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On Friday, General Motors expanded its recall of vehicles with an ignition switch defect, but Saturn Ions with a dangerous steering loss problem remain unrecalled, even though Chevy Cobalts and other models with the exact same defect were previously recalled. The two Congressional Committees holding hearings this week must directly ask GM CEO Mary Barra why these dangerous vehicles remain on the road. It has now been almost two weeks since we requested that Barra immediately order a recall of Saturn Ions (MY 2004 to 2007) with defective electric power steering systems. GM had previously recalled Chevy Cobalts and Pontiac...

DETROIT — Somewhere inside the two-inch ignition switch from the 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt was the clue that Mark Hood was seeking. Mr. Hood, an engineer in Florida, had photographed, X-rayed and disassembled the device in the fall of 2012, focusing on the tiny plastic and metal switch that controlled the ignition. But even after hours of testing, Mr. Hood was at a loss to explain why the engine in Brooke Melton’s Cobalt had suddenly shut off, causing her fatal accident in 2010 in Georgia. It was no small matter to her family, which had hired Mr. Hood for their lawsuit...

(Reuters) - General Motors Co is recalling certain Chevrolet Cruze models for possible axle fractures, and more than 490,000 trucks and SUVs for potential transmission cooler line issues, the company said in a statement late on Friday. These latest recalls come as the head of the country's biggest automaker, Chief Executive Mary Barra, faces Congress next week regarding who is to blame for faulty ignition switches linked to crashes and at least 12 deaths. The GM Cruze recall targets the 2013 and 2014 1.4L turbo gasoline powered model to replace a right front axle half shaft that can fracture without...

Merriam-Webster.com defines compassion as, "a feeling of wanting to help someone who is sick, hungry, in trouble, etc." A Google search teaming the name Mary Barra with "compassionate" pulls up a host of articles fawning over General Motors' new CEO's handling of the company's botched recalls which seem to have cost at least 12 American lives. Contrary to the media's belief that GM is a compassionate entity working in the best interests of accident victims, the facts show that the response to defects in GM vehicles and subsequent recall delays has been anything BUT compassionate. The NY Times continued its...

This letter is being sent today to GM CEO Mary Barra: We ask that General Motors (the Company) recall Saturn Ions for the model years 2004 through 2007 without further delay. These automobiles endanger the lives and safety of their drivers and passengers due to a loss of power steering, a serious problem of which the Company has been aware for several years. According to a summary of an ongoing investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA): ...GM indicated that the EPS (electric power steering) system used in the subject vehicles was the same as that used...

The following letter was sent today to Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee: As your committee prepares for the upcoming House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on the recent GM recall, I urge you to use every opportunity to examine what, if any, influence the U.S. government's ownership of GM has had on this troubling failure to address the dangerously flawed vehicles. In addition, we urge your committee to consider posing the following questions to panelists at your hearing: 1. In late 2009, GM sued supplier JTEKT North America for $30 million over faulty...

The New York Times hinted that the 11 year death toll for victims who drove defective General Motors' vehicles (that are just now being recalled) may rise from the current 12 confirmed fatalities. The Times reports, "Since 2003, GM has reported at least 78 deaths and 1,581 injuries involving the now-recalled cars, according to a review of agency records." It is not clear how many of the accidents involving one of the 1.6 million now-recalled vehicles were caused by the defect. The article does state that "the records mention potentially defective components" and "regulators appear to have overlooked disturbing...

Here’s the good news about the ObamaCar known as the Chevy Volt: There haven’t been any reported fires connected with the ObamaCar since the company recalled 8,000 of the electric vehicles—that’s one in six vehicles. That is no fires, if you don’t count the people who’ve been “fired” from the Volt production line as sales continue to make Obama’s “one million” electric car promise just another broken dream in a crooked scheme. Obama promised that by the time he finished as president, he’d put a million electric cars on the road. Thankfully, he won’t quite make it. No telling...

After posting a fairly disappointing 918 Volt sales in January – the first time sales were under 4 digits in 2 years (603 - Jan 2012), the extended range Chevy bounced back a little in February notching 1,210 deliveries. Year-over-year, this February’s result was up against some fairly stiff competition as 1,626 were sold this month a year ago, meaning sales were off 25.6%. For the year to date, 2,128 Volts have been sold as compared to 2,766 – off 23.1% There just isn’t enough casr to even get the Volt a fighting chance as the General opted to produce...

Former head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Joan Claybrook, has weighed in on the deadly delay by General Motors on a recall for a defect that is alleged to have resulted in 13 deaths and 33 accidents. Ms. Claybrook appeared on the Cavuto Show on Fox Business where she blasted both GM and NHTSA for waiting 10 years to recall the defective models and went as far as saying that there should be criminal charges brought against GM by the Justice Department. Congress was questioned for its response (or lack thereof) as Cavuto started the segment by...

For Laura Christian, July 29, 2005, was the worst kind of anniversary. One year earlier, Ms. Christian had been reunited with Amber Marie Rose, the daughter she gave up for adoption at birth. But Ms. Christian did not get to call her daughter a year later. In the predawn hours that day, Amber, 16, died after her 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt crashed and the air bag failed to deploy. Now, nearly nine years later, Ms. Christian knows that the air bag’s failure was the result of a defective car part. General Motors has recalled nearly 1.4 million cars in the United...

DETROIT — The United Auto Workers' membership and dues are down sharply from just six years ago. In another sign of weakness, the union suffered a stunning defeat this month when it tried to organize a Tennessee factory run by labor-friendly Volkswagen. The rejection, by a close vote, was a major setback in the union's effort to expand in the South, where non-union, foreign companies such as VW, Nissan and Hyundai are rapidly growing. But instead of relief, Detroit's three automakers — Ford, Chrysler and General Motors — are increasingly anxious about the 78-year old union's future. For them, it's...

You know you've arrived not only when you get invited to the State of the Union address, but when you're asked to sit next to the first lady herself. That's where General Motors' new CEO, Mary Barra, will be sitting tonight. Barra, the first woman to lead a major auto manufacturer, was one of the guests singled out to sit with First Lady Michelle Obama for "represent(ing) the stories of millions of Americans across the country, who are working hard to better their communities, improve their own economic outcomes and help restore opportunity for all" according to the White House....

Tesla is happy to do things differently than other automakers, from the company-owned stores to the all-electric drivetrain. It also doesn't use union workers at its factory in Fremont, California (the former NUMMI plant, pictured). But now the United Auto Workers (UAW) is testing the waters for representation at the plant, according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle. UAW President Bob King has revealed that the UAW has created an organizing committee in Fremont. How this would change things at Tesla – and whether it would be a good or bad thing – is not really known, but...

Peter Flaherty, president of the National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC), today posed key questions to the General Motors leadership at a National Press Club press conference, including whether the company will repay to taxpayers the $10 billion direct cost of the GM bailout. News that the U.S. Treasury Department has sold its remaining stake and that Mary Barra will take over as GM's new CEO have put the spotlight on the company and its future. GM executives have pointed to GM's $26.8 billion in cash as evidence of its improved financial position. Analysts have raised the possibility that the...

General Motors Co. said Wednesday it will stop making cars and engines in Australia by the end of 2017, with nearly 2,900 jobs to be lost, because of high production costs and competition. The decision could spell the end of car manufacturing in Australia as the industry will be too small for supporting businesses such as parts makers to remain economic. Toyota Motor Corp. announced it is reassessing its future in Australia. A union said 50,000 jobs in the auto industry are in jeopardy. GM’s Australian subsidiary Holden once dominated Australian auto sales, but lost market share to imported cars....

General Motors (GM) tapped products chief Mary Barra to become the auto maker's first female CEO, taking the keys from current chief Dan Akerson who will step down ahead of schedule in January. The promotion of Barra instantly makes her the most powerful woman in Detroit and one of the most influential in corporate America. The move comes just hours after the Treasury Department exited its ownership of GM following the auto bailouts of 2008 and 2009.

The U.S. government ended up losing $10.5 billion US on its bailout of General Motors, but still says the alternative would have been much worse. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew announced Monday that the government sold its remaining shares in the Detroit automaker. The government received 912 million GM shares, or a 60.8 per cent stake in the automaker, in exchange for a $49.5 billion bailout during the financial crisis in 2008 and 2009. It recovered $39 billion of the money, meaning taxpayers came up more than $10 billion short.

Couldn't we just as easily say "GM has now repaid every taxpayer dollar the previous Administration committed to its rescue, plus billions invested by my Administration?" Via WhiteHouse.gov: When I took office, the American auto industry – the heartbeat of American manufacturing – was on the verge of collapse.  Two of the Big Three – GM and Chrysler – were on the brink of failure, threatening to take suppliers, distributors and entire communities down with them.  In the midst of what was already the worst recession since the Great Depression, another one million Americans were in danger of losing their...

One of the major architects of the General Motors bankruptcy process, Harry Wilson, recently gave a very optimistic outlook for GM future share price. Mr. Wilson was a member of President Obama's Auto Task Force, and was an instrumental player in seeing that UAW interests were put ahead of other creditors, like old GM bondholders. Automotive News now reports that Mr. Wilson feels that GM may be a target for activists because of their "huge" cash hoard. According to the piece: "Any company that isn't efficient about capital allocation is a target for activists," said Wilson, who is now a...