PLEASANTON — A crash that killed a family of four last month is now under review by federal investigators, who are probing the electric vehicle they were driving.
Rincy George, 41, and her husband, Tarun George, 41, died along with their sons, Rowan George, 13, and Aaron George, 9, in the April 24 crash. The vehicle crashed into a pole and tree and caught fire. All four were Pleasanton residents.
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The crash happened on Foothill Road near Stonebridge Drive.
The National Highway Transportation Safety Board is looking at car being driven by the family, a VinFast VF-8. VinFast, LLC is a Vietnam-based car manufacturer founded in 2017.
Emails and calls to the company were not returned.
According to a complaint available on the NHTSA web site, the car veered off the road and hit the pole and tree. The report was filed by a person who claimed to have owned the vehicle, according to the filing on the NHTSA site, which indicated the owner’s co-worker was driving the vehicle.
“Specifically, NHTSA’s Special Crash Investigations … will document the crash circumstances and the ensuing fire,” the NHTSA said in a statement sent to this organization. “The agency does not generally comment on open investigations.”
According to the NHTSA, the person filing the report stated that the steering wheel “automatically maneuvered to the right direction.” That person also said that failure happened again when the lane assist feature was turned on by default, automatically moving the steering wheel.
The person who filed the report “was concerned that the failure recurred while the co-worker was driving” and caused the crash, the NHTSA said.
The vehicle had Advanced Driving Assistance features but it remains unclear if those were any factor in the crash.
Pleasanton police investigators said earlier that the driver of the car may have been speeding, which may have a played a role in the wreck.
Both boys attended Pleasanton public schools — the oldest at Thomas Hart Middle School and the youngest at Donlon Elementary School. Hundreds attended a vigil for the family on April 28.
