U.S., Foreign Automakers Agree to Improve SUV Safety Standards

Stung by growing criticism over the safety of sport utility vehicles, a coalition of U.S. and foreign auto manufacturers pledged Thursday to work with federal regulators to lessen the dangers that SUVs pose to passenger cars.

The 10-member Alliance of Auto Manufacturers, the industry’s main lobbying group, said in a joint letter with the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety that the organizations would work together to make SUVs safer and decrease the damage SUVs can do when they strike a passenger car.

The letter was sent to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration after experts met this week and examined “a number of ways we could bring more context to the discussion of compatibility between passenger cars and SUVs,” said an auto industry official familiar with the talks.

The letter notes that “the industry has met, takes the issues seriously, will be proactive and looks forward to working with NHTSA,” said the official, who spoke on condition he not be further identified.

“Compatibility” is a key concept because SUVs are much heavier and generally sit considerably higher off the ground than passenger cars, resulting in greater risks to passengers in smaller vehicles.

SUVs came under scrutiny in the summer of 2000 when Ford recalled millions of Firestone tires that had been sold on Ford Explorer SUVs. Hundreds of the tires lost their treads at high speeds, causing Explorers to flip over in scores of fatal accidents.

But rushing to make safety changes is not always the answer, the official said. “This is not a one-size-fits-all issue.... The moves you make might actually cause more deaths and injuries than you’re fixing.”