Gogoro S2 steering failure legal dispute

A long-standing legal and technical dispute has emerged following a December 2020 accident in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, involving a Gogoro S2 electric scooter. The incident, which involved the sudden breakage of the scooter’s steering column and frame, has led to conflicting forensic assessments regarding whether the failure was caused by manufacturing defects or external impact.

A domestic assessment by the Taiwan Automobile Repair Industry Association concluded that the breakage resulted from “severe external force.” However, a separate analysis by the Japanese institution JFE Techno-Research, which utilized scanning electron microscopy and EDX spectroscopy, suggested the fracture was related to material failure and manufacturing processes in the welding area.

While criminal proceedings resulted in a non-prosecution disposition, the matter has transitioned into civil litigation. The owner’s family continues to challenge the judicial process, focusing on the scientific discrepancy between the reports to determine if the crash was caused by a product defect.