Trendy Off-Road Vehicle Poses Deadly Risk
It's like a muscle-car for the backcountry - the hottest trend in off-road vehicles. But a four-month CBS News investigation has found evidence that the popular Yamaha Rhino doesn't need to be busting over tough terrain to be dangerous.
"The Yamaha Rhino started to rock and it tipped over on my left side, crushing my wrist," said Justin Miller, who lost his left hand after a Rhino accident in May of 2008.
Miller says he wasn't jumping sand dunes or careening around corners - just driving less than 15 miles per hour on flat ground when his 1,100-pound Rhino rolled over.
Miller told CBS News chief investigative correspondent Armen Keteyian that he was wearing a helmet, belted in and that he didn't break any rules.
Yamaha disputes that, citing a police report saying Justin was driving 20 miles an hour down a hill and hit a rock.
The Rhino has been a runaway hit in the off-road market since its introduction in 2003; more than 150,000 have been sold to date. It turns out no one tracks exactly how many people have been injured while riding in these recreational vehicles.
But CBS News has learned of at least 440 Rhino-related death and injury lawsuits across the U.S. - including Justin Miller's.
Miller said that if the rider were leaning left on a Rhino, "it would tip over."
The Consumer Product Safety Commission cites hundreds of reported injuries - including broken bones, crushed legs, arms and heads - often on level ground at relatively low speeds. The commission also cites a disturbing number of deaths.
"The public needs to be aware that already 59 people have been killed in these vehicles," said Inez Tenenbaum, head of the CPSC. "It's very high risk. This vehicle has a high center of gravity and it will turn over."
Last March the CPSC and Yamaha agreed to a voluntary "free repair" program. Yamaha temporarily suspended sales of all Rhino models and agreed to make a series of repairs to improve handling and reduce injuries. The CPSC told people to follow Yamaha safety guidelines, finding many cases of unbelted riders.
Still the new head of the CPSC says her agency's investigation is far from over.
"We'll continue to look at this, and if we have to take stronger measures, we will," Tenenbaum said.
Yamaha Motor Corp, which did $16 billion in sales overall last year, fiercely defends the Rhino. It argues virtually all accidents are caused by operator error - ignoring safety warnings, driving too fast on pavement, or failing to wear seat belts or helmets.
"I think there's just a lot of people out there who give people like me - my family - bad names and give these machines bad names," said Rhino rider Darren Thau. "There's a lot of stupid people."
Yet one video shows a Yamaha dealer employee moving a Rhino from one part of a dealership to another when it tips over.
Yamaha Dealership Employee Tips Rhino
Watch CBS Videos Online
Turns out, the potential for rollovers was well known to Yamaha executives. According to documents obtained by CBS News, just 15 months before its introduction at a testing ground in Kentucky, two riders rolled over in a prototype for the Rhino. The driver: a Yamaha president at the time. His passenger: the vice president in charge of Rhino Development who sustained a foot injury.
Today there are no safety standards for these so-called "side-by-side" vehicles. Right now, the industry is drafting a set of voluntary ones. Tenenbaum says that may not be enough.
"With the number of deaths that have already occurred, we're even thinking we should go to mandatory standards," Tenenbaum said.
Yamaha wouldn't provide someone to speak with us on camera so we went to their headquarters in Southern California. But despite repeated requests company lawyers ultimately decided not to let anyone speak to us on camera.
Yamaha did provide several off-camera interviews and answers to written questions. In statements to CBS News, Yamaha said: The Rhino "...is a safe, reliable and versatile vehicle...." and "...has won virtually every 'first-in-class award' and top safety ratings… and that the vehicles have been tested for thousands of hours and perform with a high level of customer satisfaction."
Certainly not for customer Justin Miller.
"A lot of people and a lot of kids before me have died," he said. "And if we had known that, we would have never bought this product."
Now, after seven surgeries, 17-year-old Justin Miller is on his way to college to study pre-med, hoping one day to become a doctor, specializing in prosthetics.
YouTube video of Rhino spill on sand
YouTube video shows Rhino spill in mud
Copyright 2009 CBS. All rights reserved. "The Yamaha Rhino started to rock and it tipped over on my left side, crushing my wrist," said Justin Miller, who lost his left hand after a Rhino accident in May of 2008.
Miller says he wasn't jumping sand dunes or careening around corners - just driving less than 15 miles per hour on flat ground when his 1,100-pound Rhino rolled over.
Miller told CBS News chief investigative correspondent Armen Keteyian that he was wearing a helmet, belted in and that he didn't break any rules.
Yamaha disputes that, citing a police report saying Justin was driving 20 miles an hour down a hill and hit a rock.
The Rhino has been a runaway hit in the off-road market since its introduction in 2003; more than 150,000 have been sold to date. It turns out no one tracks exactly how many people have been injured while riding in these recreational vehicles.
But CBS News has learned of at least 440 Rhino-related death and injury lawsuits across the U.S. - including Justin Miller's.
Miller said that if the rider were leaning left on a Rhino, "it would tip over."
The Consumer Product Safety Commission cites hundreds of reported injuries - including broken bones, crushed legs, arms and heads - often on level ground at relatively low speeds. The commission also cites a disturbing number of deaths.
"The public needs to be aware that already 59 people have been killed in these vehicles," said Inez Tenenbaum, head of the CPSC. "It's very high risk. This vehicle has a high center of gravity and it will turn over."
Last March the CPSC and Yamaha agreed to a voluntary "free repair" program. Yamaha temporarily suspended sales of all Rhino models and agreed to make a series of repairs to improve handling and reduce injuries. The CPSC told people to follow Yamaha safety guidelines, finding many cases of unbelted riders.
Still the new head of the CPSC says her agency's investigation is far from over.
"We'll continue to look at this, and if we have to take stronger measures, we will," Tenenbaum said.
Yamaha Motor Corp, which did $16 billion in sales overall last year, fiercely defends the Rhino. It argues virtually all accidents are caused by operator error - ignoring safety warnings, driving too fast on pavement, or failing to wear seat belts or helmets.
"I think there's just a lot of people out there who give people like me - my family - bad names and give these machines bad names," said Rhino rider Darren Thau. "There's a lot of stupid people."
Yet one video shows a Yamaha dealer employee moving a Rhino from one part of a dealership to another when it tips over.
Yamaha Dealership Employee Tips Rhino
Watch CBS Videos Online
Turns out, the potential for rollovers was well known to Yamaha executives. According to documents obtained by CBS News, just 15 months before its introduction at a testing ground in Kentucky, two riders rolled over in a prototype for the Rhino. The driver: a Yamaha president at the time. His passenger: the vice president in charge of Rhino Development who sustained a foot injury.
Today there are no safety standards for these so-called "side-by-side" vehicles. Right now, the industry is drafting a set of voluntary ones. Tenenbaum says that may not be enough.
"With the number of deaths that have already occurred, we're even thinking we should go to mandatory standards," Tenenbaum said.
Yamaha wouldn't provide someone to speak with us on camera so we went to their headquarters in Southern California. But despite repeated requests company lawyers ultimately decided not to let anyone speak to us on camera.
Yamaha did provide several off-camera interviews and answers to written questions. In statements to CBS News, Yamaha said: The Rhino "...is a safe, reliable and versatile vehicle...." and "...has won virtually every 'first-in-class award' and top safety ratings… and that the vehicles have been tested for thousands of hours and perform with a high level of customer satisfaction."
Certainly not for customer Justin Miller.
"A lot of people and a lot of kids before me have died," he said. "And if we had known that, we would have never bought this product."
Now, after seven surgeries, 17-year-old Justin Miller is on his way to college to study pre-med, hoping one day to become a doctor, specializing in prosthetics.
YouTube video of Rhino spill on sand
YouTube video shows Rhino spill in mud
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Those who convert 4X4 vehicles for operation on non-solid surfaces, uneven surfaces, or hill climbing, always change their differential to a locking differential. This locking differential allows the 4X4 vehicle to act as though it has a solid rear axel. With a solid rear axel, both wheels lock and turn, with a differential only one wheel is actually driving the vehicle foreword, the other wheel is spinning free. Use of a differential with it slipping wheel can be very dangerous in off road situations. Why? Imagine climbing a hill and having one rear wheel slip, it will cause the vehicle to turn sideways (opposite the driven wheel) tipping the vehicle and causing it to turn over. The same thing will occur if uneven surfaces are encountered with a differential.
The expert that CBS hired, is a life long Automotive Engineer, where he is very knowledgeable of passenger, road vehicle design and the FMVSS, he is completely ignorant of off road vehicle design as the two designs oppose each other in desirable engineering terms. You will notice the videos above that he undertook, show the off road vehicle with a solid axel being tested on a hard (roadway typical) surface (asphalt). Operating a vehicle of off road design on a surface of this type, can be dangerous if maneuvered in tight turns as the vehicle does not have a rear differential. The off road vehicle is not un-safe, its just designed for a different use, and all of the vehicle warning labels as well as the operator hand book, bear this out.
Case in point: What happens if you operate a steel treaded vehicle, such as a bulldozer or a tank on a solid surface such as asphalt or concrete? On concrete the vehicle will both slip and the cleats will dig, eventually cracking the concrete, the slipping can cause the vehicle to slide. On asphalt surfaces, metal tread vehicles will dig into the asphalt while turning, high speed turns will cause the tracked vehicle to actually chew up the asphalt and break it into pieces, this is due to the forces acting on the vehicle and the road surface. This is another reason why road vehicles are not designed with metal treads or tracks. Where its true the treads or tracks would be more desirable in winter driving on a non-solid surface such as snow, they are dangerous on solid surfaces such as asphalt or concrete.
60 min put this article out because its behind eliminating specific types of vehicles. This is not the first of its kind for 60 min, years ago it put out articles about 4X4 SUVs where it was discovered later that it used explosives to over turn the vehicles for the camera. Remember there is always two sides to every story. Don't forget to ask why to get at the root cause. Yes you can turn vehicles over with sharp maneuvers, any vehicle if turned hard enough with rapidly oscillating changes will overturn or tip over. The taller the vehicle, the more prone it is to tipping as the center of mass is higher off the ground. In order for off road vehicles to overcome ground objects such as undulations in the earths surface or rocks and other debris, they must be constructed with higher chassis clearance than a roadway vehicle. By their design (higher center mass), its inherent that they posses a higher risk of tipping to one side or another. All of off road vehicles, no matter the manufacturer, posses this same characteristic. This characteristic can not be removed from the design of off road vehicles.
60min is well aware of this age old design issue. For 60 min it a way to sell their air time and create panic where non is needed. Had they simply told the truth concerning the various vehicle designs, I would not be writing this rather lengthy response.
Another part of this article that bothers me is how the young man that lost his hand did NOT tell the whole truth. You can clearly see in the police report, not only was the speed 20 mph (not 15 mph) and hitting the rock, but there also a reference to a right turn that was not mentioned in this report. So why not report and tell the truth?
If this was a supposed 4 month report, CBS should be ashamed and embarrased for the lack of information, truth and integrity 4 months worth of work produced...or in my opinion, did not produce. CBS has lost my trust in truthful reporting and honest journalism.
Lets try less government.