Vans on the road

As of July 1, 2007, there were slightly more than 500,000 vans with 15-passenger capacity registered in the U.S., according to the Department of Transportation.

Two models made up the vast majority of the total:

• Ford Econo Club E-350

(model years 1978-2007),

305,015

• Dodge B350-3500

(model years 1981-2002;

vehicle no longer in production), 125,304

Of the remaining 15-passenger vans, most were made by General Motors, badged as either Chevrolet or GMC models

Federal traffic experts who study accident statistics noted more than a decade ago that 15-passenger vans, particularly ones that are fully loaded, are more likely to roll during an emergency than are other types of vehicles.

All three of the major U.S. automakers — General Motors, Ford and Chrysler — build or have built such vehicles (Chrysler ceased production of its 15-passenger model in 2002).

In a November 2002 letter to the CEOs of Ford and GM, Carol Carmody, the acting chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, wrote that 15-passenger vans “are involved in a higher number of single-vehicle accidents involving rollovers than are other passenger vehicles.”

Based on reports of accidents that happened from 1991-2000, “about 52 percent of the 15-passenger vans involved in single-vehicle, fatal accidents experience a rollover (as a primary or subsequent event) compared to 33 percent of the passenger automobiles involved in such accidents. Additionally, 81 percent of the 15-passenger van occupant fatalities occur in single-vehicle rollover accidents.”

The statistics were similar in 2007: 50 percent of deaths in 15-passenger vans occurred during rollovers, a rate equal to that for SUVs and higher than for pickups (41 percent) and cars (21 percent).

Researchers also noted that 15-passenger vans carrying 10 or more people were three times more likely to roll in a crash than vans carrying fewer than 10 passengers.