OTHER NEWS - Dec. 18, 1992

Government Questions GM’s Testing of Pickup Trucks: Federal investigators are questioning the integrity of General Motors Corp.’s tests of millions of its pickup trucks, suggesting that trucks sold to consumers may have been equipped differently than test vehicles. In a nine-page letter to GM, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also said the auto maker failed to provide the agency with information about some fuel leakage that had occurred during the crash tests. The transaction is part of an investigation into questions over the safety of the fuel tanks in an estimated 4.7 million of the 1973-87 Chevrolet and GMC C-K series full-size pickups. The trucks have “side saddle” fuel tanks mounted outside the frame rails. A consumer group leading an effort to recall the trucks said the location of the tanks makes them more vulnerable to being punctured in side-impact crashes and has resulted in the deaths of at least 300 people.