

CLEMENT SALVADORI

Laguna Beach