Ralph Nader Vs. The Jeep Grand Cherokee

Ralph Nader wasn't motivated by destroying the livelihoods and freedoms of Germans.

There was a novel by Elmore Leonard that had a "Nader-like" character in it that the main character (a shady PI) had been hired by GM to smear. Leonard actually treated the lawyer very sympathetically, which I thought was unusual for a guy who has been called "Dickens of Detroit." Danged if I can remember the name of the novel now though, I've been trying to find another copy for years so I could reread it. I haven't read it since I lived in Southfield, MI back in 2001.

For years I owned a first generation Corvair convertible, although it was not my daily driver. I still have quite a bit of literature on the topic, and if you'll permit me I'll share my opinions as to why the Corvair took the brunt of Nader's assault: 1. First off, the VW was tarred with the same brush as the Corvair in Unsafe at Any Speed, as was Mercedes-Benz. Nader makes it clear that the swing axle design used at the time by these automobiles had tendencies that were unfamiliar to many U.S. drivers. 2. GM was a better target for Nader, as it was far larger. In turn, this created more sensational headlines. 3. The Corvair was more powerful than the VW; more power made it easier to send the Corvair around corners at a faster speed, and thus more prone to oversteer and eventually into the "pendulum effect" where the tail of the car swings around. 4. GM marketed the Corvair as being somewhat sporty. That's not necessarily a sin on GM's part, but it could be argued that this made the Corvair more appealing to more sporting (read: more aggressive) driver. The VW didn't make such claims; it was marketed as basic, no-nonsense transportation. 5. Finally, as psarhjinian noted, GM hired prostitutes and private investigators to entrap and discredit him; VW did not. The ensuing publicity caused a black eye for GM, and kept the story in the media that much longer.

@ "Educator" Dan -- if you read "Unsafe at Any Speed", you'd notice VW and others were also singled out for their swing axle designs that contribute to roll-over accidents. To GM's credit, they responded quicker to these criticisms than VW and added a leaf-sway-bar thing to the '64 Corvairs to solve the problem, and a fully-independent suspension redesign in '65. I liked Corvairs, and had a few, but see Ralph's point. If GM hadn't tried the smear and so on, they could have come out a lot better than they did, the book would probably have been a footnote in automotive history.

The Pinto's problems were a fuel tank placed very close to the rear bumper bolts (which would be driven into the tank in a severe crash), and a fuel filler pipe that was too easily ripped loose in a crash. The 1971-76 sedans and hatchbacks were subject to a recall by the federal government in the late 1970s; not one of the wagons were recalled. They didn't have these problems.