Renault Samsung blames drivers for alleged SUA accidents in Jeju
Renault Samsung Motors’ electric car SM3 Z.E. / Courtesy of Renault Samsung Motors
By Jhoo Dong-chan
A series of alleged sudden unintended acceleration (SUA) accidents have been reported involving Renault Samsung Motors’ SM3 electric cars on Jeju Island. The automaker is blaming the accidents on drivers’ poor driving skills.
A 50-year-old surnamed Chung who drove the electric model, SM3 Z.E., crashed at a horseracing track in Haean-dong, central Jeju, Feb. 10.
No casualties were reported, but the accident surprised horses and could have hurt a number of visitors.
“I was stepping on the brake pedal before I was going to hit a bump in the road. My car then suddenly went backward into the horse park,” news agency Yonhap quoted Chung as saying.
“My car was not supposed to run backward since the gear shift was in drive.”
Experiencing a similar incident during the Chuseok holidays, Chung decided to ask the National Forensic Service to investigate the car for possible faults.
A 66-year-old Jeju resident surnamed Moon also experienced a similar accident on his way to church in Samdo-dong, central Jeju, early in morning of Dec. 18.
Also driving the same model as Chung, Moon’s car allegedly accelerated and crashed into a nearby laundry.
“I was pulling over in front of the church. But my car suddenly accelerated when I took my foot off the accelerator to slow down,” Moon was quoted as saying. “I believe this was a typical SUA case.”
Moon’s accident occurred only nine days after he took delivery of the car.
Another SM3 Z.E. driver, also surnamed Moon, 65, claimed that she had an SUA accident at a market in Donam-dong, Jeju, Dec. 3.
She told that she pressed her foot down sharply on the brake as the car suddenly darted across the parking lot making a roaring sound but it did no good.
A Renault Samsung Motors official, however, said that the three accidents were not SUA accidents considering the speed and all “caused by the drivers’ misperceptions or poor driving skills, not by model defects.”
“In the Haean-dong accident, the driver is believed to have put the gearshift into N, not D. And the car’s speed was not even fast enough to be considered an SUA,” said Renault Samsung PR team manager Lee Jung-kook.
"Plus, the driver's husband surnamed Park also testifies against her claims, questioning what really happened in the accident."
Lee also claimed that the Samdo-dong accident does not show any signs of being an SUA.
“Electric cars do not make roaring sounds since they have electric motors," Lee said.
"The electric data downloaded from the car showed the driver pressed down on the accelerator instead of the brake when making a right turn. Considering he just took delivery of the car, however, the company decided to install a new black box and other safety-related equipment for free.”
The police concluded through their investigation that the Donam-dong accident was the driver’s fault. Police found that she was also pressing down on the accelerator instead of the brake, Lee added.