Yamaha Rhino Sales Suspended
2009 March 31
Yamaha has agreed to suspend sales of the Rhino 450 and 600 and to offer free modifications to owners of these Rhinos to decrease the risk of rollovers and serious injuries. According to Marketwire:
Yamaha and the Consumer Product Safety Commission issued the recall affecting some 120 thousand vehicles and warned Rhino owners not to operate their vehicles until taking them into a dealership for repairs and safety modifications. All Rhino 450 and 660 model vehicles were included in the recall. The action comes after more than 46 deaths and hundreds of catastrophic injuries were reported in Rhino accidents across the U.S.
This is not the first recall of the Yamaha Rhino. In 2007, Rhinos were recalled to be retrofitted with doors. Yamaha characterized the current 2009 recall as a “voluntary repair program.” Further, Yamaha issued the following statement:
The safety of our customers drives everything we do at Yamaha. While more than 99 percent of Rhino owners use the product without any reported incident, CPSC and Yamaha examined the small segment of Rhino owners who have had an incident on the product to develop modifications that CPSC believes may help reduce the chance of rollover and improve vehicle handling in certain situations.
The Yamaha Rhino has been subject to litigation throughout the country. The numbers of deaths and serious injuries relating to rollovers of these, and similar recreational vehicles, is alarming. The free repairs include installing a spacer on the rear wheels and removing a rear anti-sway bar to help reduce the chance of rollover and improve vehicle handling. The company will also install half-doors and extra passenger handholds to keep riders’ arms and legs inside the vehicle during a rollover.
