SUV Safety Issue To Be Addressed By Industry.

An auto industry group announced an initiative to reduce injuries from collisions between sport utility vehicles and cars, perhaps by setting voluntary safety standards. The 10-member Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers promised "a strong commitment to move forward expeditiously" in a letter sent to Jeffrey Runge, administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The letter said it was too early to predict what automakers will do to increase safety.

But Runge and others have expressed concern about the dangers SUVs pose to smaller cars, since in crashes the higher and heavier SUVs can strike cars above their bumpers. The automakers promised in the letter to address the issue. "The industry looks forward to working with NHTSA to ensure that government and industry are moving in the same direction on enhancing vehicle-to-vehicle crash compatibility," the letter said.

The effort could lead to the "development of voluntary standards, such as those previously developed for side air bags," said the letter, which was also signed by the president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The Insurance Institute is a safety research group financed by auto insurers and based in Arlington, Va. The Alliance is a Washington-based lobbying group that represents 10 automakers, including General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler.