Bad Boy recalls 3,900 buggies

By Julie Cooper (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Saturday, October 24, 2009

NATCHEZ — Bad Boy Enterprises has issued a voluntary recall of 3,900 Bad Boy Buggies sold between June 2007 and July 2009 because the vehicles may accelerate without warning.

CEO John Skrabo said local residents owning buggies purchased during that time can call the Natchez office at 601-442-6989 with their Vehicle Identification Number to inquire about the safety of their buggy.

Those living outside the Natchez area can contact a Bad Boy dealer for repairs.

The malfunction can be repaired in less than an hour, Skrabo said.

Bad Boy Buggies issued the recall after 32 reports of unexpected acceleration, he said. Injuries included a fractured toe, a rotator cuff injury and sore muscles.

The company first learned of the problem last year, but misdiagnosed the fix, Skrabo said.

“We first thought it was moisture in the accelerator panel causing voltage spikes,” he said.

The company developed a patch to fix that problem, and the patch did reduce the instances of unexpected acceleration, Skrabo said. But the company later discovered the problem wasn’t due to moisture.

The new fix — being used after this week’s latest recall — is to install something called a zener diode chip into the vehicles, Skrabo said.

Buggies that received the previous patch now need the chip.

“The software patch last year greatly reduced the risk, but it was not a 100 percent cure,” Skrabo said.

The new repair is a more accurate fix, he said.

Dealers across the country should have the kits needed to fix the problem by Monday.

The best way to stop a buggy that starts accelerating without warning is to remove the key, Skrabo said, but owners should bring their vehicles in for the free permanent fix as soon as possible.

The recall applies only to vehicles with serial numbers between 85004828 and 95010404.

Bad Boy Enterprises is a Natchez-based company that produces electric, off-road utility vehicles.

The buggies sell from between $7,000 and $13,000 and are sold through approximately 250 dealers in approximately 40 states. Dealers can be located at badboybuggies.com.