The widow of Roger Rodas, the driver in the Paul Walker crash, has filed a lawsuit against Porsche, alleging that faulty parts in the car caused the tragic accident. Rodas’ widow, Kristine Rodas, filed the lawsuit in L.A. County Superior Court.
The lawsuit claims that the Porsche Carrera GT, a 2005-model $400,000 supercar driven by Rodas and Walker on that fateful day, had a faulty part in the suspension that caused the car to careen out of control. The widow Rodas claims that Roger tried to keep the car on the road but lost control before hitting a light pole. Rodas is suing for negligence, wrongful death and product liability, according to celebrity website TMZ.
In the filing, Kristine blames Porsche for the car exploding on impact, claiming the vehicle lacked a proper “crash cage” and a “racing fuel cell.” A fuel cell in race cars is supposed to stay in a crash and prevent fuel from igniting. Kristine quotes Porsche, “Carrera GT is as close to a racecar as we will ever get.”
However, the filing neglects to mention that Roger Rodas was speeding in the car. The filing reportedly claims he was only driving at 88kph. Coroners previously released a report that the car was doing over 160kph when it crashed, nearly cutting the high-powered vehicle in half.
The report said the driver lost control of the car “for unknown reasons,” causing it to spin around and hit a curb, after which the driver’s side of the Porsche struck a tree and then a light post.
“The force of those collisions caused the vehicle to spin 180 degrees and continue in an easterly direction. The passenger side of the vehicle then struck another tree and burst into flames,” it said.
“The vehicle was totaled with major traffic collision damage all around, and it appeared that the vehicle was almost split in half,” the report added, saying: “The majority of the vehicle was also charred.”
It said Walker’s body “cannot be positively identified visually,” adding that “due to the extent of the injuries, the decedent (was) not (a) viable candidate for tissue donation.”
Rodas also suffered multiple injuries: his skull was fractured and his brain was exposed, the autopsy report said.
Walker’s death stunned fans of the high-octane series “The Fast and the Furious,” and was a major blow to studio giant Universal Pictures, for whom the franchise is a huge money maker.
The Carrera GT features a highly rigid racing-type suspension that may render it susceptible to bumps on the road.
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