Octopus Car Washes
ATTENTION: OWNERS OF JEEP GRAND
CHEROKEE VEHICLES
March 8, 2010
Dear Valued Octopus Customer:
On January 30, 2010 an
employee of the Paseo Octopus Car Wash was struck and killed by a 2005 Jeep
Grand Cherokee. The preliminary investigation into the accident revealed that
the Jeep Grand Cherokee suddenly accelerated without any action by the driver.
This phenomenon called SUA, or Sudden Unintended Acceleration, has been widely
reported in the media for many years. Daimler Chrysler so far has refused to
recall the vehicle or accept any responsibility for the hundreds of documented
accidents across the US and abroad.
Diane Sawyer narrated a 20/20
segment on Jeep SUA in March 1997, 13 years ago and the phenomenon continues
today. In 2002 a formal Defect Petition was submitted to NHTSA (National
Highway Transportation Authority). In 2006 Connecticut's' Attorney General
called for a NHTSA investigation following another Jeep Grand Cherokee car wash
accident that resulted in the death of a customer.
See the following website for
more information: https://sites.google.com/site/jeepgrandcherokeesua/
Because the investigation is
ongoing, and on the advice of counsel; the Octopus Car Washes in Albuquerque New
Mexico have temporarily suspended washing the V-8 model Jeep Grand Cherokee,
regardless of model year, until an effective resolution can be determined. This
action only applies to the V-8 model Jeep Grand Cherokee.
You might ask: “What about the current
problems with Toyota”? Toyota has accepted responsibility and recalled their
vehicles where Daimler Chrysler has not.
We truly apologize for the
inconvenience but we cannot accept the risk of injury, or death, to our
employees or customers.
Charlie Gates
Chief Operations Officer
Octopus Car Washes Inc.