A Cadillac XLR owner in Cleveland, Ohio, faced near death after a dead battery left him trapped inside his car for 14 hours. He wasn’t aware of the emergency exit handle on the floor next to each seat.
The Detroit Free Press reported on the incident this Wednesday, which has left Peter Pyros in a shaken state of mind. The 75-year-old man entered the Cadillac XLR to start it up and enjoy a drive with the top down. But, when he shut the door and hit the push-button start, nothing happened. He then used the key fob to try and start the car but it remained dead. He even tried replacing the key fob battery from spares left in the glove compartment, but Pyros quickly realized he was trapped.
“It was getting really hot and it was difficult to breathe – this was all within a half hour,” said Pyros. “I was trying to find something to get me out of the car. Nothing worked. I started to scream as loud as I could.” Pyros lives alone and his neighbors were at work when the incident occurred.
The Cadillac XLR uses electric door release buttons to exit the car, which are rendered useless should the battery die. The hard-top roof also requires power to open. The buttons are the same feature found in the C6 Corvette, which also features mechanical release handles on the floor next to the seat in case of an emergency.
Pyros said he was certain he was going to die in the car. However, around 11:20 p.m., his neighbor entered the garage. The neighbor had called Pyros earlier in the day to let him know his garage door was open. When he didn’t return his call and still saw the garage door open, the neighbor came over to investigate and heard Pyros banging and screaming for help.
The fire department responded and jump-started the battery to free Pyros since normal equipment didn’t work with the electric door releases.
Now, Pyros has lawyered up and is looking at “all avenues of litigation,” according to the firm representing him.
“Automakers must have recognized that with all-electric features and the power failing, you’re locked inside your car,” said John Meros, a partner at Schulman, Schulman and Meros in Cleveland, Ohio. “Why not put a warning sticker on the visor or dashboard that says if the power fails and in the event of entrapment, there is an escape lever on the floor?”
GM has responded to the incident and said any vehicle can lose electrical power and the automaker always includes a way to manually unlock the doors.
“Because this varies by make and model, drivers should review the door lock section of their owner’s manual, and follow up with their dealer or customer assistance center if they have any questions,” GM spokesman Tom Wilkinson, said.
Although Pyros lived through his experience, a similar situation ended in tragedy. In 2015, a man and his dog died of heat exhaustion in a C6 Corvette after the car lost power. Like Pyros, he was unaware of the mechanical release.
Comments
Every XLR should come equipped with a “Travel John” or at least one of those astronaut diapers.
Or maybe an owners manual, on wait…
That’s what I mean. This type of owner only reads while sitting on the John, so the Judge will probably order all Caddies to have John’s so the owners have to read the manual. That’s common sense these days…
Why didn’t he just use his mobile to call for help?
Or even better, why didn’t he pull the owners manual out of the glove box (which I’m sure had never been read) and see exactly how to open the doors manually?
Honestly trying to find a fault with the XLR here. There was a manual door release that he didn’t bother trying.
And I’m honestly not sure I even believe the story.
M12 I believe it. 20 something years ago I was working at an auto auction. There was a woman there moving one of the cars. When she parked it the battery went dead and the power locks would not work. She Sat in the car till she could get somebody’s attention. She didn’t know she could just pull up on the lock and get out.
The guy probably cr@ped himself and was extra bitter for missing Murder She Wrote…If he wins in court, big red eyesoar handles will be going into the Vettes…
It doesn’t take a lot of effort to break the window with the seat belt buckle…
I just read this report on Jalopnik. The owner stated in the report his XLR doesn’t have the user manual inside, which is bad enough. Plus his cell phone wasn’t with him at the time he started the car. Nevertheless, there are several videos and online tutorials/manuals available to provide assistance. So while I’m certainly sorry to hear about this gentlemen’s life-threatening experience, I don’t believe it’s fair to hold GM accountable for this mishap. I’m certain it’s common knowledge by now that every vehicle that has an electronic door opener/release also has a manual latch in case of battery failure….
Yep – and in the XLR, it’s clearly visible next to the seat, with a massive red icon showing a door opening on it.
Even if, somehow, that doesn’t connect the dots, I’m quite sure if you were truly desperate, you might give the ol’ “try everything” a shot, no?
This is the definition of stupid! There are plenty of ways to get out of a locked car.
Please name them all. Plenty of ways is not specific enough to help.
Break the window glass with a sharp metal object. I guess he didn’t have a metal key, but there ought to be something available. Belt buckle?
A 75 might not be able to kick it out if he’s on his last gasp.
What an idiot. Knowing where the manual door release would be the first thing I would inquire about a car with an electric release.
what worries me is people this stupid have drivers license and are out on the road. my 2 C-6 corvettes had this system and the dealer showed me how to use it when I picked up the car.
Uh…XLR is a Vette in drag. Has the “help” handle down on the rocker panel to manually open the door. This guy has no case, just pure ownership lack of knowledge.
Why did you type ‘uh’?
Pisses in shoes, can’t find mechanical release…
It’s situations like these that make you question why the heck do automakers gotta over-engineer every little basic thing in the first place!!! What do these engineers be thinking when they design stuff like this?! Ain’t nobody got time to be skimming through no 300 page manual to find out how to open a door! Especially a 75 year old man! C’mon Cadillac! You oughta know your clientele by now! Regardless of how you may see your brand! What possible benefit does an electronic door latch even have over a simple manual one anyway?! Be innovative in areas that actually matter to a car! All this sacrificing practicality and simplicity for the sake of being cool or different is a crying shame!
Styling. Welcome to the 21st century. Lol No door handle.
The benefit? The Viper (Corvette’s competition) had it! To go without it in the XLR, Cadillac would have been crucified!
Cadillac would have also had to design a manual one for the door!
We’re obviously not dealing with a “car guy” here. Either way it’s the owner’s responsibility to understand the features of the car. But he’ll blame GM for his idiocy since they have the deep pockets.
Why not sue the company that made the battery six years ago? Or the high school that gave him a diploma.
Sue the DMV for renewing his driver’s license…
This seems like a pretty good way to thin the herd a little. I say we make this style door standard on all vehicles…
Watch the old rat end up with a 250 million $ settlement and then a class action lawsuit cost GM another 20 Billion. Murica! the most litigious society on the planet where morons are handsomely rewarded.
There is a popular refrain on the internet and I won’t quote it verbatim as it contains inappropriate language but to paraphrase, folks should simply “Read The Owner’s Manual”. I’m more than certain GM explained to him exactly how to address the situation he found himself in. In fact, not only was there an emergency release right next to him the entire time, there was most likely a book in the glovebox that would’ve told him that. Instead of kicking and screaming, he should’ve been reading.
Carmakers cannot realistically put glaring stickers all over their vehicles to explain precisely how everything operates. Therefore, they provide a carefully worded book of instructions.
Mr. Pyros doesn’t need an attorney, he just needs a little time with his owner’s manual.
So there was enough juice in the battery to unlock the door for him to get in the car or did he gave to use the key.
Most GM cars now a days shit down all electronics when the charge drops to 9 -10 volts to prevent damage!
This guy is just looking to cash in on his stupidity by suing GM for his ignorance.
There have been enough Cadillac owners who have been documented calling 911 because the got locked in wh3n the Key Fob battery died. The Cops come out and show them the lock knob.
Just wait till these folks in push start have a dead battery. Most do not realize they have to pop off part of th e door handle and use the key in the fob to open the door to get in and pop the hood.
Or start it with the fob in the console if the battery is dead.
This will get ugly in the next few years.
The process is the same as for the Corvette and it looks pretty simple:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DLDqmGQU6L0
I hope the judge doesn’t even give them a hearing if they try to go to court. I’d love to be the judge.
This schmuck is such an a–hole and his attorney is even worse. What an ambulance chaser. I wouldn’t
even let them approach the courthouse steps.
Both are greedy dogs who deserve to eat what my dog leaves in my back yard. Pure greed, just trying
to get something where they deserve absolutely nothing but a hard kick in the rear for even trying to
say their should be litigation. This guy is a moron.
Did they forget to mention that this decrepit septuagenarian is senile and can’t even find his way to the bathroom in his own house?
A bit rough on the old here. I personally wouldn’t allow anyone over 65 to vote. Getting back to the XLR…I picked one up with 24k miles. Bringing it back to GM. HOW just HOW the hell they could design a car you can’t start after it sits a week is why ppl buy a foreign car. I should have done some research as I never would buy any auto that can’t sit in a garage 7 days without a jump. Sticker Price over 75k. PATHETIC.
REGARDS
JUNGLE JIM
I totally understand if the vehicle was bought used.
Not everyone selling a used vehicle is going to go through the safety features .
If the vehicle was sold new, I feel it is the dealers responsibility to go through every safety feature on the vehicle, where the customer signs off that all of the safety features have been explained thoroughly.
Anything else would be total negligence.