Amid news reports of Chevrolet Volts catching fire after crash tests, here’s a news item worth noting.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration still has an investigation open from last summer into 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees that could catch fire when the SUVs are hit in the rear. Now the agency has added a recent Florida crash to the investigation, following a petition by the Center for Auto Safety.

The Jeeps have a gas tank mounted behind the rear axle and in front of the rear bumper, where Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety (CAS), says it’s most vulnerable to being punctured in a rear-end collision.

In the Florida crash, a 1997 Grand Cherokee was hit from behind at speeds up to 65 mph, when the driver of a following Mercury Mountaineer didn’t notice that traffic ahead was stopped. A 24-year-old passenger trapped inside the Grand Cherokee died after it burst into flames, consuming both the Mountaineer and the Grand Cherokee.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, there were more than 215,000 vehicle fires in the United States in 2010, resulting in more than 285 deaths. CAS says in 2009, 12 Grand Cherokee crashes resulted in fires, causing 10 deaths. On average, since the Grand Cherokee has been introduced there have been 18 fires and 11 deaths per year, for a total of about 187 fires and 274 deaths since 1994. (It’s important to note, the concern does not include Grand Cherokees from the 2005 model year onward, since the gas tank was moved and redesigned.)

Granted, there are reportedly about 2.5 million of these Grand Cherokees still on the road, compared with just under 7,000 Volts. But so far no Volt accidents have resulted in fires on the road. So statistically, the comparative death risk in Volt fires is immeasurable.

Related:
NHTSA to investigate 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees for fire risk