GUIDE TO SOURCES OF INFORMATION ON AUTO DEFECTS. REVISED EDITION

A handbook of information sources related to motor vehicle defects classifies the material under three categories: background information, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and general. Background materials include an encyclopedic work entitled "Automobile Design Liability" (1970 and supplements) and a 1965 article by Ralph Nader entitled "Automobile Design Hazards." Nine NHTSA sources include recall campaigns, consumer complaint letters, defect investigations, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, compliance tests, multidisciplinary accident investigations, manufacturers' service bulletins and service manuals, Fatal Accident Reporting System, and accident data bank. General sources comprise attorneys and expert witnesses in the Center for Auto Safety files, the National Technical Information Service, the American Trial Lawyers Association independent automotive research centers, the Society of Automotive Engineers, periodicals, the National Transportation Safety Board, the Congress, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the Highway Loss Data Institute, automobile manufacturers, the Federal Trade Commission, industry public relations groups, and the Environmental Protection Agency. Appended are names and addresses of source organizations, a NHTSA organizational chart, and sample pages from informational materials.