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GM announces 3 new recalls affecting 1.7M vehicles in North America [w/video]

Still embroiled in the ongoing ignition switch recall, General Motors announced today three more discrete recalls, affecting a grand total of 1,546,900 vehicles in the US. The Detroit News reports that some 1.7 million vehicles are affected overall in North America. The first and largest of the trio of new recalls concerns some 1.18-million Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia crossovers from the 2008-2013 model years, Chevrolet Traverse from 2009-2013 (pictured above) and Saturn Outlook vehicles from 2008-2010. All of the crossover utilities may have an issue with the wiring harness for their seat-mounted side airbags. Apparently, the vehicles are equipped with a Service Air Bag warning light that, if ignored, "will eventually result in the non-deployment of the side impact restraints." Those restraints include the side airbags, a front-center airbag if the vehicle is so equipped and seatbelt pretensioners. Dealers of affected vehicles will be instructed to remove driver and passenger side airbag wiring harness connectors, and then "splice and solder the wires together." The second recall affects 303,000 Chevrolet Express (pictured right) and GMC Savana vans from model years 2009-2014, and with gross vehicle weights under 10,000 pounds. Said vehicles do not comply with a head impact requirement for unrestrained occupants, and will need a reworking of the instrument panel material to be sent back on the road. It doesn't sound as though there's a quick fix for this one, as the GM press release states: "Unsold vehicles have been placed on a stop delivery until development of the solution has been completed and parts are available." Finally, the third recall affects 63,900 Cadillac XTS luxury sedans from model years 2013 and 2014. A brake booster pump may be susceptible to corrosion by way of the relay, potentially causing and electrical short, overheating, melting of plastic components and even engine fires. GM says it is aware of two engine fires in unsold XTS models and two cases of melted parts. Repairs for the issues affecting the XTS have not not mentioned by GM in the release. The Detroit News is also reporting that along with news of the triple-recall, GM is taking a $300-million credit to help pay for the repair costs, and to deal with the ongoing costs associated with the ignition switch recall. In an attempt to explain just what GM has been doing in the face of these very serious issues, newly minted CEO Mary Barra has addressed the issues in a new video.

GM winding down Chevrolet brand in Europe

If you've taken even a cursory look at GM's European strategy and wondered how it can target the market there with both Chevrolet and Opel/Vauxhall, you're not alone. In fact General Motors itself has found it difficult to justify the two-pronged approach. That's why it's essentially pulling Chevy from the European marketplace.
Instead of trying to ply European buyers with what are mostly former Daewoo products rebadged as Chevys, GM will now let Opel (or Vauxhall in the UK) represent its mass-market aspirations. Chevrolet will keep its presence in Russia and other former Soviet markets, and will continue selling certain niche products in Eastern and Western Europe. The Corvette, for example, has long been sold in Europe through Cadillac dealerships, which for its part is currently "finalizing plans for expanding in the European market".
While the shift in strategy is expected to help GM get a stronger foothold in the European market in the long run, in the short term the restructuring will cost it dearly: between $700 million and $1 billion, according to its own estimates, split between the last quarter of this year and the first half of the next. Jump into the full press release below for more.

Almost half of US Cadillac dealers say no to ELR plug-in hybrid

If you've got $75,995 (or so) burning a hole in your pocket and a hankering for the new Cadillac ELR, you'd better call your local dealer before you burn up shoe leather and gasoline to head down there. According to a report on Edmunds, only about 56 percent of the brand's 940 dealers have signed up to carry the premium plug-in hybrid. As much as we'd like to see the more affluent among us driving on electricity, we can certainly understand the dealers' apparent lack of enthusiasm. The article cites costs of up to $15,000 for tools and training to sell the ELR. Show floor real estate is another consideration for dealers who aren't enthusiastic about sacrificing space for a for a vehicle with initial sales – just 46 units nationwide in the first two months, but that volume is expected to increase – that are as mediocre as our first drive impressions. Still, for those locations that co-habitate with Chevrolet dealers who already participate in the Volt program, the extra expenditure shouldn't be too onerous. The two vehicles share the same basic electro-mechanical drivetrain, so those dealerships should have most of the needed infrastructure already in place. The bulk of ELR sales, according to Cadillac's global marketing director Jim Vurpillat, are expected to be in along the coasts, in places like California, Miami and New York. Featured Gallery 2015 Cadillac ELR: First Drive View 25 Photos News Source: Edmunds Green Cadillac Electric cadillac elr