Court Opinion

ID: 9769972
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 15:10:00.312608+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:31:09.543038
License: Public Domain

ON MOTION FOR REHEARING
WALKER, Justice.
In his motion for rehearing, plaintiff says that we failed to pass on his contention that the verdict and judgment are sustainable against Ford upon the breach of an implied warranty of fitness. After the present case was decided, we adopted the rule of strict liability in tort as applicable to products which cause physical harm to persons. McKisson v. Sales Affiliates, Inc., Tex.Sup., 416 S.W.2d 787. An essential element of the plaintiff’s case under that rule is proof that he was injured because the product was in a defective condition when it left the hands of the particular seller. See Restatement, Second, Torts § 402A; Prosser, The Fall of the Citadel, 50 Minn.Law Rev. 791. It was pointed out in our original opinion in the present case that there is no evidence to support a finding that the accident was caused by a defect existing at the time the automobile was delivered to plaintiff, and this disposes of his asserted right to recover upon the theory of breach of an implied warranty of fitness.
Plaintiff also says that in view of the representation in the owner’s manual as to what the steering mechanism would do upon a power failure, it was not necessary to show a defect. He insists that failure of performance as represented is sufficient to establish his case. The rule upon which plaintiff relies subjects the seller of a chattel to strict liability when physical harm results from a misrepresentation of the character or quality of the chattel. See Restatement, Second, Torts § 402B. The owner’s manual did not state that the vehicle was so perfectly constructed that the steering mechanism would never fail to function properly. It simply assured the plaintiff that his automobile was so designed and built that he would have safe steering and full control in the event of a loss of power. The previous experience of another driver with the particular vehicle indicates that the representation was true, and what caused the malfunction on the occasion in question is not disclosed and cannot fairly be inferred from the evidence. It is our opinion that under the facts of this case, the single unexplained failure does not in itself establish that the steering mechanism was not of the character or quality indicated by the manual.
The motion for rehearing is overruled.