When there’s a recall, you expect your car to be fixed the first time. However, of the 20+ million vehicles General Motors has recalled for 2014, about four million that have called back are connected to previous recalls, according to a review of records by Automotive News.
It seems General Motors is examining recalls that covered only “certain versions of a particular nameplate” or only certain models that may have shared a faulty part with another. For example, General Motors recently recalled the Saab 9-3 convertible for a faulty seat belt retractor, a piece that was recalled in Saab 9-3 sedans a decade ago.
“It really is, in the broadest possible sense, are there issues out there that we need to address?” General Motors spokesman Jim Cain explained. “And if we took action in the past, was it sufficient to correct the problem?”
The automaker now employs 60 product investigators – nearly three times more than it previously did – in the hopes of catching past mistakes, including mistakes related to replacement parts used in previous recalls.
“With the level of scrutiny [GM is] under right now, they would prefer that cars have zero risk right now,” Kelley Blue Book analyst Alec Gutierrez told AN. “Even if there’s a one-in-a-million chance [of a problem], they’re going to go ahead [with a recall].”
