The adage "you get what you pay for," is in many instances true. A higher price tag on a product often reflects the use of materials of a higher quality in making the products. The use of these higher quality materials often translates into products that are safer as well. As a recent car recall illustrates however, this is not always the case.

Last week news came that approximately 1,500 cars manufactured by Lamborghini have been recalled. The automobiles are at risk of starting on fire. According to the Italian car maker, the potential problem was discovered during routine testing. It was found that a leak of power steering fluid could lead to a fire when it came into contact with a hot engine. The leak could occur in situations when pipes surrounding the power steering pump corroded.

The models affected by the issue are Gallardo Coupes and Gallardo Spyders. The starting purchase price of the vehicles, model years 2004, 2005 and 2006, is $200,000.

At this point it appears the problem was discovered before any owners of the vehicles experienced a car fire. This is fortunate since car fires can result in property damage. It can also cause devastating injuries to occupants of a vehicle, in some cases even death.

Dealers of the vehicle will reportedly be reaching out to individuals who have purchased the cars involved in the recall directly. A repair of the power steering system will be made by those dealers at no expense to the owner.

Source: Washington Post, "Gallardo sports cars; power steering fluid can leak and catch fire," Associated Press, Sept. 13, 2012

• The dangers associated with dangerous and defective products can in some cases lead to individuals being hurt. Our firm provides counsel in situations where motor vehicle defects lead to injuries. If you would like to learn more about our practice, please visit our Pittsburgh defective autos page.