GM's Push-Back of NHTSA on Massive Airbag Recall Gets Results

[Gorehamj]

John Goreham
Contributing Writer, GM-Trucks.com
11-23-2016

GM will not be bullied by NHTSA over the never-ending Takata airbag debacle. GM-Trucks.com readers may remember that back on June 9th we reported that GM was reluctant to recall some of its vehicles because it thought the recall on the airbags was too broad. Well, guess what? GM has just been granted an extension on a 2.5-million vehicle airbag recall by NHTSA. This recall affects the Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, Chevrolet Tahoe, Chevrolet Suburban, Cadillac Escalade and GMC Yukon from 2007-2011 model years.

 

Zane here at GM trucks saw the recall coming back in 2014, but nobody saw NHTSA letting GM take time to build an argument that the recall is too wide in scope. The Detroit News reported this week that "The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Tuesday that it is granting “a short deferral of GM’s obligation” to recall the vehicles with Takata air bags after the Detroit automaker filed a petition with the agency in September that requested additional time for the company and a third-party research firm to complete a long-term study to better understand the service life expectancy of the parts."

 

GM will have until August of 2017 to build its case that the parts last longer than NHTSA and others have deduced. GM will also have to update NHTSA regularly. This kind of cooperation by NHTSA with an automaker over what is often called a life or death defect is unheard of. If you are one of the many skeptics about the Takata airbag recall, take note. Maybe you are right!

 

Related Story - Every Full Sized GM Truck & SUV Model Recalled- Driver Killed

 

Takata Airbag Recall Info From GM can be found here.

[Colossus]

GM will not be bullied, or GM is being the bully?

[O_J_Simpson]

The real problem is the crumbling GMT-900 dashes that explode when the air bags deploy.

[crushNchowda]

I totaled my '14 Sierra swerving out of the way of a deer clipping a telephone pole @ 40-45 mph, lost the passenger side front wheel so ended up rolling into a 2nd pole head on @ about 25 mph (no brakes since the line was torn when the wheel tore off.

 

The airbags didn't deploy until the SECOND pole & not until the truck had already stopped & while I was taking account of myself & the cab about ready to open the door.

 

Yeah. They have a problem.

[O_J_Simpson]

I totaled my '14 Sierra swerving out of the way of a deer clipping a telephone pole @ 40-45 mph, lost the passenger side front wheel so ended up rolling into a 2nd pole head on @ about 25 mph (no brakes since the line was torn when the wheel tore off.

 

The airbags didn't deploy until the SECOND pole & not until the truck had already stopped & while I was taking account of myself & the cab about ready to open the door.

 

Yeah. They have a problem.

Did you have the recall service performed before the accident?

[crushNchowda]

Did you have the recall service performed before the accident?

no

[O_J_Simpson]

no

Hope the recall works for the rest of the trucks that has been repaired.

[1quiksilvy08]

Perhaps this is why I never received another recall notice from the dealer about this... they sent me one when this first came up saying I'll receive another when the dealer has the parts needed to fix... that was back in may... a month after I received that notice my airbag light came on... needless to say I've been hesitant to drive it because of this..

[Nargg]

This makes sense to me. The airbag issue requires an aged air bag, and the models recalled I believe are not old enough yet to be a problem. Plus, I'd wonder if the airbag setup in GMs may be missing the components that cause the "flying debris" that was part of the issue in other cars? Or that the airbag deployment path is setup differently so as to not pose a risk to passengers if debris did actually come loose and fly out, possibly at a different angle. I'm sure there is a very good reason GM was allowed the extension.

Perhaps this is why I never received another recall notice from the dealer about this... they sent me one when this first came up saying I'll receive another when the dealer has the parts needed to fix... that was back in may... a month after I received that notice my airbag light came on... needless to say I've been hesitant to drive it because of this..

 

Wasn't that due to a software glitch? Not the propellant issue that is in question here.

[Jsdirt]

Yet another of thousands of areas & systems on an automobile a manufacturer shouldn't be looking for ways to save a few pennies ...