Porsche is now being sued by Kristine Rodas, the widow of race car driver Roger Rodas, who was involved in the deadly car accident that killed him and actor Paul Walker back in November 2013. The suit claims that the car was unsafe to drive and that the crash was not caused by an unsafe speed.
Kristine claims that the Porsche her late husband was driving was only traveling 55 mph when it crashed, contradicting the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s report. The L.A. County’s report found that Rodas, who was behind the wheel, and Walker, who was riding in the passenger side of the Porsche Carrera GT, was traveling at an unsafe speed of more than 90 mph along a road in a Santa Clarita business park.
According to the lawsuit filed by Rodas, “The Carrera GT was unsafe for its intended use by reason of defects in its manufacture, design, testing, component and constituents, so that it would not safely serve its purpose.” Rodas and her attorney Mark Geragos claim the car’s suspension system forced it to careen out of control after the right rear tire of the Porsche Carrera GT suddenly steered to the left and despite the efforts of her late husband, caused it to crash into several trees and into a light pole before the fuel tank ruptured, catching the engine on fire and immediately killing both Paul Walker and Roger Rodas.
Rodas’ family is seeking unspecified damages from Porsche Cars North America. This isn’t the first time the luxurious automaker has been sued for their cars allegedly being unsafe after a deadly accident. In 2005 Porsche was sued for claiming the lives of Ben Keaton and his passenger, Corey Rudl, at the California Speedway after their vehicle swerved into a concrete wall. They two were trying to avoid a collision with a Ferrari entering the track at a lower speed and resulted in them losing control and crashing. Porsche contributed 8% of a $4.5-million settlement, but Porsche still claims that their cars are safe.
