DaimlerChrysler Develops Trunk Release Mechanism

Auburn Hills, Mich. -- A dealer-installed kit that allows a person trapped inside a car trunk to escape will be available for installation on DaimlerChrysler cars in late-June.

The trunk-escape device allows children or adults to open a locked trunk from inside by turning an illuminated yellow handle. It is intended to prevent entrapments like those that resulted in the deaths of 11 children from heat stroke last summer.

After those deaths, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) asked the National SAFE KIDS Campaign to convene an Expert Panel on Trunk Entrapment. During a news conference today at the National Press Club, the panel released recommendations calling for automakers to:

• Offer trunk release devices that can be installed on existing vehicles by the summer of 2000.
• Include trunk safety features as standard equipment on all new vehicles by Jan. 1, 2001.

DaimlerChrysler will have the after-market kit available for most Dodge, Chrysler and Plymouth vehicles later this month --- one year ahead of the expert panel's suggested timing. A release mechanism is also being developed for Mercedes Benz vehicles. Jeep® vehicles and others without trunks are not affected.

DaimlerChrysler is developing a plan to include the safety feature on new vehicles by 2001.

"DaimlerChrysler is committed to making its vehicles as safe as possible. We fully support NHTSA and the expert panel in their effort to prevent serious injuries and deaths caused by trunk entrapment," said Susan Cischke, Vice President of Safety Affairs at DaimlerChrysler.

"Trunk entrapment rarely occurs, but when it does the results can be devastating - as the nation learned from the tragic deaths last summer," Cischke said. "We've worked hard at DaimlerChrysler to make a trunk-escape device available to our customers as soon as possible.

"We also will be adding warnings to our owner manuals and other educational materials emphasizing the importance of keeping children away from trunks," Cischke said. "As the panel points out, educating parents about the dangers of playing in or near cars is critically important."

By late-June, Dodge, Chrysler/Plymouth dealerships will be supplied with "trunk safety kits" they can install on most current passenger car models. The kit includes a new trunk latch and a small yellow handle. The handle is mounted inside the trunk lid and connected to the latch by a cable. With a gentle turn, the handle releases the latch and opens the trunk. The device was designed to be operable by a 3-year-old child.

The trunk-escape device, designed to fit a child's hand but also accommodate an adult, is wired to the vehicle's electric system. Each time the trunk closes a soft light is activated to illuminate the escape handle for one hour, so it would be seen easily by someone who is trapped. "The device is designed to be easy to see and easy to use - and intuitive to use for even small children," Cischke said. DaimlerChrysler owners can call their dealerships for an appointment to have the trunk escape kit installed. It will cost about $50, installed.