General Motors 'March Madness' Recall for 1.5 Million Vehicles

It's official, General Motors has come down with "March Madness". Earlier this month they recalled over 1 million vehicles for an ignition switch defect that can disable the airbags during a crash. The problem has resulted in at least 13 deaths and as it turns out GM has known about the defect for over a decade. You've probably seen this story mentioned in the news along with the words "terrible", "dangerous", "criminal" and "jerk-wad executives who care more about money than public safety." OK, that last one was probably just me but you get the point.

Now GM has announced a new series of recalls affecting 1.5 million additional vehicles. It'd be pretty hard to tarnish their image any further, so they probably figure they can just sneak these recalls in now.

If you listen really closely I think you can hear the entire GM PR team weeping.

Airbag Problems ∞

Most of the vehicles in this latest recall have -- wait for it -- defective airbags that can fail in a crash. This defect, however, isn't related to the ignition switch (as if that's supposed to provide you with any relief). Instead, a faulty wiring harness in the following vehicles can disable the side airbags:

• 2008-2013 Buick Enclave
• 2008-2013 GMC Acadia
• 2009-2013 Chevrolet Traverse
• 2008-2010 Saturn Outlook

GM dealers will replace the affected harness connections with soldered connections. They just haven't announced when yet. Concerned owners can contact GM (contact information below) and reference recall number 14030.