GM recalls another 3.4 million vehicles for ignition switch

The latest recall from GM came yesterday for more faulty ignition switches that can move out of the run position, turning off power steering and power brakes while the car is being driven.

The recalled cars include:

• Buick Lacross 2005-2009
• Chevrolet Impala 2006-2014
• Cadillac Deville 2000-2005
• Cadillac DTS 2004-2011
• Buick Lucerne 2006-2011
• Buick Regal LS and GS 2004-2005
• Chevrolet Monte Carlo 2006-2008

Monday’s recall came after more review of ignition switch issues in the wake of 2.6 million recalled Chevrolet Cobalts and other small cars for similar problems. GM said this recall pertains to a different ignition switch than those previously recalled. This latest recall raises even more questions about just how extensive the safety problems are at GM.

GM said in a statement yesterday that the switches could rotate out of “run” if the key has excess weight and the car experiences some jarring event such as hitting a pothole or crossing a railroad track. […]

GM recalls more than 500,000 Chevrolet Camaros for ignition switch problem

GM announced recalls of nearly 600,000 vehicles on Friday, including approximately 510,000 Chevy Camaros from the 2010-2014 model years for an ignition-switch issue. GM said the Camaro issue is similar, but not linked to, the problem with the Chevy Cobalt that resulted in the recall of 2.6 million vehicles earlier this year.

The automaker found that a tall driver in a Chevy Camaro, sitting close to the steering wheel, can hit the key fob with a knee, knocking the ignition switch from the run to accessory position, shutting off important car functions, such as power steering, airbags and the power break assist. GM is aware of three crashes that resulted in four injuries that may be attributed to this problem. The company discovered the problem during internal testing following the recall of millions of older small cars earlier this year for a faulty ignition switches. […]

GM fires 15 for actions related to ignition switch defect

GM CEO Mary Barra announced today that 15 people have been fired for being incompetent or irresponsible in their actions involving fatally flawed ignition switches that are linked to 13 deaths where airbags failed to inflate during car crashes.

This included those in senior management and executive roles and also switch engineer Ray DeGiorgio and development engineer Gary Altman. DeGiorgio, the GM engineer who signed off on a change to the ignition switches that improved their performance, met with investigators last week to talk about his role in the problem which resulted in so many fatal car crashes.

In 2006, approximately two years after cars with the defective switches were launched, DeGiorgio signed off on a change to the switches, according to court documents. Company documents also show that the design change was not accompanied by a change in the part number, making it difficult to track the change. […]

Major news agencies reporting that GM ignition switch failure may have caused 74 fatalities

Reports from many news agencies, including the Chicago Tribune, were based on information from Reuters after a search of the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), a national database of information submitted by local law-enforcement agencies, for single-car frontal collisions where no front airbags deployed and the driver or front-seat passenger were killed. Reuters reviewed crashed reported to U.S. safety regulators between 2003 and 2012, and found that such accidents occurred at a higher rate in GM cars than in competitor models.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Reuters compared the incidence of this type of deadly accident and the Chevrolet Cobalt and the Saturn Ion against the records of three small car competitors: Ford Focus, Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla. The study found the frequency of accidents in the Ion nearly six times that of the Corolla and twice that of the Focus. […]

The GM recall nightmare continues with more safety issues

The number of vehicles involved in the GM recall rose yesterday to 29 as GM recalled another 2.4 million cars and trucks. That brings the number of vehicles called in to repair defects this year alone to a record 13.6 million in the US. According to the Boston Globe, that’s more than the total number of cars GM sold in the US in the last five years, and surpasses GM’s previous US recall record of 10.75 million vehicles, set in 2004.

The latest recalls are to repair problems with safety belts in several crossover models, in addition to problems with airbags, gearshifts and retention clips in other cards. The recalls include Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia full-size crossovers from the 2009-2013 model years. It also covers 2009-2010 Saturn Outlooks for a problem with the front safety lap belt cables. 2004-2008 Chevrolet Malibus and 2005-2008 Pontiac G6s with four-speed automatic transmission have been recalled for a problem with the gearshift cable. […]