LOS ANGELES -- Toyota Corolla and Corona automobiles produced between 1970 and 1979 were involved in 10 highway deaths caused by gas tank ruptures with the victims burning to death, a research group charges.
The Los Angeles Times reported Friday that the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an insurance-industry funded group based in Washington, D.C., contends the Toyota gas tanks rupture in low speed collisions and present a risk of 'gas tank cremation'.
The Institute compiled data from crash tests dating as early as 1970.
In one test conducted in 1973, a second car was crashed against the rear end of a Toyota Corona at just under 40 mph, causing the Toyota to burst into flames that engulfed the passenger compartment in less than a third of a second, the Institute said.
As of June, the Institute had compiled files detailing at least 19 serious accidents involving Toyota gas tanks. Ten of the accidents resulted in death, the files showed.
'We regard the Toyota gas tank situation as a scandal,' said Dr. William Haddon, Insurance Institute president. 'We are dumbfounded that the U.S. Department of Transportation has not long since called public attention to it.'
Joan Claybrook, administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said late Thursday the matter is still under investigation.
Toyota Motors Sales USA Inc., the American distributor based in Torrance, Calif., released a statement saying that tests by the government found the gas tanks to be free of defect.
The Institute's file of accidents includes a collision in June 1979 near Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Three people riding in a 1973 Toyota were killed when their car was rear-ended. The Toyota burst into flames, trapping the victims in the car.
The Institute, founded in 1959, is supported by automobile insurance companies and is regarded as an authority on auto safety, the Times reported.
