Recall: 12,415 GM cars for airbags, bolts; 360 electric BMWs for grease
Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze, Sonic, Malibu and Buick Verano models are affected. The BMW ActiveE may wear out its gear shaft.
General Motors is recalling 3,896 cars for airbags that may not deploy in a crash and an additional 8,519 cars for loose suspension bolts, according to filings with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Certain 2012 models of the Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic and the Buick Verano may have shorting bars inside the steering wheel -- a flexible metal strip designed to complete a circuit -- that can contact the terminals of the airbag and prevent it from deploying. Dealers will replace the steering-wheel coil, which GM says will eliminate any contact between the airbag parts, starting Feb. 13. The recall extends a November recall of 2,949 Verano and Cruze models for the same problem.
Bolts holding the rear suspension components together may loosen on the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu, which can "lead to sudden changes in vehicle handling," GM said. In total, 8,519 cars are affected. Dealers will tighten the bolts if needed, although GM did not specify a start date. In May 2012, GM recalled 4,304 Malibus to reprogram the airbag system's control module.
All GM vehicle owners can contact the company at 1-800-521-7300.
BMW is recalling 360 of its 2011 ActiveE electric cars due to a "lack of grease lubrication" on the gear shaft that connects the electric motor to the transmission. The dry shaft could wear out and cut the car's power. BMW dealers have begun to fix the sealing system and replace any worn motor components. Owners can contact BMW at 1-800-525-7417 or email CustomerRelations@bmwusa.com. Only 700 ActiveE models, based on the 1-Series Coupe, are on the road for a two-year trial lease that expires late this year. The cars have to be returned to BMW.
[Source: NHTSA]
Had a dodge pickup that had lower ball joint problemsrecall. I bought truck new and never recieved recall. Its a good thing I looked regularly on recall list. Also had brake issues never recalled. Brake fade at 19800, dodge said driver neglect. Went to 3 dodge dealers under warranty before master cylinder replaced. Dealer took cylinder apart to find scratch in cylindwer wall. driver neglect my butt. Computer went out at 62000, dealer would not replace. fixed at my cost . Never will buy a dodge again first and LAST. All car mfgs try to hide problems, they take your money but ask them to stand behind the product and repair there flaws. good luck with that one.
Sometimes brains trump cad designs, that fail to take a rotating steering wheel into account when designs for the air bag switches were made. Perhaps the Cad design department should be forced to take their designs out to the track and personally run them around about 1000 times, running them through crash tests from every angle of the steering wheel, then forcing them to crawl under the vehicle to smell the burn rubber seals that had no lube protecting them!
Maybe an auto mechanic might be hired to disassemble, and inspect all moving parts before any car escapes the factory!
As for the idiots who used the wrong torque settings for the rear suspensions, or specified the incorrrect settings in the motor manuals, should find another trade, like ditch digging to give them their sense of accomplishment, with no tools, other than a shovel and a pick to deal with!
Can we see where low wage employment and the removal of the pioneers who really know cars will bite us in the **** every time?
Most mechanics dealing with suspension systems would know the proper torque settings to properly seat a nut, and should have caught the mistakes immediately!
As I understand from reading in the Saab forums, many units manufactured in 2003 and 2004 suffered this same premature failure. GM's response to me since my unit was 2,000 miles beyond the warranty period was that they could find no "business justification" to offer any after warranty assistance.
I therefore, cannot find any business justification to purchase, or recommend purchasing any of their products to anyone.
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