Column: Remembering a watchdog of the auto industry

Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety, was one of the most diligent watchdogs of the automotive industry.

Ditlow wasn't as well-known as his mentor Ralph Nader. But mention Ditlow to an auto executive in the late 1980s, and you'd likely get a scowl if not a lecture about how these safety people were meddling in a business they didn't understand.

Ditlow, who died Nov. 10 at the age of 72, relished his role as a constant thorn in the side of the automotive industry. His trademark grin would fill his face every time he announced a new campaign. I met him in the late 1980s when I was the Automotive News reporter in Washington. The auto industry was combative because of all the new safety legislation and fuel economy measures enacted in Washington.

Back them, Ditlow rode a bicycle and dressed like a scholarship college student on a budget. His thick hair was nearly always tussled, and his office was filled with stacks and piles of thick reports, studies, and drafts of rules and regulations.

Ditlow had a Harvard law degree but refused to join the ranks of Washington's highly paid lobbyists. He was smart, sassy, personable—and undaunted by the industry's well-heeled and well-paid lawyers and executives.

The Center for Auto Safety was founded by Consumers Union and Ralph Nader in 1970. Ditlow was one of Nader's early followers who were called Nader's Raiders. He became head of the center in 1976.

He frequently cited the Ford Pinto recalls for exploding gasoline tanks and the Ford-Firestone tire recalls early this century as two of the center's most historic achievements.

Ditlow lobbied heavily for lemon laws—which were enacted in all 50 states—and wrote The Lemon Law Book. Federally mandated airbags were another holy grail for Ditlow and his group, which lobbied for nearly a decade before the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration made them mandatory in 1984.

Ditlow became better known in the decades to come as he took on everything from sudden acceleration to distracted driving and frequently testified before Congress. Today many executives even praise him for some of the safety regulations he and his group prompted.

But to the end, Ditlow's sting was painful. During the GM ignition-switch flaw debacle, Ditlow wrote in an email to Automotive News: “GM officials walk off scot-free while its customers are six feet under.”

With such scandals as Volkswagen's dirty diesels and Takata's faulty airbag inflators, there is clearly a need and place for safety advocates. Whether they'll have the tenacity or impact Ditlow did is doubtful.

Kurylko is on the staff of Automotive News, a sister publication of Rubber & Plastics News. She can be reached at [email protected].