Rollovers suit may upend Ford

SACRAMENTO, CALIF. - A major lawsuit set for trial next month claims Ford deceived consumers about the safety of its Explorer sport-utility vehicles and threatens $2 billion in profits Ford earned from Explorers built in the 1990s and sold in California. The class-action lawsuit, brought on behalf of about 414,000 Explorer buyers, is so large that it puts the automaker at risk of collapse, a Ford defense lawyer said this week after a final pretrial hearing. Ford lost $12.7 billion last year, said Malcolm Wheeler, a Denver attorney who heads Ford's trial team. "This is a company that has had to lay off thousands of employees, a company struggling with a $3.5 billion negative net worth," Wheeler said. Plaintiffs' lawyers contend that regardless of the financial impact, Ford should be punished for falsely marketing the safety and reliability of the Explorer, which it knew to be prone to roll over because of its high center of gravity and other factors. Tab Turner -- a Little Rock, Ark., lawyer who pioneered SUV rollover lawsuits involving the Ford Bronco II and Explorers and who has sued Ford at least 1,000 times in death-and-injury cases -- will be the plaintiffs' lead trial counsel in the Sacramento case. "This vehicle is one of the most dangerous vehicles ever produced in this country," Turner said. Marketed as a replacement for family station wagons, the Explorers built in the 1990s have a tendency to flip over during evasive maneuvers at speeds over 40 mph, he said. Ford knew of the Explorer's problems but decided it was more profitable to produce the vehicle without changing its design, he said. A marketing campaign then touted the Explorer's safety and reliability for everyday use. "What this case boils down to is: What did Ford tell the public and what did Ford not tell the public?" Turner said. "If the judge finds we're correct in this case, he has the right under the law to disgorge them of their profits." In their lawsuit, the plaintiff attorneys claim Ford's deception cost the state's car buyers about $500 million when the value of their vehicles fell once the alleged defects became widely known. The value of each of the 414,569 SUVs dropped from $1,000 to $1,300 beyond normal depreciation, according to experts the lawyers have retained. In addition, the plaintiffs are seeking a return of profits Ford earned from its alleged wrongdoing. The lawsuit doesn't demand a specific amount of money, but the plaintiffs must spell out what they are seeking the morning the trial begins. The judge has broad discretion to order Ford to pay, should he find the company violated state consumer-protection laws. The suit was filed under the state's unfair competition and false advertising statutes, which are considered among the nation's strongest. "The court exercising its equitable powers can look at the $2.135 billion and determine what amount should be returned to class members due to Ford's wrongful conduct," said Tracey Buck-Walsh, an attorney for the plaintiffs. The class-action lawsuit, combining a handful of cases filed in California, is the first of its kind in the nation to go to trial and is being closely watched. Another case is making its way through the court system in Illinois. Courts in Florida and Connecticut refused to approve similar class actions, and lawsuits in several other states were dismissed by judges or dropped by plaintiffs.

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