GM recalls 1.6 million cars, knew of fatal defects for a decade

American auto giant General Motors announced on Tuesday that it would recall 1.6 million  of its smalls cars, double the number announced two weeks ago, to fix faulty ignition switches linked to multiple fatal crashes. [caption id=“attachment_1408929” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] GM to recall more than a million faulty cars linked to several fatal crashes. AP.[/caption] The vehicles being recalled include: Chevrolet Cobalts and Pontiac G5s from the 2005 through 2007 model years; Saturn Ion compacts from 2003 through 2007; and Chevrolet HHR SUVs and Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky sports cars from 2006 and 2007. Most of the cars were sold in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The problem has been linked to 31 crashes and 13 front-seat deaths. Explaining the defect, GM said that a heavy key ring or jarring from rough roads had caused the ignition switch to move out of the run position leading to shutting down of the engine and electrical power. Shut down can knock out power-assisted brakes, the steering and disable the front air bags. GM said that in the fatalities, the air bags did not inflate, and in many instances, despite the engines not shutting down. It was unclear whether the ignition switches caused the crashes, or whether people died because the air bags didn’t inflate. The company was immediately lambasted by a well-known safety advocate who says GM knew of the problem for years and waited too long to recall the cars even though people were killed because of the problem. According to a chronology of events that GM filed Monday before American authorities, the company knew of the problem as early as 2004, and was told of at least one fatal crash in March of 2007. GM issued service bulletins in 2005 and 2006 telling dealers how to fix the problem with a key insert, and advising them to tell customers not to dangle too many items from their key chains. According to the chronology, GM thought the service bulletin was sufficient because the car’s steering and brakes were operable even after the engines lost power. Further, the company’s records showed that only 474 vehicle owners got the key inserts. By the end of 2007, GM knew of 10 cases in which Cobalts were in front-end crashes where the air bags didn’t inflate, the chronology said. GM North American President Alan Batey said in a statement that the process to examine the problem “was not as robust” as it should have been and said the GM of today would behave differently. “We will take an unflinching look at what happened and apply lessons learned here to improve going forward,” he said. “We are deeply sorry and we are working to address this issue as quickly as we can,” Batey said. AP