Several incidents of vehicle rollaway are putting Jaguar in the spotlight and hot seat. 2012 to 2014 models of the Land Rover allegedly rolled off even when the shift selector is on the P or the parked position. Several injuries have been reported, including one that was pinned against a garage wall.
The Jaguar Land Rover's Rotary Know Is Flawed
Land Rover owners are saying that the Land Rover's rotary style shift selector knob is at fault. The involved individuals all claimed to have put the selector know in the correct position before stepping out of their vehicles. However, all the drivers also failed to engage the emergency or park brake.
Jaguar Claims Nothing Wrong With Their Vehicles Transmission And Design
Jaguar denies that there is a flaw in the design of their vehicles and advised that drivers should still engage the emergency brake even if the transmission has already been set to the Park position. Drivers has been advised ever since the emergency brake to engage it every time they place the car in the Park position using the gear selector. On the other hand, manual transmission drivers have also been taught to engage the emergency brake and put the vehicle in gear whenever parking.
The NHTSA Is Now Investigating Jaguar Land Rover
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, however, is still putting two Jaguar Land Rover models into investigation even after denial of the claims by the company. They would be investigating 2012 to 2014 models of the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque and the 2013 Jaguar XF. Other vehicle brands and manufacturers have also been under fire for having rotary gearshift selector knob ever since complaints of the Jaguar vehicle came out.
An estimated 39,000 Jaguar Land Rover vehicles may be affected due to the incident. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a primary evaluation of the vehicles on December 16, 2016. Out of the seven incidents, four of those still had the driver's door open.
One Fatality Due To The Rotary Selector Knob, Allegedly
Jaguar Land Rover already received seven complaints of vehicle roll away. One incident had the driver pinned against his garage wall after the vehicle rolled into him after stepping out of the vehicle. In total, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has already received 25 crash reports and nine injuries for Fiat Chrysler vehicles. 27-year-old Star Trek actor, Anton Yelchin, also lost his life in June after he allegedly engaged the car in the Park position.
Unlike Jaguar Land Rover, Fiat Chrysler was quick to make a course of action as they issued more than one million of its vehicles to be recalled. The announcement to recall the vehicles was done before the initial investigation was done to prevent any further injuries that could have been caused by the rotary design gear selector knob. Drivers and owners are highly advised to take all the necessary precautions whenever stepping out of their vehicles. One should not rely on the automatic transmissions Park gear and should always exercise a fail-safe such as the emergency brake.
