Sep
11

NHTSA looks to VIN for safety recalls

By | Industry, The Hill

Yesterday the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration published a proposed rule titled Early Warning Reporting, Foreign Defect Reporting, and Motor Vehicle and Equipment Recall Regulations. The rule is actually a combination of regulatory changes. For the purpose of this post we will focus on the “Recall Regulations” portion of the proposed rule, specifically the new VIN requirements regarding safety recalls.

The very brief summary of the proposed rules reads as follows:

As to safety recalls, we propose, among other things, to require certain manufacturers to submit vehicle identification numbers (VIN) for recalled vehicles and to daily report changes in recall remedy status for those vehicles; require online submission of recalls reports and information; and require adjustments to the required content of the owner notification letters and envelopes required to be issued to owners and purchasers of recalled vehicles and equipment.

Currently when a recall is announced the consumer is notified that their vehicle falls within a specific model year range and could require repair. The new proposal would require automakers to submit a full list of VINs for each vehicle covered by a specific recall. NHTSA says [Read more...]

May
10

The Role of Retail in Recalls

By | Industry

An open letter and call to action to the automotive retail industry:

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Dear Automotive Retailers,

I’m writing this with the hope that you do your part to improve the speed and accuracy with which vehicle owners will receive safety recall notifications. Protecting people is my only motivation behind this effort.

Recently Carfax stated that 2.7 million used cars had open safety recalls. This week Senator Barbara Boxer wrote in a letter to four vehicle rental companies asking them to make the following pledge, “Effective immediately, our company is making a permanent commitment to not rent out or sell any vehicles under safety recall until the defect has been remedied.”

Vehicle recalls are a serious matter. If one notification fails to reach its intended recipient it puts lives at risk. Many buyers are unaware that the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) operates a website (www.safercar.gov) that allows owners to signup via email to receive model-specific vehicle safety recalls. This modern delivery system ensures that safety notifications are delivered the moment a safety recall is announced.

To improve the overall recall process I ask that your retail outlets implement a new practice of offering buyers an opportunity to sign up for safety recalls via the safercar.gov website during the buying process. Point of sale is the picture-perfect place to connect new and used vehicle owners to the electronic delivery of recall notifications provided by NHTSA.

Retails stores and their corporate management have a social and human responsibility to make this happen. The process is easy, requires no additional funding and is paramount to customer safety.

Will you act?

Happy Motoring,

Juan Barnett

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Below is a screenshot of the vehicle recall subscription page: [Read more...]

Mar
11

Has GM ‘Shafted’ Cadillac CTS-V Owners?

By | Industry

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Like most second generation CTS-V owners, I’ve come to terms that to own the ‘fastest sedan in the world’ I have to endure a sound that can only be described as a can full of marbles, being tossed-about under the hood.

Several CTS-V owners have experienced this issue which resulted in General Motors releasing a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB: PIP4523A) which basically states: the rattle is normal, take your $73,000 car and live with it.

CTS-V owners, like most performance vehicle owners, are very active online. Owners took to the forums to discuss and share their displeasure with ‘the rattle’.  They made enough noise that in November of 2009, it prompted Ed Piatek then Program Engineering Manager on the CTS-V to step in and clarify a few facts. Below is the response Ed provided to members of CadillacForums.com: [Read more...]

Feb
24

Vehicle Recalls – Via Email

By | The Hill

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Scenario: The car you are driving is being recalled for unintended incineration. A notification will be sent to you via first class mail informing you of this potential life-ending situation.

Wait. What happens if the address on file is wrong or your partner throws away the notification?  Is snail mail really the only way to notify you that your commute has turned into a game of automotive Russian roulette?  Afraid so. But this could all change very soon.

While efforts between the Senate and the House to agree on a highway authorization bill have stalled, many less-political provisions will remain in a final package.

One particular effort seems aimed at improving the timeliness of recall notifications from automakers to vehicle owners.

Section 31311, titled Update Means of Providing Notification; Improving Efficacy of Recalls, was a part of a recent substitute amendment offered by Senator Reid on Senate Bill 1813 (Surface Transportation Act).

The provision provides the Secretary of Transportation added flexibility when determining the process for which automakers notify vehicle owners of safety recalls. Currently the law requires [Read more...]